Meet our Young Advisors

My name is Lottie, and I am from Brent. I wanted to be a part of the Young People's Advisory Group as I believe it is essential that young people receive the correct support. By youths shaping the research and support that other young people will partake in, researchers are able to gain a deeper insight and understand the best ways to collect data and assist young people.  

Additionally, the people who truly understand and feel the impacts of the provision of local mental health support are the ones receiving it, so discussing this can help us to make a difference to the aid in Northwest London by considering what current infrastructures are beneficial, and what more needs to be done. 

I'm Isra, coming from Hillingdon, an area with a population generally from lower income backgrounds, low progression to higher education, a community of refugees, homelessness and more, it's important as ever to widen the conversation about mental health.  

Being part of this community means I share some of the unfortunately pretty common issues mentioned. The advisory group empowers me to share my experience, shape research and hopefully make a positive change.

Hullo! I’m Kaden, from Westminster. James and I are Members of Youth Parliament for Westminster, which means we are elected to represent the young people of our constituency. Mental health is still a huge area of deficit for the youth here in the UK, both in terms of the services provided and the stigma that surrounds the subject. That’s why projects like these are massively important; they perform vital research to identify and localise the key issues so that they can be effectively mitigated. 

I am proud to be a part of this programme, and I hope I can help it achieve its aim to begin to tackle the colossal problems at the core of our youth mental health situation.

Hi! My name is Sirad, from Hounslow and am a young person passionate about representing the views and interests of young people and getting their voices heard. I am currently a part of the Hounslow Youth Council, Young Champions Engineering UK, Young Consultants, and many more! 

I joined the Youth Advisory Group because it was another amazing opportunity to get young people’s voices heard. I also thought that it was a great way to get an insight into the health/medical industry! I also thought that I could gain more skills, meet new people and gain more experience in the topic of Mental Health. 

I'm James and I am a member of Youth Parliament for Westminster and one of the priorities I was elected on was mental health. I care deeply about improving the mental health of young people, there is so much that needs to be done and being part of this group may help drive that change, which is why I am proud to be part of it

I'm Merkesha, I joined the Youth Advisory Group to share my thoughts and help shape and improve the way young people's mental health is supported in London.

I am very passionate about mental health and someone who has also struggled with mental health. I work for Ealing Council, young people specifically, so would love to continue supporting other young people in any way possible.

Hi! I'm Lukas! As of writing, I am 16 years old and have been a part-time volunteer with the YPAG team for about a year now. I enjoy gaming, filming and having bonkers conversations with my friends.

My name is Kris and I have experienced years of discrimination whilst living in West London.  I wanted my voice to be heard and to gain some skills so I could kick-start my career in Research. My role is an intermediate liaison panelist between the YPAG and Steering group, I have also enlisted on the data stream sub-group to provide my input in the hopes it enriches their study. 

My name is Civan, I am 17 years old and I’m from Westminster.I’ve been volunteering with Listen to Act for 4 years and have just started on the ARC Outreach Alliance. 

I am an ex-member of Youth Parliament which is a role I was in for 3 years. I was elected on the basis of mental health. I volunteer and believe in this platform because I want to improve mental health services in my local community and give young people a voice.

Hi, my name is Kiera. I am from the Hammersmith and Fulham borough. I joined the project because I’m already a junior Connecting Care for Children champion, and by joining this project it will broaden my knowledge to help others within my borough. I have always had and interest in young people's health and being able to advocate for young people.

Are you 14-25, and do you share our interest in contributing to the improvement of mental health provision for young people in Northwest London and nationwide? 

Email Alex Weston, Youth Engagement Manager and YPAG Lead for further information.