Research Dossier- YOUth VOTE

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An introduction to the issue
We as a generation have been shortchanged because not as many young people vote compared to the over 30s, young people are not having our needs met. Rather than thinking of the GENERAL public, politicians have catered to the needs of the over 30s. In a way it makes sense young people have practically alienated themselves from politics by not voting as politicians blocked young people out leaving them out of touch with the way that the government has decided to run Britain. But taking into account that we will be running this country in the very near future. As the oldies reap the benefit of the vote we feel the brunt of the recession and the increase in tuition fees. Enduring 3 or 4 years of self-financed higher education to come out with no real hope of a good and stable job in our chosen fields. Although the elections have passed and won’t happening for at most another 4 years, we decided to and aimed to get more young people to realise the consequences of not voting. This we think is a change from the norm rather than raising the issue at the time of elections we decided to inform young people who will be 18 to 25 in 2015 elections keeping in mind the in which we present our evidence, facts and figures which need to be broken down to make it more understandable for young people who don’t identify with political jargon. We hope by doing this we will be planting a seed which will grow to be an educated vote for the 2015 elections. We want to exploit recent events that affect the lives of young people today to allow them to comprehend what the outcome is, who it will affect and how it will affect them. We will also be simplifying and explaining each political party and what they stand for in addition to the promises they made in the 2010 elections. We will also explain how the coalition works and how it doesn’t work.

The reasons as to why people should support us are clear. To make young people aware of politics and how it works, a well-informed young person makes for an educated vote thus having the voice that will be heard instead of overlooked purely because of young people not voting.

BY Nuredin Ahmed

How could change happen?

It is very difficult for one person to bring change, and make a difference all by themselves. Therefore the bigger the organisation and the more people involved the higher the chance of success. Theres an advertisement on TV where a woman is quoting her father "You can do anything you set your mind to do, but you cant do it alone."

First of all in order to bring change we need to identify what the problem is and deciding what needs to be changed, and what it needs to be changed to.

Often there will be different problems and obstacles arising during change. And in order to overcome these obstacles partnership and collaboration with other organisations and individuals is required.

Which individuals and organisations could affect change?

Depending on the issue you are dealing with and the scale of the campaign and the change you want to bring, there are different organisations and individuals which you can turn to. The local council is one of those organisations, the government, local MP's, members of the public. For example the Environment Agenc's stated purpose is to protect the environment as a whole and it deals with treats such as pollution. Such organisations would be interested in working together or collaborating in campaigns for protecting the environment,persuading people to recycle more etc.

How can you put pressure on them?

In order to have a successful campaign you need to put pressure on those individuals and groups which have the power to change the law and bring change. This can be achieved by partnering up with other organisation dealing with similar issues as you, local businesses- which can finance your campaign, voluntary groups- this will also help raise the profile of the campaign.

What methods would be best to bring that about?

Making more people aware of our campaign local campaigns can really make a difference. Also having a budget for local campaigns, leaflets,posters, adverts. Using media events to inform the public and others about your campaign and your aim. communication is a very important method in order to bring change, strikes, demonstrations, petitions- is a very popular method used mainly to change the law, boycotts, public hearings. Some methods are more effective than others and have their benefits and drawbacks.

non-voting in the 18-34 age groups is at least over 45 per cent and likely higher according to the Electoral Commission.

BY Inna Krasteva

Youth's we need to vote

Looking at the statistics it is hard to believe as youth we do not want to do more to help our country and inevitably help our own generation.

Whether this is because we simply just dont know enough about the election process or we just simply just dont care.

It is our mission to make people care and want to understand how this all works.

We want to explain and highlight the three main political parties and explain what they aim to do, This is a step towards the right direction into an increase in youth vote.


 * Labour Party


 * Liberal Democrats


 * Conservative

http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/2010/03/12/is-the-uk-electorate-disengaged/

BY Folake Latunde