SOUTH YORKSHIRE YOUTH COMBINED AUTHORITY
SYYCA meets with M5 YCAs and Mayors
On 3 March 2022 members of the South Yorkshire Youth Combined Authority (SYYCA) gathered with other YCA’s and their constituent mayors to discuss the further developments of the National Youth Combined Authority (NYCA).
The National Youth Combined Authority is a group currently consisting of young representatives from: South Yorkshire, Manchester, Liverpool, West Midlands and West Yorkshire with the main purpose of broadening the depth of national youth scrutiny and actionable youth collaborations across the nation.
Here the young people pitched the importance of youth voice through the combined authorities, the need for collaborative youth action and thus how a NYCA would provide a strong foundation for greater youth policies within decision making across devolved England.
With support from the former mayor of South Yorkshire, Dan Jarvis, Andy Burnham, Steve Rotheram and Jamie Driscoll, the Metro Mayors agreed with an official establishment of a NYCA and expressed a keen interest in working on actionable youth policies with them, such as on Net Zero and levelling up.
The NYCA also showcased a film in which they had made collaboratively, documenting the effects climate change has on young people and the net zero strategies their individual regions have been adopting:
From a South Yorkshire perspective, the representatives shared their experience in contributing to the introduction of the ZOOM BEYOND Travel Pass and talks explored how this could be potentially expanded across other Combined Authorities, as an example of what the NYCA could work on.
The Mayor, reflected on the event:
“It was a great pleasure to be involved in such a passionate and lively discussion, and to see such informed and challenging contributions from all those attending, but especially our own South Yorkshire YCA members.
I have always believed in the power of collaborative working, and it is great that we have established these opportunities, for the national YCAs to come together, with fellow Metro Mayors and myself, to discuss those issues that we are united in trying to tackle.”
Curtis Yip from SYYCA said:
“A National Youth Combined Authority can help consolidate greater youth policies and therefore initiate a democratic renaissance across devolved England. It was great to have the attendance and support from the Mayors present at the meeting and thank you to all the fantastic youth workers who volunteer to help coordinate the work of the NYCA.
I look forward to the next steps in finalising the structure, funding and action plan with the Mayors and with other passionate young people from different YCAs.”
Jude Daniel Smith, another member of SYYCA said:
“Thursday’s meeting was the first in a series of opportunities that young people will now have to engage with their regional leaders on a national scale. The ball is now rolling, and youth issues will be heard in the advancement of devolution. I am so excited to see the National Youth Combined Authority, an idea we have held for so long, is now a reality”
