Youth Leads UK Launches First Youth Advisory Board

Youth Leads UK has welcomed eleven young people to advise the charity and share youth insights.

The award-winning charity has introduced a Youth Advisory Board into its organisational structure, consisting of diverse young people from Greater Manchester.

Youth Leads UK has a vision of a country where youth leads – where young people feel heard, included, and ready to make meaningful, positive changes around them. To honour this vision and meet the challenge of its founders getting older, the Youth Advisory Board was developed.

The board is a platform for young people to share their insights and experiences on youth-facing issues to help move the charity forward. The Board will meet six times a year, working closely with the charity’s youth engagement team and the Board of Trustees, guiding them in the right direction and ensuring that all future decisions are youth-led and youth-informed.

The first formal meeting took place in Manchester, where members, charity staff and trustees met each other and undertook activities around teamwork and problem-solving.

Sami Gichki, 20, a Youth Advisory Board member, said:

“I’m really pleased to be a member of the Youth Advisory Board. It will safeguard youth leadership within Youth Leads UK while also ensuring that the organisation’s leaders are held accountable and listen to the constantly evolving voices of young people.”

Faizan Sharief, 17, Chair of the Youth Leads UK Youth Advisory Board, said:

“I am absolutely thrilled to be leading such an incredible group of peers in our mission to support the youth at Youth Leads! The Youth Advisory Board’s future is looking brighter than ever – as Chair of the YAB, I feel immensely proud and energised to champion the voices of our youth and guide them in meaningful activities. I simply cannot wait to continue collaborating with this dynamic board in our upcoming meetings!”

Saeed Atcha MBE DL, CEO and Founder of Youth Leads UK, said:

“I believe we need young leaders in decision-making spaces. Their insights, experiences, and advice are invaluable. Our young advisors have already shown great initiative during our first meeting, and I look forward to seeing the ways in which our organisation will grow and change because of them.”

Youth Leads UK is a charity priding itself on being by young people, for young people; they believe young people have the power to make a difference and aims to amplify young people’s voices through skills enrichment opportunities, social action, and learning experiences. The Youth Advisory Board is a direct reflection of those beliefs and is paving the way for a brighter, more youth-led future at the organisation.

You can read more about the Youth Leads UK Youth Advisory Board here.