On Tuesday 16th March, NYAS Cymru hosted a live hustings event where care-experienced young people from across Wales put their questions to candidates in the Senedd election.
The event was attended by candidates in the Welsh Parliament election, who set out their positions and visions for supporting care-experienced children and young people. Julie Morgan MS (Labour), Amanda Jenner (Conservative), Leanne Lewis (Plaid Cymru) and Oliver Townsend (Liberal Democrat) answered the young people’s questions directly, addressing how they each will include and support care-experienced young people in their plans, should they be elected in May.
The questions put to candidates followed NYAS Cymru’s ‘Listen if you Care’ report, put together and written by NYAS Cymru’s Young Person Advisory Group (YPAG), a group of care-experienced young people aged between 13 and 25 across Wales. Members of the YPAG attended the hustings event and called on candidates to guarantee stronger support for young people’s mental health and better education and employment opportunities.
Sharon Lovell, NYAS Cymru CEO and hustings chair said, “We’re thrilled that candidates from the major political parties in Wales took the time to listen and respond to young people’s questions. It is resoundingly clear that the next Welsh Government must empower the voices of young people across Wales. No child or young person should ever feel voiceless, and we will not stop campaigning until they are heard. At NYAS Cymru, we will always be on the side of the child.”
