To receive presentations from young people who study at Trafford College.

Students from Trafford College were invited to the meeting to share presentations. Blerta Shira, one of the young people from Trafford College thanked the Committee for the invitation and outlined that the presentations included some of the services young people would want any incoming Council to focus on.

Lamine Sillah-Camara presented first, outlining his desire for improved Mental Health Services for Young People in the Borough. This included improved work on preventative measures, establishment of peer-to-peer support, and fostering a sense of belonging for young people. Lamine added further that education and awareness programmes were essential for early identification. He added that this could be established through a mobile app, which resonated with modern young people. Lamine also felt a comprehensive support network and addressing of the gap in Mental Health support, would improve accessibility for Young People to the range of mental health services available.

[Note: Councillor Paul entered the meeting at 18:37]

The Chair thanked Lamine for his presentation and informed him that the Committee recently did a Task and Finish group on Mental Health services, adding that support from young people like Lamine would have been invaluable.

Roshan Singh presented on how young people could benefit from improved environmental decision making in Trafford. Roshan informed the Committee that young people do not have access to enough communal spots to meet and communicate in, which would support students in college to come back after lunch with a refreshed mindset. He highlighted areas such as the Trafford Centre but felt that there should be more local spaces. For example, Roshan mentioned Gorse Hill park, which was near to Trafford College Stretford Campus, however, he felt that this was more oriented toward children, and felt the park could be better advertised. He linked increased accessibility to greenspaces to Lamine’s presentation on mental health. Roshan concluded by referring to the imperativeness to preserve greenspace and encouraging biodiversity, which in turn would lead to further social opportunities for young people. 

The Chair thanked Roshan for his presentation and cast her mind back to the Pandemic where she felt the air felt fresher and cleaner, with people getting into the environment more. She recognised how more needed to be done in this area for young people, as places like the Trafford Centre were expensive.

Silas Ashby added that there were several parks in Trafford with lots of empty space. Silas felt this space could be embraced, including different plants and notice boards, encouraging young people to notice what was going on around them.

Councillor Procter encouraged the young people to join Friends of Park groups, which could apply for grants for extra funding to improve the area.

Councillor Sutton agreed with Roshan that older teenagers do fall into an unknown space when it comes to parks. Councillor Sutton encouraged the young people to respond to consultations for their local parks, with the youngest age group rarely responding. 

Councillor Ennis felt that public spaces were actively hostile to teenagers, which, alongside the reduction of youth centres in the country over the recent years, meant young people were isolated from places they were able to attend. 

Silas said they could get involved with friends of park groups within the College.

Silas Ashby presented on support for Transgender young people in the Borough. Silas felt that work was required to destigmatise the transgender experience. Silas informed the Committee that a recent study had found that 76% of transgender youth had experienced gender dysphoria by the age of seven and 96% had by the age of thirteen. Silas was thankful that the UK education system had made it mandatory to educate children on the topic of LGBTQ+ people in an age-appropriate way, however, was disappointed by the lack of internal services at Trafford Council, only a page on the website listing LGBTQ+ charities. Silas asked the Council to improve the services available within school and the education of school staff, to avoid mistakes made over sensitive topics.

The Chair agreed with everything Silas had said. The Chair was pleased to hear that LGBTQ+ education was now on the curriculum but agreed that work clearly need to be done in supporting the training of staff to greater understand the issues faced.

Councillor Procter was appalled around the Government decision to no longer provide medication to suppress puberty for trans children, which would make transition much harder for young people. Councillor Procter offered for Silas, and any other young people, to reach out to her if they needed any support.

Councillor Duncan thanked Silas for presenting this issue and related to things that Silas had said. He too offered his personal support to any young people at Trafford College having related issues.

The Executive Member for Children and Young People spoke of some of the events she attended in her role. The day after the meeting, the Executive Member was attending the Council Talkshop at Sale Waterside, meeting the Rainbow Reflection group and staff from the Proud Trust where they would be delivering a presentation. The Director of Early Help and Children’s Social Care added to this, reporting that the Council’s Youth Engagement Service had been working closely with the Rainbow Trust to earn an accreditation that highlighted that services operate with the understanding of the challenges faced by children and young people in the LGBTQ+ community. The Director would take back the lack of promotion and communication regarding this, to push the recognition of this accreditation further.

Councillor Ennis thanked Silas for sharing their experience. Councillor Ennis was glad to hear that the work on the lack of internal LGBTQ+ services was underway.

The Director of Education Standards, Quality and Performance added that she would take the feedback from Silas back to schools and school leaders in the Borough, including the scope for workforce development and training opportunities for teachers.

Councillor Paul also thanked Silas for the presentation and offered support if they wanted to reach out.

Councillor Sutton thanked Silas for the presentation and recognised how difficult it must be to speak up about these issues. Councillor Sutton referred to the Gender Recognition Act now being 20 years old, and as imperfect as it may have been, if people were only just realising trans people exist, then trans people were not the problem. He highlighted the support from Councillors cross-party in the room, despite hostility in the wider political climate.

Silas finally added how they were glad to hear from allies across Trafford Council.

Blerta Shira provided the final presentation, highlighting the limited job opportunities for young people. Blerta recognised that without a strong economy, young people would struggle to find meaningful employment, such as internships, job fairs or subsidised employment schemes. Blerta added that this leads to financial instability for young people and limits their career prospects. Blerta felt it was important that youth were provided with opportunities such as funding for placements, travel bursaries, and youth focused initiatives to help with economic issues faced.  Blerta referred to discrimination for young people in hiring processes, with requirements for roles not being met by young people due to not having the relevant education and experience. Blerta wanted the Council to create workshops for small businesses to attend and offer work experience. Blerta also mentioned the rise in under-35’s off work with chronic sickness, linked to the Mental Health crisis. Blerta concluded by asking the Council to provide further investment for skills training and education on vocational training.

The Chair thanked Blerta for their presentation and felt it had given Councillors and Officers food for thought.

The Corporate Director, Children’s Services responded that Trafford College had recently hosted a Trafford-based business event, with the Council looking at what partnerships could be entered. The Corporate Director added that it had proved to be powerful morning, following partnership and political commitment from those in attendance.

Councillor Hirst acknowledged how proud she was of all the young people for being able to come to the meeting and talk on the topics they had.

The Chair concluded the agenda item by thanking the young people and staff from Trafford College for attending. Following this, Members and the young people took a photo for the College’s social media. The Student Experience Manager at Trafford College thanked officers and Members of the Council for the invitation.

RESOLVED: That the presentations and contributions from the young people be noted and considered.