Salford City Council
Salford City Council
11/26/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/26/2024 09:29
Salford young people quiz council and police on crime and community issues
Young people have held a 'question time' event to ask Salford City Council and Greater Manchester Police (GMP) about crime and community safety issues in Salford.
In recent surveys young people in Salford have said issues like knife crime and young women's safety are key concerns for them.
Young people from youth projects across the city developed the questions to ask a panel of professionals.
The feedback from this event will be used by GMP as it carries out a consultation on resetting police priorities.
It's also hoped more young people who are interested in these issues will join the GMP Youth Independent Advisory Group.
At the event on 25 November young people from Salford Youth Council, the Fight for Change Council, Beacon Girls Group, Salford Lads and Girls Club and Salford Youth Zone put a range of questions to Salford City Councillors, professionals, and Paul McCurry, Programme Lead for Police Apprenticeship Programme with Salford University.
The venue for the event and food for the young people was provided by Salford University.
The young people's questions included:
- What work is being done on the rehabilitation of young criminals?
- Do you think anti-social behaviour is on the rise? What are you doing to stop it?
- How do the police work differently when working with young people with SEND?
- Have you ever arrested someone whilst they were going through a McDonalds drive thru?
- What is being done to combat hate crime?
- Can you volunteer to help prevent crime?
- How are you tackling youth violence and knife crime?
- I do not feel confident approaching the police to report a crime and, generally I feel unsafe in my community. How are you working with young people to break those barriers?
- Tell me about a time when you had to deal with a person who was acting hostile but not yet violent. How did you handle the situation to avoid it escalating?
- How do you plan to educate and prepare young people about stop and search, to allow them to understand their rights?
Kyran Wegener from Salford Youth Council said: "We really want to find out what's happening to deal with serious issues like youth violence, knife and hate crime, rehabilitating young people and how the police deal with young people who have special needs and disabilities. We want to feel safe in our streets and homes and we hope that by understanding what our issues and concerns are, we can work with Salford City Council and police to find ways to improve the situation."
Emilee Jones, a young person from Dean's Youth Centre said: "I think it's a good thing that this event is talking about crime and safety and young people. It's important we can get our opinions out and have people listen to us. People in power get to hear young people's views rather than guessing what they think. It's a good thing youth crime is being tackled and things like rehabilitation are being discussed."
Councillor Barbara Bentham Lead Member for Neighbourhoods, Environment and Community Safety said: "We were very pleased to take part in this event and to see young people be so involved in sharing what their concerns and issues are. This is very helpful in helping us, the police and other agencies shape our plans and actions to reduce crime, help communities feel safe and make Salford a great place to live."
Councillor Jim Cammell, Lead Member for Children's and Young People's Services at Salford City Council said: "This event is an important part of our work to listen to and champion the voices and rights of children and young people in the city. We would like to extend our thanks to Salford University for providing the food and venue for this event."
Melissa Caslake, Executive Director of Children's Services, said: "Event such as this one help us to find out what young people are most concerned about and interested in, so we can design and build services that meet their needs and future aspirations."
Chief Inspector Darren Whitehead from GMP Salford district said: "Young people can come into contact with the police on a daily basis, for a variety of reasons, and we strongly believe that first impressions matter, and that any experience they have may have a lasting impact.
"For this reason, it's important that we get it right. Our young people are the future of Salford, anything we can do to improve the relationship with them is crucial. Sessions like this can help us foster positive relationships with them and encourage them to get involved and share their concerns, so that together, we can drive positive change across Salford."
The event comes after organisations across the city united last week to pledge their support in making Salford a child friendly city.
Salford is applying for this prestigious accreditation, where the voices, needs, priorities and rights of children are an integral part of public policies, programmes and decisions.
Salford Youth Council is a youth voice group for anyone aged 11 to 21 who lives, is educated or works in Salford.
It meets on a weekly basis, to plan events, work on campaigns, and promote positive stories of young people in Salford.
The Salford Youth council is the home of the Young Mayor and Members of Youth Parliament for Salford.
The Fight for Change Council is a youth voice group for any young person who is care experienced aged 11 to 21 from Salford.
The youth voice groups meet on a weekly basis, to plan events, work on campaigns, and promote positive stories of young people in Salford.
Find out more about Salford Youth Council and the Fight for Change Council.
Date published Tuesday 26 November 2024