Princess Anne arrived in the district last week and spent over an hour meeting young people from the district and members of the Wansbeck Youth Forum.

The youngsters spoke to HRH The Princess Royal and other policy makers about the issues that are affecting them, including crime, employment opportunities and the options open to them for the future.

Sitting face-to-face with those who make the decisions which affect them, the young people put forward their ideas for change.

During the event, key figures including Princess Anne took part in a unique 'Speed Meet', where small groups of adults and young people met each other to discuss the issues.

Based around the idea of speed dating, the youngsters took turns in spending a few minutes with different policy makers to voice their concerns about youth provision in the area, employment opportunities and their local environment.

Crime Concern, who manage Wansbeck Youth Forum, will now collate the ideas, outcomes and solutions to produce a briefing note for the young people and policy makers to ensure a
plan of action is included in future plans.

In the fifteen months that the project has been running, it has worked hard to create ownership of the agenda by young people, developing partnerships between young people and decision makers.

A huge amount has already been achieved, including developing a dedicated youth forum, Friday night football leagues, and a variety of clubs and activities for youngsters.

Tom Thomas, programme manager for Wansbeck Youth, said: "I am delighted that local decision makers are giving young people the opportunity to raise issues face to face.

"The young people have a wide range of concerns and the issues that affect adults also impact on them.

"All the young people volunteer their efforts in one way or another to make Wansbeck a better place for everyone to live and they hope to find support for their ideas from people with power and influence."