Celtic Engagement Rings

Irish Vest

Irish Vest

Alternative Ulster: Bringing uniformed Youth Participation & Political Structures to 21st Century Northern Ireland

Executive Summary

In the Haymarket area of Edinburgh, Scotland, tucked away in an average looking 1970's style office block is the staff hub of The Scottish Youth Parliament. Initiated in 1999, this wholly peer elected, A-Political body of young people convene at least four times annually to discuss political issues, lobby the Scottish Parliament as well as run campaigns for young people across the country. Four Hundred Miles south, in Swansea Wales, is a similar organisation with a more original name, ‘Funky Dragon' which is massively influential in relation to the Welsh Assembly and representative of a wide range of groups within the population of Welsh young people. In London, there is the head quarters of the United Kingdom Youth Parliament, which, while not without its problems, encompasses mostly elected young people from all 4 countries of the UK.

Yet a short trip across the Irish Sea to Belfast, and you would be hard pressed to find an a-political, peer elected, national youth parliament for Northern Ireland. You would be burdened due to the simple fact that such an organisation does not exist here. We must ask ourselves the question; ‘why not?' Northern Ireland is a country with one and three quarters of a million people in it (BBC News: 2009), 42% of which are our young people. It is the fastest growing region of the UK as well as having the largest proportion of young people of all the regions. Yet, for reasons which will be explored in this document, the large population of young people are being widely neglected in terms of their opportunity to participate civically and politically.

Context and Importance of the Problem

The context of this issue, like many of the issues in Northern Ireland currently, are still very intertwined with the historical problems which have affected the country over the past one hundred years, but specifically in the latter twenty first century. Some analysts believe the current problem is caused through the lack of total cohesion of the Northern Irish Assembly, and while this is a very valid factor, it is something that looks like it will not go away. With already so many opposite and extreme characters and parties trying to ‘power-share' and the emergence of more extremist parties such as the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV), this is an issue we would be better embracing and working with rather than fighting against it.

The Review of Public Administration (RPA) consultation covered all structural aspects of Northern Ireland, with some of the biggest changes being proposed in relation to local governance and the education sector. It was the first major examination of how public services in Northern Ireland are organised and delivered (rpani.gov.uk: 2006). These proposals would see the current existing councils, of which twenty six will be cut to eleven by May 2011, as well as the 6 Education and Library Boards (ELB's) which currently exist will be merged into one central body for the whole country.

Further developments are currently underway as far as a Northern Ireland Youth Assembly is concerned, and support is gathering within the chambers of Stormont. Cross party support is evident and was shown in a debate which took place on the 3rd of March 2009 in relation to the business of ‘Assembly Commission Engagement Strategy'. Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLA's) Stephen Moutray and Alban Maginness, members of the Democratic Unionist Party and Social Democratic and Labour Party respectively both demonstrate their support for encouraging Youth Participation and awareness in the work of the devolved government (Theyworkforyou.com: 2009).

While there are issues which are rooted deep within the political and organisational structures in Northern Ireland, there are problems to contend with in terms of structures and cultures of organisations such as the United Kingdom Youth Parliament (UKYP). There are three main criticisms of the UKYP which include; "unintentional tokenism" (Middleton, E: 2006); being more of an "English Youth Parliament" (Welsh Affairs) and the using of the House of Commons for UKYP debates (Browne, J - Liberal Democrat Voice: 2009). Young people's opinion on the UKYP are also very well publicised, both from within the organisation and from perspectives outside looking in, an example of the latter being Alimohammadiha (2009).

