Athboy C.S Delegates Attend Comhairle na nOg

By Autumn Casey. 6th year Student Council Rep 

On Saturday 22nd Autumn Casey and Erin Melligan went to their first meeting as members of Comhairle Na nOg Youth Council representing Athboy Community School.  

This is a huge opportunity for us, and we are grateful to have been given the opportunity to represent our school and give our peers a voice. When we arrived the other members welcomed us with open arms, and throughout the day they were so encouraging and brought such a positive atmosphere. 

The day started off with ice breakers,the first of which was where we formally introduced ourselves, what school we are representing, and one thing that we enjoy.  

After the ice breakers delegates stayed in their groups and brought out the table mats that students from different schools wrote on at the initial Comhairle na nOg conference back in October. This lead discussion back to the main topic of the day to be focussed on, which was “School Stress”.  

Each group took a mat and started organising and writing down what delegateshad noted in Octoberso as tosee if there were any similarities or trends between any of the answers that students had given then. This really showed the care and work put into the conference, and how much every young person’s stress –big or small –was addressed and how much every contribution was valued. 

During this workshop, delegates spoke about, and and listened to, everyone’s personal views and their outlook on life, and on school stressers in particular. 

It really showed us how much thought and care goes into making sure the young people of today have a voice and feel they can share any issue confidently knowing that they are being heard. Erin and I are excited for what the next meeting brings us, and we can’t wait to work with Comhairle na nOg throughout the year ahead.