News

Two Tyneside students have been elected as members of the UK Youth Parliament.

Cameron Quinn, of St Thomas More Catholic High School, and Sharon Zeng of George Stephenson High School won the election for North Tyneside.

The UK Youth Parliament aims to represent the views of 11 to 18-year-olds in Youth Parliament giving young people a voice on issues that matter to them at national, regional and local level. It is made up of over 350 members and deputy members who are elected by their peers to represent young people across the UK.

Cameron Quinn, Young Mayor of North Tyneside

Cameron Quinn, a year 9 student from St Thomas More has been elected as the new Young Mayor of North Tyneside. Cameron follows in the footsteps of two other St Thomas More High School students, Max Godfrey and Suzie McKenzie, who have previously held the position of Young Mayor in North Tyneside.

The High School pupil plans to promote ‘the introduction of allotments in schools and encouraging the reduction of food waste’, as well as supporting ‘the roll out of mental health resources across schools and the development of peer support groups and peer mentoring.’

Cameron outlined his goals for the role, saying:

“I hope I can make a profound difference in North Tyneside and I hope to live up to the expectations set by other young people. I’ve always said that I would be a Young Mayor who stands and acts in the best interests of young people – this is still the case.”

Head Teacher of St Thomas More, David Watson added:

“At St Thomas More, we really value involvement by our students in local democracy, whether that’s through our own Student Council, North Tyneside Youth Council, campaigns run by ‘Tyne & Wear Citizens’ or through the Young Mayor and Youth Parliament. While it’s one thing educating young people about democracy, it is when students take it upon themselves to get involved, as Cameron has done, that they bring it to life for the whole of the student body.”

Sharon Zeng, Member of UK Youth Parliament

George Stephenson High School, in Killingworth has congratulated their very own Sharon Zeng, year 9, on being elected as Member of UK Youth Parliament for North Tyneside for 2023/24. Sharon ran an excellent campaign, reaching out to young people across the borough and sharing presentations within her own school and beyond.

Sharon’s pledge is to raise awareness about the importance of financial education in schools, informing students about their financial choices and career choices. Peter Douthwaite, Head Teacher at GSHS, has already met with Sharon to discuss how they can not only move forward with this idea as a school, but to potentially develop a unit of work which could be used across schools in North Tyneside.

Kathryn Williams, Deputy Head Teacher, who supported Sharon with her campaign said:

“Sharon is an excellent ambassador for the school, has innovative ideas around financial education and will be brilliant in this role. We could not be prouder!”

On what the future holds for Sharon, she said:

“I am very excited to be taking on this role and am looking forward to making a difference to the young people in North Tyneside”.

Chris Zarraga, Director of Schools North East commented:

“Both St Thomas More and George Stephenson have done excellent work to enhance their students’ knowledge of local democracy. Congratulations to Cameron and Sharon on being elected to these position and for representing North Tyneside, We look forward to seeing how they both progress in these role”

St Thomas More Catholic High School and George Stephenson High School are both Schools North East Partner Schools. If you’d like to find out more about our Partner School Programme click here.

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