Looking at the Welsh Affairs First Report on Children and Young Peoples' Forums in Wales, it is accused that Welsh young people have stated that the UKYP is not a positive experience for them and that the organisation is English centred. Historically, this is accurate in terms of the experiences of Northern Irish young people as well as those of Scottish Members of Youth Parliament (MYP's) too. In recent years this has got to the point where the welsh sister organisation, Funky Dragon, pulled welsh young people out of participating with the UKYP at any level, in protest of how the "Nations" were treated as well as objections to certain policies. This boycott commenced in 2006, and while there have been attempts to re-integrate, currently there is no Welsh participation in the UKYP. However, while this stand-off remains, progress has been made as the most recent UKYP chair has been a Northern Irish Young Person, who has used his term to build better structural relations (Mallon, B: 2009). These issues are important to rectify if we are to encourage young people to participate in the wider youth participation structures in the UK.

As for Alimohammadiha, the eighteen year old reporter for ‘Headliners' focuses on the criticisms of the UKYP surrounding the lack of young people involved from ethnic minorities. While some commentators have stated this as an issue, it could be argued by cynics within the ‘nations' that the UKYP may use this as a ‘cloak of convenience' to avoid the issue of dealing with problems of relationships with them.

Widespread participation in the UK is a relatively new phenomenon, arguably triggered by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), specifically Article 12 which highlights, "States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child" (UN: 1989). As suggested by Middleton (2006), the beginnings of youth participation where seen in the period between 1989 and 1991, however it's only been in the past decade that the government has really initiated support of youth participation, with its inclusion in seven separate pieces of legislation since 1998.

More complex issues include many young people's personal identity, which some may feel restricts them from participating in one structure or another. While in previous experiences of the UKYP and other British-wide opportunities, those young people who class themselves as Irish have often participated fully, there may be exceptions to this. This is why the option of all Ireland work, which is lacking currently, must be addressed to look at the balance. Of course this should be balanced as there will be occasions where those who class themselves as British, may feel it is not their place to be participating at an All-Ireland level. Within the past decade, there have been numerous examples of youth forums which have been folded, poorly publicised and, in the case of many, large areas of young people are still without a youth participation network.

Critique of Policy Option(s)

All too often within working with young people, a consultation will be carried out in respect to young people and their participation in services, which is often good in  practice, however lacking in substance. A recent example of this can be taken from Lancashire County Council and their Children and Young People's Plan. The document states that over four hundred young people took part in the creation of the plan, quotes a lot of individual young people and responds with "we promise to...", yet it lacks substance by not telling us how they propose to do these things.

The Northern Ireland Youth Forum (NIYF) in contrast, has consulted with young people in relation to the proposed ‘Network for Youth' and allowed these young people to recommend exactly what they would like to see and how it should be carried out (NIYF: 2008). Questions must be asked, however about whose responsibility it is to create such a Network, while not questioning the place of the NIYF in consulting with young people in relation to the project, as this is surely a much needed and valued development. Much of the initial guidance for Youth Workers for the consultation stage came from the Youth Council of Northern Ireland, directed by The Big Deal (Big Lottery Fund), yet the consultation on the grand scale was directed by NIYF. Yet all this has been initiated in 2005 by the then Minister for Education, who stated that a Network for Youth should, "...strengthen the direct voice of young people in all relevant aspects of government provisions" (Early Years: 17/08/2007)

Throughout ‘The Troubles' and peace process era's of the country, Northern Ireland has had a wealth of Community Relations and Peace & Reconciliation projects, many aimed at young people. These projects increasingly involved exchanges and involvement with peers from the Republic of Ireland, however while these projects have flourished, cross border co-operation and participation has not come to the fore of Youth & Community Work. It could be argued that bigotry has prevented the relevant bodies from fully connecting with their counterparts across the border, as in theory, it would be a natural partnership to work and learn from those who are closest to us.

 

In further relation to the above, it is a distinct possibility that those who are in control of Youth Participation could be accused of ‘missing the boat' as far as funding opportunities are concerned. A critical source of cross-community funding since 1986 has come from International Fund for Ireland, which is to be wound up in 2010 (Corrigendum to Council Regulation: 2006). For Peace & Reconciliation projects such as Corrymeela, this is proving to be a massive issue which has seen a massive influx of capital expenditure now before the fund ceases to be (Pettis, S: 2009). Yet have organisations missed their chance of funds to create and maintain all-Ireland links for participation? It could be argued that there is a strong case to support this. With this fund being a co-operative of financial assistance from the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the European Union with a focus solely on Ireland, it will be sorely missed as a specialist source of easily accessible funding for Ireland. When it goes, projects will be forced into the same lottery as every other project with the UK, Ireland and European Union, applying for already queued funds such as The National Lottery and EU Development Funds.

