And that’s a wrap: Youth Voice Day 2026

The 2026 Youth Voice Day was held on Saturday 17 October, and we want to thank all the young people who attended, shared their views, challenged us with their ideas and engaged in meaningful, insightful dialogue on safety in Essex.

Essex VVU ran workshops with two groups of young people, asking about their concerns in their communities, and how we can change things for the better. The young people talked eloquently about crime, safety, differences, neighbourhoods and youth violence.

Most of the young people talked about feeling safe in their neighbourhoods, which mirrors the findings we are seeing in the Essex VVU Listening Report. There was a questioning and reflective view of the benefits of social media.  As well as a sense that some platforms portray some places as unsafe, which does not always match with their everyday reality.

In the afternoon the young people were able to put questions to senior leaders across the county on topics such as personal safety, tackling violence against women and girls, county lines, knife crime and community safety. There were some great ideas about how to build safer communities – a reminder to all of us how important it is to involve young people and capture the youth voice.

We thoroughly enjoyed the day, not only hearing from our Essex young people but also catching up with the Essex VVU Youth Resource Networkers and hearing the impact they are having in their communities. The whole event was a great example of partnership working and the positive impact we can have when we all work together.

A huge thanks to everyone who attended and took part. Also, thank you to Essex Boys and Girls Clubs and Essex Council for Voluntary Youth Services for the logistics behind the scenes and making it all happen!