T Jay takes the reins as new Youth Mayor

BADGE of pride . . . new Youth Mayor T Jay Turner replaces last year's Youth Mayor Saskia Edwards, pictured with the Mayor Councillor Derek Heffernan and Mayoress Di Heffernan

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TEENAGER T Jay Turner has been sworn in as the new Youth Mayor of Oldham.

The 17-year-old officially took on the role at the Youth Mayor-making ceremony in the Council Chamber.

T Jay, from Royton, is currently studying for his A-levels at Oldham Sixth Form College.

Once he has completed his exams in 2017, he plans to study English Literature at university.

Since being elected onto Oldham Youth Council four years ago, T Jay has dedicated much of his time to ensuring young people across the borough have a voice.

During his time as a youth councillor he has been involved in as many aspects of Youth Council life as possible, this includes work on the Oldham Education and Skills Commission, leading on the Youth Council's priority campaign 'I Love Me', volunteering and coordinating Make Your Mark, the UK's largest consultation.

He was the elected Member of Youth Parliament for Oldham 2015-2016 and currently holds the elected position of North Manchester Representative on YouthForia, the North West's youth forum.

Whilst he is unsure of a career path at the moment he believes his interest in politics will continue to thrive.

T Jay said: "I feel truly privileged.

"As a representative for young people in Oldham, I hope to be a mouthpiece for the 28,000 whose voice is not necessarily the loudest.

"I am following in some incredible footsteps as youth mayor, many of whom I have known personally.

"A role such as this is not a tokenistic one and I intend to utilise the opportunity to its full potential - to have those conversations with the key decision makers but more importantly, the young people themselves.

"I aim to be a role model for the children and young people of our borough and inspire a generation to view the democracy we are lucky to have in Oldham differently. The role has potential to be momentously influential; I assure you it won't be wasted.

"I'm incredibly excited to see what the year ahead holds."

Oldham Council leader Jean Stretton said: "It is extremely important that the views and ideas of our young people are heard as they are the people who will shape the borough in years to come.

"I'd like to welcome T Jay to the role and I'm sure he'll be a great credit to the borough over the coming 12 months."