Young Campaigners

Whizz-Kidz’ ambassador clubs across the UK have been campaigning on issues that matter to them. Whether it is the availability and size of public disabled toilets, disability awareness or disabled parking bays – our ambassadors have been taking action on it in creative and varied ways. In this section you can find out highlights from the Ambassador Clubs’ campaigns. For more information and a full list of the clubs’ campaigns, please have a look at the Kidz Unlimited website.

Update: Hartlepool Club Campaign shortlisted for award

Hartlepool Club have been short listed for the ‘Hearing Unheard Voices’ Awards run by UK Youth. The awards recognise campaigns run by young people, and five young people and their local MP have been invited to attend the ceremony being held at St James Palace, on November 29^th.

The Hartlepool club decided to campaign about the size of public disabled toilets and disabled parking spaces. The plan was to hold an open day and invite many local important people, who would listen to a presentation the ambassadors made.

And what a day it was! The event was attended by many people, including the Lord Mayors of Hartlepool and Stockton. A few representatives from different departments of Hartlepool Council came along, including the manager of parking services. He suggested that the ambassadors take a day to patrol disabled parking bays with a policeman. A representative from the local Tesco also came along and suggested the ambassadors came to supervise parking in the supermarket’s car park one afternoon. All the attendees listened very carefully to what the ambassadors had to say, and promised to keep on working with them on their campaign.

The Mayor of Stockton wrote about the day in his blog.

Carlisle club Campaign: Beyond the Chair – Don’t Stare

The ambassadors in Carlisle had the idea to raise awareness as to how staring can make a wheelchair user feel. Carlisle Council got in touch and suggested that the club runs a stall at the Youth Day in the City Centre. The ambassadors grabbed the opportunity with both hands and are currently preparing posters and leaflets to give to passers by at the fair. They are also planning to hire some wheelchairs so non- wheelchair users can have a try at using them.

The ambassadors also helped the Council with planning a new community centre. A representative from the council came to consult with them and took on board their idea of installing a sensory room at the centre. In addition, they sat on an interview panel at the council to recruit new Youth Workers.

Dudley Club Campaign

The club in Dudley decided to campaign on shop accessibility by auditing the accessibility of the Merry Hill Shopping Centre.  They prepared a checklist and used it to audit 15 shops around the centre. Afterwards they met a representative from the Centre’s management and talked about their findings. The representative was very supportive and suggested further action. The club is now planning to create stickers and certificates to give to shops which are very easy for a wheelchair user to use, and to write to the shops they visited with helpful ideas about how they can do better.

Lincoln Club campaign

The club in Lincoln is campaigning to change attitudes to disability and the way disabled young people are treated, especially by other young people. They are planning to produce a survey to ask other young disabled people about their experiences and expectations. They are also working on a film, posters and leaflets.

The local Member of Parliament, Karl McCartney, came to visit the club and talk to the ambassadors about campaigning. He was very impressed with the campaign and promised to help with distributing the survey. The club would love to hear from you if you are a young wheelchair user – so get in touch by logging on its page on the Kidz Unlimited Website!

 

Tower Hamlets Club campaign

Our young people in Tower Hamlets visited Canary Wharf to check for accessibility and met with the centre managers who wanted our young people’s opinion on the facilities.