Listening to voices of Wanganui's young people

One-hundred and twenty Wanganui youths converged on the Wanganui Function centre yesterday as part of the Wanganui District Council Youth Committee's Youth Connect 2012.

The two-day forum is funded by the youth committee and the Ministry of Youth Development, and co-ordinated in partnership with the Underground Youth Trust. Youth committee members and the council's youth services team hosted the event.

Young people from schools, training providers and employment services attended workshops hosted by representatives from the Wanganui District Health Board, Sport Wanganui and the Ministry of Youth Development, where they were encouraged to share their ideas on what they think would make Wanganui an even better place for young people. The ideas gathered will be fed into the youth committee's 10-year strategic plan. Councillor Jack Bullock, youth committee chair, said the forum was a valuable event.

"This is a great opportunity for our young people to get together, connect and engage and let their voices be heard."