The experience I have had today is so important to me. I have not only been a participant of the day. I have also been a part of the youth advisory group that shaped the day. The Youth Advisory Group was 10 young people across the nations. So each jurisdiction had 2 young people on the advisory group. I was lucky enough to gain an opportunity to be a part of this group and represent North Wales. This took place in Dublin Ireland, which was an amazing experience to travel and have a cultural experience. Around 60 young people attended from Wales, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland. This is an important event because it gets young people from across the nations to discuss both the challenges and opportunities that are common between all of the countries.
The purpose of this event was to get all the young people together to speak about the one big discussion of Youth Voice. Youth voice was chosen by the YAG because everyone felt as a group that so many themes that young people would come out with came under this overarching theme. The aim of the event was to write recommendations on themes that were important across the nations to be out in a report and delivered at the Leader’s summit 2026. This forum has been organised by both governments and led by DCMs. This Youth Forum also aligns with commitments set out by the UK-Ireland Joint Statement 2030.
This event gave me the opportunity to meet people from other nations. I have been able to learn about the different cultures that people are from. I have made friendships that will last a life type. These friendships are so important to me because we all share a common understanding for change for young people. I have learnt about different languages, different traditions and also how other countries do youth work and education.
The day started over with icebreakers and warm activities to get all the young people engaging and socialising. They YAG gave a little panel discussion with the Principal officer of the Department of Children, Disability and Equality. We went onto the Big decisions discussion where all the young people were split up and all jurisdictions were represented at each table. The teamwork of the day was amazing and everyone got engaged with every question and discussion that took place. One of the funniest parts of the day was the Human Bingo. The human bingo got everyone socialising with each other and learning a bit about everyone. It brought really good vibes and lit the room up.
I learnt that even though we were coming from a load of different countries that we could share the same opportunities and challenges. I also learnt that communication and compromise was the key to help make this event achievable. I have gained so much knowledge about how to host an event but also how to speak in front of many people. My confidence has grown through this opportunity and I feel confident that my ideas have been heard throughout. Some of the challenges that we came across was due to this being a cross nation event; the YAG were attending online monthly meetings. This could become a challenge due to the internet and everyone's signal. It was amazing to see everyone for the first time in a run through the night before the event at the Iveagh House in Dublin which is a department of foreign affairs.
I will carry this event with me throughout my goals in life. There were so many powerful discussions that came out of the day. The world cafe placemats helped with this amazing. Recommendations such as making mental health first aid mandatory for everyone working with young people and especially teachers. These discussions and topics were so important to everyone throughout the day.
My overall experience was amazing and I will carry this throughout my work in getting to my goal of being a Youth worker. I met so many important people who work for the government. Youth forums matter because young people don't just shape the future, they shape the now. Young people should be able to have a voice in every room they walk in, and especially in rooms that can shape the policies and procedures that affect young people. The encouragement and engagement of everyone at the event was outstanding and really made the day matter.
From this event, there is a report coming out and our call to action will be presented at the Leaders Summit 2026. The hope is also to give this report to a range of people in Wales to help change happen. We also hope that this Cross Nations Youth Forum becomes an annual event that is held in a different jurisdiction each time.
Lacie Jones - Youth Advisory Group (YAG) Wales representative 2025/2026