Young people travel to Islands Deal discussions

Seven young people from Orkney will travel to Glasgow this coming week for discussions with young people from Shetland on what they’d like to see included in ‘Islands Deal’ proposals – agreements with Scottish and UK governments about investment in their island communities.

The discussions on Monday (10 December) come as the three Island Councils in Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles work together on proposals for an ambitious ‘Islands Deal’ to mirror City Region deals that have already been agreed by the two Governments, including for Inverness and the Highlands and for Aberdeen.

The seven young people from Orkney will be accompanied by staff from the Council’s Community Learning and Development team, with travel and accommodation expenses covered by the Scottish Government.

They are Shavon More (17), Skyla Nicholson (14), Emma Grant (15), Hope Laing (14), Daisy Beckwith-Wyman (14), Maya Tams- Gray (16), and Rachel Evans (16).

While in Glasgow, they’ll also be meeting with young people from across Scotland at the ‘#YOYP2018 Voices’ event – a Scottish Government event aimed at bringing young people together from across the country to be inspired by their peers and empowered to use their voice beyond 2018.

Leader of Orkney Islands Council, James Stockan said: “We’re delighted that these young people, who’ve all shown a keen interest in being involved in taking young people’s voices to decision makers in government, have this opportunity to feed into such a significant mission.

“Working together as three Councils, our aim is to win support from the UK and Scottish Governments and secure an Islands Deal that will bring transformational investment into the economies and communities of the islands, on a scale seen through the City Region Deals.

“It’s crucial that when we are looking to secure a prosperous future for the people of the islands, that our young people have a chance to inject their energy, passion and pride for their islands into those proposals.”