A new youth mayor has been appointed in Neath Port Talbot as part of the youth council and youth council.

Maddie Pritchard, 17, a student at Ysgol Gymraeg Ystalyfera Bro Durwill, will take over next year and said she will now focus on the Welsh language as well as helping the environment. Council chief executive Karen Jones bestowed the title on him at a ceremony in Neath Port Talbot this week, replacing young mayor Bethan Nicholas-Thomas, who was also present as Children’s Commissioner for Wales.

The positions of Youth Mayor and Youth Vice Mayor are elected annually by the Neath Port Talbot Youth Council to ensure young people have a voice and say on local issues that are important to them.

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Speaking at the launch, Maddie said she wanted to focus on protecting the Welsh language and the environment throughout the year. She said: “The Welsh language is my top priority as I am fluent in Welsh and I fully support the Welsh Government’s target of reaching one million Welsh speakers by 2050.

“I would like to launch a beginners Welsh course for local people as I think it is a very important topic and I would like to encourage as many local people as possible to learn to speak Welsh as it is a great passion of mine. The environment will also be very important in my program this year as it is a very real issue for me and other young people in Neath Port Talbot.

At the ceremony, Gracie Redmore of St Joseph’s Roman Catholic School and Sixth Form Center was introduced as Junior Deputy Mayor. Neath Port Talbot Mayor Cllr Robert Wood said the role was very important for the council and would help to involve young people in the area in local politics.

He said: “Maddy will do very well in this role. It’s really important to us as a council to get input from all of our residents across the county and the young mayor is a big part of that.

“The role of Youth Mayor began four years ago in Neath Port Talbot and has grown in importance each year. It allows us to engage with the next generation, as we’ve seen with the lowering of the voting age in recent years, and helps young people have a voice.” You can read more about our stories from Neath Port Talbot here or sign up for our newsletter here.

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