Youth Steering Group
Impact stories: Aisha
Name: Aisha
Age joined the Youth Steering Group: 17
Home Region: North West
Aisha joined the FEA Youth Steering Group in 2023, aged 17, and graduated in 2026. During her time as a member of the Youth Steering Group, Aisha has attended the Advanced British Standard Youth Consultation with the Edge Foundation, contributed to the Education Select Committee SEND Inquiry, worked with the FEA place-based team as an interviewer for our MCA Collaboration Partnerships, and consulted with the Department for Education as part of the Our Wellbeing Our Voice campaign with BeeWell and Anna Freud.
“It's really helped my professional and personal development because it just boosted my confidence in every way.”
Why did you join the Youth Steering Group (YSG)?
I think the first reason I joined is because I wanted to gain confidence in different environments so being able to interact with different people from different walks of life but also because I was quite into policy work and politics so that kind of really drew my attention to the Youth Steering Group. I think also getting experience in traveling across the country because I'd never done that before. I’m from a small town up north so the only way I could have done that is through joining the Youth Steering Group and going to different locations, speaking at events. I really wanted to do that, so I think I achieved that as well.
If you had to pick one thing that’s been a highlight of your time on the Youth Steering Group, what would it be?
The work with the MCAs [Mayoral Combined Authorities]. I think the MCAs actually appreciating that I was there, recognising [me], giving me an opportunity to speak, because I thought for example… just the decision [is made by] those in charge but they really gave me a platform to speak and they asked me questions, they asked me follow-up questions on my insights and what I think, so that was really valuable because I thought that would really contribute to better opportunities for young people in their area because they have [consulted] someone with lived experience.
Do you feel that engaging with government policy is a good use of Youth Steering Group time?
I think it's really good way to advance our advocacy work. I've noticed from the consultations they do take in to consideration what we say they so that's the reason why they do them and I think a lot of the things that we have put down they have been considered and implemented. For example, the mental health support teams, I remember putting that in there. I'm not saying that's because it's happened but it's contributed in some sort of way to their decision to implement the mental health support teams, so I definitely think that there is a really good impact submitting evidence to the government. I think there is access we have been given with the meetings that we have with the Department for Education, there's been a lot of engagement with the government [departments], I think we had really good access to that.
What skills do you feel like you’ve developed during your time on the Youth Steering Group?
Definitely communication skills whether that be public speaking, engaging with people from different walks of life [or] from different areas. For example, we were talking to leaders from MCAs, talking to different organisations at the Fair Education Summit, so I think the ability to communicate with different types of people who all have different aims in life. I also think I've been more creative in the way I go about things because I did quite a few writing pieces, so I've been able to express my creativity through engaging with the Fair Education Alliance.
What have you learned on the Youth Steering Group that you will take forward with you into your next steps?
I've learned that youth voice is really really important and it's listened to. I think at the start I was probably a bit pessimistic about things, I was thinking they don't really consider young people's voices, we're going to meet once a year and we're going to be done with it. But the level of opportunities and the opportunity they give to you as a young person is phenomenal, like for me to announce the MCAs at the FEA Summit I was kind of surprised that they were asking me, I was like "Why are they telling me to announce it?” I think they give you so much value and so much confidence to go out there and say your opinion and that's really kind of helping all aspects of life, whether that be my workplace whether that be in like just different areas to be honest and it's really helped my professional and personal development because it just boosted my confidence in every way.
Our Youth Steering Group provides leadership on youth engagement across the Fair Education Alliance. Members are involved in the work across the Alliance, from collective action and policy influencing, to communications, events and support for our award winners.