YOUNG people from Ardrossan Academy tackled a raft of hard-hitting issues as they played host to a Youth Cabinet meeting.

The morning session was the latest in a series of joint meetings involving North Ayrshire Council’s Cabinet, senior officers, Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament and the Youth Council Executive.

Councillors and officials have been touring North Ayrshire schools to ensure North Ayrshire Council gives young people a say in how the local authority operates.

The sessions provide a unique opportunity for young people to take local policy makers to task and have lively discussions on the issues that matter the most to them.

Ardrossan Academy pupils were given the chance to take part in round-the-table conversations with their guests, covering topics such as mental health, community safety and their school itself.

That was followed by a lively question and answer session which covered issues such as bullying, school improvements and health and wellbeing.

North Ayrshire Youth Champion, Councillor Shaun Macaulay, was impressed by the quality of topics raised by the Ardrossan Academy pupils.

Councillor Macaulay added: “Events like these are invaluable because not only do they give young people a chance to have their say on the issues which matter the most to them, but it gives us the opportunity to listen to those views and take them forward.

“This event demonstrated how clued-up our young people are. They covered a wide range of issues and it certainly gave us food for thought.”

Fourth year pupil Craig Allan (15) said: “Today was really useful as it allowed us to hear about important topics – and be involved in the discussion. I particularly enjoyed the question and answer session as we got to put our questions to the council and get real answers from their own mouths.”

Council Leader Joe Cullinane, who chaired the joint session, said: “This was yet again another fantastic meeting with our young people.

“It was great to see how engaged they all were on a whole host of issues and it was a real pleasure to discuss a number of them today.

“We were clear that no area was out of bounds and they certainly embraced this in what was a worthwhile and valuable exchange of ideas.

“Thanks to everyone that took part. We hope the pupils took away as much from it as we did.”

The joint meeting was one in a series organised by the Council’s Youth Services Team as part of their ongoing work to encourage participation and citizenship. It allows pupils to learn more about how their local authority works, while forming an important part of the Council’s approach to give local young people a voice.

The meetings are held regularly in venues throughout North Ayrshire – the next one is due to be held at Auchenharvie Academy in the new school term.