Policy Recommendations

One organisation which has faced some criticism for lack of visible involvement in Northern Ireland is the British Youth Council, who's core mission statement says, "We connect with our community members organisations and network of local youth councils, to empower all of us, wherever we come from, to have a say and be heard" (British Youth Council: no date). As an initial phase of the development of Youth Participation, a suggestion would be to employ the services and advice of the BYC in order to enact change at both Local and Regional levels in Northern Ireland.

Where there is a major gap in the participation structure of Northern Ireland is at a local level. As has been outlined, Youth Forums have struggled to survive even when they have proven their worth to young people and local councils. If we could support youth forums in order to feed into a wider Northern Ireland structure, even simply the NIYF or The Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People (NICCY) until a Network for Youth is set up, this would increase the numbers of young people participating nationwide greatly. This would also assist the phase of development where uniformed UKYP and Network for Youth elections can take place fairly across the country, as is the case in the rest of the UK. Young People must be empowered to become politically active at this level to encourage party political activism and participation in elections, thus allowing them to entrust a mandate onto their peers to lobby government and other organisations and individuals in positions of power on their behalf. Individually and informally away from organised forums and councils, young people should be supported by their youth and community workers to engage with established organisations of people in power such as District Policing Partnerships and local government.

As devised by the Northern Ireland Youth Forum, there is already a tabled proposal for a "Northern Ireland Network for Youth" (Figure One) which incorporates the proposed changes recommended and awaiting action from the Review of Public Administration (RPA). This proposal has come directly for the consultation and recommendations of young people, therefore surely giving it great currency and need to be adopted. The structure proposed will create a ‘Youth Led Regional Body', theoretically similar to the likes of the Scottish Youth Parliament, Funky Dragon and Dail na Nog. Feeding into this will be groups and individuals representing "local area branches" from each of the soon-to-be-created eleven local government areas.

While our core aim must be to encourage further improvements of youth participation within Northern Ireland, starting with the Network for youth, it has to be understood the importance of the UKYP being there for all regions of the UK, including Northern Ireland and Wales. This means that those in positions of influence within the UKYP from Northern Ireland, such as the current chair, the Procedures Group Representatives and the UKYP Regional Co-ordinator for Northern Ireland, must act as mediators and supporters of a productive resolution to the issues. In simple terms, it could be described as creating change from the ground up; from local level to regional level; regional to national; national to European and European to the wider international stage.

 

 

In summing up the recommendations of this report, the following suggestions are being put forward to the Northern Ireland Assembly, Northern Ireland Youth Forum, Youth Council, Department of Education and all relevant bodies and individuals with a vested interest in the learning and development of Young People in this country:

1. An open dialogue and line of support should be initiated with the British Youth Council in order to:
   1. Gain support and advice surrounding the development of youth participation
   2. Improve the stature of the British Youth Council in Northern Ireland and its relationship with agencies in the country
   3. The Northern Ireland Youth Forum's proposals for a Network For Youth should be taken as a working example and implemented as soon as possible. Priority must be placed on:
      1. Creating uniformed Youth Councils in each council area.
      2. Creating a Northern Ireland wide, fully elected (or representative of elected local youth councils) Youth Parliament.
      3. United Kingdom Youth Parliament elections should be given maximum exposure to as many young people in Northern Ireland as possible in both informal and formal settings (such as schools).
         1. Areas should be represented evenly using the same system as is used in the rest of the UK.
         2. While members of youth councils and a youth parliament for Northern Ireland may be natural members for the UKYP, membership should not be focused or restricted in any way to this group.
         3. Members of Youth Councils and Parliaments should be given informal training in order to assist the young people in their area's to feed into local government and non-statutory organisations in their everyday lives.

