MIDDLESBROUGH’S newly elected Member of Youth Parliament has set out his three point pledge to the town’s young people.
Ben Carr, a Year 8 pupil at Acklam Grange School, was elected to the post unopposed.
Ben has outlined is priorities as free travel for young people, more activities between schools and more technology being integrated into school life.
The 12-year-old, from Linthorpe, said: “I wanted to stand for MYP as I have always enjoyed the feeling of pride when you make a positive difference to something as small as other people’s day.
“Therefore, to make a big difference to other people’s lives or education is an amazing opportunity. Personally, I strive to change other people’s lives even in a small way and I believe that MYP is the perfect opportunity to do so.
“Finally, I believe that I could represent the young people of our town well, because I’m very open to ideas, I’m confident that I can do the job well and I will give it my all.”
The role of an MYP is to meet with MPs and local councillors, organise events, run campaigns, make speeches, hold debates and ensure the views of young people are listened to by decision makers.
Ben is advocating free travel to school to help families without a car who struggle to meet the expense.
On his policy of increasing inter-school activities, he said: “I believe activities involving different schools would be very effective for keeping strong bonds between pupils from different schools which in turn would result in a reduction in anti-social behaviour like fights that start because of rivalries between schools.
“Also, for year 11 students it would be a great opportunity to make friends with people attending their future colleges, so they don’t feel isolated during their first few days of college. These events could include none contact sports or artistic events as to give a range of options for people with different interests.”
Finally, on integrating more technology into school life, Ben added: “I believe that more technology being used in schools would boost attendance, keep students interested and prepare people for later life, as technology is becoming a greater part of life and the workplace.”