York's Children and Young People's Champion will this evening be opening the council to young people from Fulford Youth Club. He will be chairing a debate of young people in the council chamber regarding bullying. He will then introduce the young people to the Lord Mayor and civic party.

Councillor James Alexander, said "The Council needs more of this - young people in the Council buildings, debating and expressing their views. These young people expressed an interest in the decision making process and I am happy to encourage this. I hope some of the people taking part in this debate will be the Councillors and community leaders of tomorrow. It shows that not all young people are hoody wearing menaces, a lot are good people who want to be involved but feel excluded by the process. Sarah has done some fantastic work with these young people and she needs commedning."

Sarah Wilson, youth club worker, said "The young people who attend an after school session at Fulford Youth Club each Tuesday expressed an interest in the democratic process. This resulted in the group debating school bullying policies in the Council Chambers, and was chaired by the Children and Young People's champion James Alexander. Following the debate, the group met the Civic Party in the Mansion House, providing an opportunity to share their views on youth participation and the democratic process."

The young people will be split into two teams. The first will be arguing that schools need to be harsher on bullies and give more support for victims. The second team will be arguing that the way schools deal with bullying should remain the same.