 

All of these recommendations will take a considerable amount of time and investment, as well as a core multi-agency approach to solving the problems of Youth Participation in Northern Ireland. The youth services and organisations of this country are in an excellent position to learn from the mistakes of others and following positive examples from the UK, Ireland and the rest of the world, of which there are many.

Sources Consulted or Recommended

In constructing this briefing paper, a number of sources and people were consulted with. Without their expertise and time given up, this paper would not be as in depth and balanced as it hopefully is, so my thanks must be shown to them. These people include, Ben Mallon, current UKYP chairperson and previous MYP and Procedures Group rep for Northern Ireland. Paddy Hughes of the NIYF, the UKYP's Regional Co-Ordinator for Northern Ireland. The Liberal Democrat MP Jeremy Browne for his full, frank and honest opinions on the UKYP on his Blog on Liberal Democrat Voice.

Sean Pettis, personal friend and former long-term volunteer of the Corrymeela Community for giving a full and frank tour of the Ballycastle site and for his information regarding the International Fund for Ireland. The British Youth Council for supplying their mission statement and the European Council for the paper relating to the International Fund for Ireland. Ghazale Alimohammadiha, an Iranian eighteen year old writing for Headliners (formally ‘Children's Express) on the topic of Ethnic Minorities in the UKYP. Emily Middletons' journal article in relation to youth participation and child rights in the UK was also of vital importance.

Word Count: 2894

Bibliography

BBC NEWS (2009) NI Population to top 1.8M in 2010. Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8318038.stm (Accessed: 2/12/2009)

British Youth Council (2009) More About the BYC. Available at: http://www.byc.org.uk/view.php?parent_id=0&content_id=163 (Accessed: 7/12/2009)

Early Years (2007) Northern Ireland Network for Youth – Pre Consultation. Available at: http://www.early-years.org/news/news_info.php?newsid=1 (Accessed: 6/12/09)

European Union (2006). Corrigendum to Council Regulation (EC) No. 1968/2006 concerning Community Financial Contributions of the International Fund for Ireland (2007 to 2010). Brussels: Council of the European Union.

Headliners (2009) Views of the Future. Available at: http://www.headliners.org/storylibrary/stories/2009/youth+parliament.htm?id=3833144767497934609272 (Accessed: 6/12/2009)

Hughes, P (2009) Conversation with Nathan Erskine, 4th December 2009.

Mallon, B (2009). Conversation with Nathan Erskine, 2nd December 2009.

Middleton, E (2006).'Youth Participation in the UK: Bureaucratic Disaster or Triumph of Child Rights?' Children, Youth and Environments, 16 (2) pp. 180 – 190. Available at:

http://www.colorado.edu/journals/cye. (Accessed: 5/12/2009)

Pettis, S (2009). Conversation with Nathan Erskine, 14th September 2009.

Theyworkforyou.com (2009) Northern Ireland Assembly - Debate on the Assembly Engagement Strategy. Available at: http://www.theyworkforyou.com/ni/?id=2009-03-03.4.1 (Accessed: 12/12/09)

 

About the Author

My name is Nathan Erskine and I'm a 21 Year old student. I hold a BA(Hons) in Youth & Community Development work as well as a Professional Qualification in Youth Work and I'm currently working towards an MA in Comparative Ethnic Conflict. My undergraduate institution was the University of Cumbria in Lancaster (University of Lancaster Degree Award) while my current studies are at Queen's University Belfast.

My base interests are Youth & Community Work in Northern Ireland; the application of community work to conflict resolution; Peace & Reconciliation and young people and communities participating in governance.

It is my hope to become a published article writer in the near future, so please feel free to read my articles and provide feedback of any kind! You may contact me at nerskine02@qub.ac.uk

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