Ashington Town Council Connects with Young People at Dukes Academy Roadshow
Ashington Town Council joined local organisations at Dukes Academy on 28th January for a community roadshow designed to help young people discover the services and opportunities available to them.
The event, organised by Carla Thompson from Northumberland County Council's Locality Team and Danielle Towers from Dukes Academy, brought together organisations including the NCC Community Safety Team, YMCA, Rape Crisis, Newcastle United Foundation, Pride Action Northumberland, