Wandsworth’s first youth mayor team has been working with the youth council for a better borough since its election last May.
Millie Quinn, 18, was elected as the youth mayor and Favour Oniri, 18, as the deputy youth mayor.
Quinn was motivated to run for the role as she wanted to make an impact in her local area.
She said: “I understand how hard it can be for a young person to get their voice heard.
“A lot of the time it can be seen to be quite tokenistic, and so to have a youth representative voice being heard is a great way to create more inclusive structures within our borough.”
Quinn described the role not as an individual one but a representative one, with lots of her work involving collaboration with the deputy youth mayor and wider youth council.
The youth council is a group who care about decisions which impact them and the wider community, and its aim is to ensure that young people’s voices are heard, understood, and included by decision makers.
Both Quinn and Oniri were members of the youth council prior to being elected to their roles.
Oniri joined the youth council as she felt disconnected to local issues.
She said: “I think that not getting involved previously caused me to be blind and ignorant to the problems in the area.
“I thought this would be a good opportunity to learn more about people around me and also a good leadership opportunity.”
Since being elected, the pair have worked together to achieve progress in their respective interests.
Quinn is passionate about educating young people about sexual violence and poor health, while Oniri is interested in education, community engagement, child poverty and mental health.
As part of the youth mayor role, Quinn chose a charity to support.
She chose to support Wandsworth Welcomes Refugees, which is working with the borough of sanctuary to provide a safe space for people seeking asylum and refuge in the borough.
When reflecting on the last six months, both Quinn and Oniri shared highlights from their time as youth mayor and deputy youth mayor.
These included opening the Wandsworth fringe and attending the civic awards and Battersea fireworks display.
As the first youth mayor Quinn said that much of her role has been centred around establishing her position and increasing awareness of it.
Quinn said: “I really hope this youth mayor role runs for many years to come.
“It’s only the beginning, and there is still a way to go in people knowing that it exists and getting recognition for it, but I think that it will start to become much stronger in the long term.”
Both Quinn and Oniri encouraged young people in the borough to get in touch to have their voices heard.
Quinn said: “I really do care about representing young people, and I hope that people feel that they can reach out to the youth mayor and the youth council no matter how small or big their issue is.”
They also suggested that any like-minded individuals join the youth council to have a greater say in decision-making.
The Wandsworth youth council meets fortnightly and more information can be found here.
Featured image credit: Suho Media via Unsplash
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