Springhead teenager sworn in as the new Youth Mayor of Oldham
Councillor Jim McMahon, Oldham Council Leader with Saskia
Teenager Saskia Edwards Korolczuk has been sworn in as the new Youth Mayor of Oldham.
The 18-year-old officially took on the role at the Youth Mayor-making ceremony yesterday in the Council Chambers.
Saskia is from Springhead and is currently studying for her A-levels at Oldham Hulme Grammar School.
Once she has completed her exams she plans to take a gap year to concentrate on her youth mayor role.
After this she will hopefully take her place at university to study music and theatre.
Since being elected onto Oldham Youth Council four years ago Saskia has been passionate about giving young people a voice and engaging them in politically.
During her time as a youth councillor Saskia has been involved in as many aspects of Youth Council life as possible, this includes work on the priority campaign “I love Me”, which aims to promote resilience and positive mental health and well-being in young people.
She has also sat on the Co-operative Oldham Fund Panel and, more recently, was a member of the British Youth Council’s 2015 Select Committee.
In what little spare time she has Saskia is a keen musician and has performed in many musicals and concerts, singing, dancing and acting.
Whilst she has her sights set on a career on the stage, Saskia believes her interest in politics will continue to thrive.
On becoming Oldham’s seventh Youth Mayor Saskia, said: ““It is such an honour.
“Representing the young people of Oldham as Youth Mayor is going to be an absolute pleasure and privilege. I can’t wait to meet the passionate, hard-working people who live in and shape our community.
“Becoming youth mayor feels like the perfect way to continue my journey with Oldham Youth Council and I’m really excited about what the next 12 months have to offer.
“The role is not a tokenistic one and I will ensure it is not treated as such. I hope a combination of dignity, listening, respect and action-based decision making will make me successful in ensuring the voices of young people are heard so we can do our bit in shaping the borough.
“I hope to be a positive role model for children and young people and bring charisma and warmth to my year in office whilst inspiring communities and influencing leaders to make the right decisions for the right reasons.
“I feel immensely lucky to be given this opportunity and I can assure you it won’t be wasted. I’m looking forward to a very busy, very exciting year ahead.”
Saskia takes over the role from Daisy Murphy, who said of her time as Youth Mayor:
“I have had an incredible year as youth mayor. It has truly been an honour to represent the young people of Oldham and to be an ambassador for our fabulous town.
“I have met many amazing people and visited some great projects. Oldham is full of people dedicated to making a difference – there are so many community groups and organisations that are working hard to make Oldham a great town to live in.
Councillor Jim McMahon, Oldham Council Leader, said: “I would like to welcome Saskia to the role of Youth Mayor and I’m sure she’ll be a great ambassador for the town over the coming 12 months.
“It is vital that the views and ideas of our young people are heard so that they can do their bit in helping to improve for borough for future generations.”
Author: Jude Gidney - Editor
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