A GROUP of young Grimsby Telegraph columnists have been nominated for a national award – as they hand their legacy down to a new batch of budding writers.
In June, the five teenagers set about trying to change negative perceptions of young people by using their writing skills.
May Woods, Louise Jones, Sian Abbott, Ben Staff, Ben Goodyear and Boneata Bell have written Young Reporter columns every Saturday, ranging from serious pieces about human trafficking to a comical take on one young lady's hatred of cruise ships.
Their impressive articles have attracted the attention of their peers, family members, many of our readers – and now the judges of the Children And Young People Now Awards.
From 400 applicants, the Grimsby-based project has made the final eight.
Pippa Curtin, participation co-ordinator for Young People's Support Service (YPSS), said: "I'm really proud of everything they have achieved, partly because of the award nomination but mainly because they have found a voice and are showing that young people have a positive role to play in society."
And Emily Hill, YPSS positive activities information co-ordinator, added: "The astonishing quality of the columns is the real achievement."
Our Young Reporters will soon attend a conference to teach children and organisations how to set up the scheme in other areas.
But for most of them, it is the exposure and writing experience that is most valuable.
May, 17, hopes to study English at King's College London and eventually go into journalism.
She said: "I enjoy writing and I thought it would help my university application stand out – it's on my personal statement.
"I really struggled with my word count at first but my writing has come a long way. My last column was definitely better than my first."
Boneata, 19, who is studying for a BA in professional writing at the Grimsby Institute, said: "The columns are great for your portfolio and for your confidence but they help get your name out there, too."
YPSS young advisers first came up with the idea to combat the negative perception of youth and picked the first five candidates. However, the current Young Reporters have recently picked five new budding writers to continue their legacy.
New kid on the block Olivia Scott, 13, said: "I've been writing stories for my friends and families since I was 11, so I thought I might enjoy this, too.
"I have just picked media as one of my GCSE options and I want to be a journalist when I'm older, so I think this is a good start."
Chelsea Stocks, 15, said: "I want to be a surgeon but I'm writing a fantasy book at the moment and I think a column will be a good way to improve my writing."
Young Reporters
Keep checking the Grimsby Telegraph on a Saturday for columns by our five new reporters Kelly Ballard, Abbie Dewhurst, Jessica Dales, Chelsea Stocks and Olivia Scott.
