Introduction
On Monday 10 March 2025, the third Bucks Youth Summit took place at the Waterside Theatre in Aylesbury!
The event invited young people from across the county to share their voice on the biggest issues and areas of interest for young people in Buckinghamshire today.
Who was there?
The event was planned and hosted by young people in Buckinghamshire’s county-wide youth forum, the Youth Voice Executive Committee, with facilitation by Youth Voice Bucks.
The event was inclusive. Young attendees included young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), care-experienced young people, young people who are Electively Home Educated, young people with youth justice experience, and gender non-binary and trans young people.
- 186 young people from 23 schools and 12 youth groups attended.
- The Shout Out for SEND Reps led The SEND Space.
- Young people in Article 12 led The Mental Health Space.
- Young journalists led on event photos and comms.
Read Young Journalist Thannista’s Article on the Summit 2025
- Over 100 professionals, from 44 partner organisations and teams, including 14 Buckinghamshire Council teams, supported the event.
Feedback
“Being able to facilitate a space alongside professionals was an amazing opportunity and taught me valuable lessons on how to engage a crowd and how to organise debates and meaningful conversations.”
“It was a great experience to learn from the local Councillors and allow the Councillors to learn from the young people.”
“Thank you so much for inviting us to the Youth Summit, it was a fantastic event and everything seemed to run so smoothly which is a testament to all the hard work the team (Youth Voice Executive Committee) has put in. I know the journalists had a great time!”
“I’ve had some really amazing feedback regarding the day, and the students really enjoyed getting involved and being able to have their voices heard – something that doesn’t happen enough!”
“The event was great fun and it was amazing to see so many young people in attendance and engaging. I just wanted to say well done (Youth Voice Executive Committee) on organising this wonderful event.”
Life After School
In The Life After School Space, young people said:
– Most of us are hoping to go to university after school, but lots of us want to get a job / apprenticeship instead.
– We would like to see a combined approach to work experience, with in-person and virtual elements. The virtual elements should be shorter, informative preparation for the in-person placement.
– Most of us know where to go to for support with life after school – from our career leaders, teachers, and parents/carers.
– We would like PSHE lessons to help educate and prepare us for modern working styles, such as working from home, hybrid working and frontline working.
– We’re not yet thinking about part-time work, but we recognise that we can gain important employability skills from our hobbies and interests, such as leadership, teamwork, and communication. Most of us are already doing some kind of volunteering.
– We recognise the importance of seeking a career doing something we enjoy.
– We rated our confidence in a range of life skills. Budgeting and laundry came up as the biggest skills gaps!
– We value PSHE and would like more of it, especially around mental Health and drugs, vaping, alcohol misuse, and being exposed to influencing online.
The Mental Health Space
In The Mental Health Space, young people said:
- We have so many top tips for others struggling with mental health!
- Lots of us know about Mental Health support services, but some of us find it hard to understand what support is available, so we don’t reach out.
- Some of us are concerned about the information we share to mental health support services.
- Lots of us worry about being taken out of lessons to receive support because others might judge us for it and view us differently.
- It is hard for many young people to speak about their own mental health and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, like autism.
- We would like to see specialist professionals coming to schools to support young people’s mental health.
- There can be cultural barriers to accessing mental health support.
- We suggest sharing QR codes in public places where young people hang around, to help educate and engage them.
Read more about The Mental Health Space
The Politics Space
In The Politics Space, young people said:
– We need more mechanisms for young people to inform and influence decisions.
– We need a local space for young people to come together, share their voices and to spread awareness of youth opportunities.
– We want improved community spaces, particularly parks which often have broken equipment.
– We want better work experience opportunities and access to work.
– We need to reduce litter and create a cleaner environment.
– We need more awareness and harder restrictions on youth vaping.
– We want to be able to have an impact on international issues such as the war in Ukraine and American politics.
The Substance Space
In The Substance Space, young people said:
- We want more in-school education on substances and substance use.
- We want more education on the impact of our choices and how to manage peer pressure.
- Sharing lived experience is the best way to educate us.
- Vapes are easily accessible for young people from corner shops, dealers, social media, Deliveroo and JustEat.
- Snus (tobacco product) is becoming more popular and an issue to young people.
- School is a major influence for us when it comes to vaping, tobacco, and substances
- We call for a ‘Stop Vaping’ Service!
- Most of us are confident in having a trusted adult or service we can approach if we or someone we know has an issue with substances.
- We have mixed feelings about whether we would seek help from school.
- Some of us are concerned about data confidentiality if we reach out for support.
Read more about The Substance Space
The Police Space
In The Police Space, young people said:
- We feel the best way for the police to foster positive relationships with young people is by being approachable, respectful, and non-judgmental.
- Some of us don’t really like the police and usually avoid them.
- Some of us want to be heard by the police, we want to say hi but don’t know how.
- Some of us would like to see police presence in school to help build positive relationships.
- We think it would help to show police and people. One example is that we find non-uniformed officers more approachable.
- We recommend police officers are calm, use soft tones and a mindful of mental health when engaging with young people.
- We fed back on posters and marketing materials. We like bold colours and concise text. QR codes are great, but we can’t use our phones in school so sometimes they are not accessible. There is also a risk that they can be tampered with / pasted over.
- We suggest putting knife amnesty boxes on google maps!
The Green Space
In the Green Space, young people said:
- We see new homes being built and worry about losing green space.
- We want to see solar panels on the roofs of public buildings and supermarkets.
- Punctuality and availability of buses and trains is a significant barrier for young people in using public transport.
- Safety is also a barrier to using sustainable forms of transport – for example pedestrians and bikes sharing path space, road crossings, and risks from others on buses.
- The climate emergency affects our mental health. We worry about loss of green space, litter, and the amount of cars.
- We have loads of ideas about promoting climate responsibility in schools – From meat-free canteen days to nature/wild gardens to green roofs and more!
- Today helped to show the disparity between schools in climate response actions – some schools are doing lots, some are doing very little.
- We worry about air pollution – especially buses and cars idling around schools.
Read more about The Green Space
The SEND Space
In The SEND Space, young people said:
– Friendships are to important to our experiences in school
– Clear routines help young people with SEND to manage transitions.
– We would like to see more support around grief and bereavement for young people with SEND – lack of support during this transition has a big impact on our lives.
– “Smaller things impact me more than bigger things”; put nicely by one young person, “I put a can of coke in the fridge ready for when I get back from school, I come back to relax and someone has taken it. Things like this set me back so much.”
– We really enjoyed engaging with the SEND Space! Lots of us have shared an interest with getting involved with Shout Out for SEND in the future!
The LGBTQ+ Space
In the LGBTQ+ Space young people said:
- We find the word “queer” to be a celebratory, inclusive and affirming term. For young people, it is overwhelmingly positive. It feels very human.
- There is a lack of adult understanding / empathy around young people’s LGBTQ+ identity and issues.
- We want to see more celebration of the young LGBTQ+ community. We are excited for Pride!
- Gender neutral toilets are important, but often they are not properly taken care of.
- We enjoyed making bracelets and the calm, vibrant and fun tone of the LGBTQ+ Space.
Read more about The LGBTQ+ Space