A Chetwynde School student has taken the first step to his dream career in politics after being appointed a deputy member of the Westmorland and Furness Youth Parliament.

Thomas Colquhoun successfully campaigned for his seat and was voted in by other pupils from schools around Furness.

He said he was looking forward to working with a ‘brilliant team’ of other members and deputies and to be the voice of change for young people across this area.

“I thought why not apply for it as I want to be a politician,” he said. “I feel rather proud that my campaign was a big success and gratitude to the supporters who voted for me in the election.

“I hope to make free speech more than just a dream. People want to speak their minds but don’t have the power to. I wish people could speak their minds more freely and more frequently.

“We can have a respectful discussion and at the same time disagree with each other but the purpose of that is that we don’t have to hide our opinions.”

The Youth Parliament is a non-Party political body where 11–18-year-olds represent the views of the area’s young people at a regional and national level. His role in office will be two years when he will work with the others on issues including raising awareness of keeping children safe on social media and the impact on their mental health.

They will also highlight awareness around autism and neuro-divergence in schools, promote Road safety for young people in particular distraction of phones and headphones and champion careers in the tech industry.

Head of Humanities at Chetwynde School Sian Huck who supported Thomas to put himself forward for the campaign said everyone was really proud of his achievement.

“Thomas had to write a manifesto and deliver a speech via Teams to try and gain votes from schools around Furness. He did a brilliant job speaking passionately about giving young people a voice in politics.”