Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies are noted above

The Minutes of the last meeting held on 4 June 2025 are attached.

The below amendments to the minutes were requested:

Page 3 – Noah not Hoah

Page 6 – Media Literacy Select Committee not Executive Committee

Minutes:

It was agreed:

Following the above amendments that the Minutes of the meeting held on the 01^st April 2025 be approved as a correct record.

Councillor Members of the Youth Cabinet are asked whether they have any interest in any item on the agenda and if so, to formally declare that interest.

There were no declarations of interest made at the meeting.

Inspector Hussain from Greater Manchester Police attended to explain about the work of the Police since the last Youth Cabinet meeting on the 01^st April 2025.

Inspector Hussain gave members an overview of Collabor8 which is a Community Celebration that started in 2016 with input from young people. It was held at Tottington High School on 30th July with over 60 stalls representing:

Youth Cabinet members were asked to consider the following during a break out session:

• What are the barriers? Why might young people feel uncomfortable sharing information with the police? Is it fear, mistrust, past experiences, or lack of understanding?
• What role does media play? Are there films, shows, or social media narratives that shape how young people view law enforcement?
• What kind of information is valuable? Are we talking about reporting crimes, sharing community concerns, or helping with investigations?

A Member fed back “I feel like on social media, the police are often seen as a target. People don’t really know what they’re doing day to day, and a lot of it is based on stereotypes. I think the best way to change that is to have police come into schools, not just to talk, but to actually do activities with us. That way, we’re not afraid of them, and we can see them as real people.”

Another member highlighted that “Young people don’t want to be policed, they want to be part of the solution. We’ve seen that when officers genuinely want to work with young people, not just monitor them, it changes everything.

Initiatives like child-centred policing weren’t created by adults they were shaped by children themselves. That’s the kind of thinking we need more of.

The issue isn’t always with local officers many of them are doing great work. The challenge is often at the top, with how senior leadership sees and values youth voices. We don’t need more instructions, we need more listening. We spoke to people, we ran events, we created space. That’s where the real change starts.”

It was also fed back that “It’s not just about looking like you’re doing something; it’s about actually being there. People need to see police officers and leaders come down, meet people, and really listen. You can’t build trust from a distance. You have to show up, not just in uniform, but as a person. That’s how you break down barriers, not with policies, but with presence.”

Members were asked if it would it be more effective to have one big GMCA-led taskforce, or multiple smaller, localised youth forums that feed into a central network?”

In response members agreed they are “not looking for top-down solutions anymore. The real change happens when district  ...  view the full minutes text for item YC.4

Report attached

The Council’s constitution was reviewed and updated at the Annual General Meeting held in May 2025. Since then, a Democratic Arrangement Forum (DAF) meeting has been held and reviewed the terms of reference for the Local Bee Network Forum. DAF proposed amendments as set out in this report in relation to the Bury Local Bee Network Forum. Members of Council agreed to the following at the full Council meeting held on the 16th July 2025:-

Adopt the proposed changes at appendix 1 to the terms of reference (Highlighted in red text).

Members were informed that the aim is to ensure regular youth representation in meetings where decisions are made. This is part of a broader effort to embed youth voice into local governance and ensure reliability and continuity in representation.

 Committee Structure & Meeting Dates

• Four meetings per year (one has already passed) at Bury Town Hall:
  • Thursday 25th September
  • Thursday 4th December
  • Tuesday 17th March
• Meetings are scheduled for 6:00 PM.

Following a poll in the Youth Cabinet WhatsApp Group, Andrea Tomlinson to be notified of the successful representative.

Young people have identified seven key themes through peer conversations and scrutiny of the B Bold strategy. Each circle will include relevant stakeholders and decision-makers:

1. Transport
   • Focus: Accessibility, affordability, reliability.
   • Stakeholders: Metrolink, bus companies, TfGM, youth reps.
2. Community Safety
   • Focus: Knife crime, antisocial behaviour, physical safety.
   • Stakeholders: GMP, community safety teams.
3. Education
   • Focus: Life skills, political literacy, PSHE consistency.
   • Noted: PSHE delivery varies widely across schools.
   • Action: Ongoing consultation with schools and partners.
4. Health & Wellbeing
   • Focus: Mental health, access to services, youth-friendly support.
   • Stakeholders: Health services, youth mental health orgs.
5. Environment
   • Focus: Sustainability, climate action, local green initiatives.
6. Youth Voice & Representation
   • Focus: Embedding co-production and youth leadership in systems.
7. Community Cohesion
   • Focus: Hate crime, bullying, community tensions, and building positive relationships.
   • Distinct from community safety, this is about prevention and inclusion.

Samir reported that it has been a busy period, after a quieter few weeks.

Samir updated members of the latest policy changes and informed members he has been involved in discussions around lowering the voting age to 16, which is a key issue ahead of the next election.

This week included:

Members discussed how the current political education in schools is limited and inconsistent. Most students only learn about MPs and Parliament, with little to no understanding of:

Members fed back that young people often describe PSHE as surface-level and that there is a need for a standalone, engaging, and practical approach to political literacy.

Members were advised that there is no meeting in September.

A motion was passed unanimously yesterday and Full Council regarding Schools & Student Councils. There is a mixed picture across schools, some have student councils, others don’t.

The goal is to have a youth representative from every school. The idea is that each school has a student council, and each council has a representative who feeds into the wider youth structure.

It was agreed:

Youth Cabinet note the update.

Should we reintroduce the death penalty?

Youth Cabinet members took part in the debate, there was a side for and against.

It was agreed:

1.    That the death penalty should not be introduced.