An initiative to engage young people in community safety issues has scooped gold at the NICCY Participate NI Awards.
 
Organised by North Belfast District Policing Community and Safety Partnership, the youth conference held in February last year brought together 60 teenagers, aged 13-18, to discuss issues of concern to them including organised fights, drugs and underage drinking.
The views of the young people informed a programme of work carried out by the Belfast Education and Library Board, as well as helping to shape the north Belfast PCSP plan.
 
North Belfast District PCSP chair Mary Ellen Campbell said: “I’m delighted that the hard work of the young people has been recognised. Their views are vital in helping to shape the work of the PCSP in north Belfast, and it’s fantastic to see so many teenagers engaging with us in a positive way. I think they can all be very proud of this achievement.”
 
Also highly commended at last night’s awards ceremony was the East Belfast District PCSP, for its Alive and Kicking NI project.
Pupils from Strathearn Grammar School developed a website focusing on the dangers of drugs and alcohol misuse. It proved so successful that the website has been rolled out to two other schools in east Belfast.
 
Jill Lapping, from east Belfast, and a member of the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People’s Youth Panel, said: “Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child states that children have the right to say what they think should happen and have their opinions taken into account when adults are making decisions that affect them.
“Children and young people’s services play an important part in the responsibilities of many public bodies and we expect that each would incorporate young people in their projects. While this is not always the case, East Belfast PCSP is one of many which are doing things right.”
 
Chief Executive at the office of the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People, Mairéad McCafferty, said, “This is good news for these organisations, for children and young people, and for Northern Ireland society as a whole. It shows that children and young people’s inclusion and participation is beginning to be taken seriously. Services are more effective when young people contribute as active citizens.
“While it was very difficult for the Youth Panel to choose the winners from the many excellent entries, East Belfast PCSP demonstrated an outstanding commitment to involving children and young people, listening to them, and more importantly acting on what they said.
“I would like to congratulate Jill, who along with other members of the Youth Panel, designed and developed the awards process based on their experiences from previous years and judged all entries made and helped organise the awards night itself.”
 
Belfast City Council’s Youth Forum was also highly commended at the awards ceremony. Find out more about the work of the Youth Forum here: www.belfastcity.gov.uk/youthforum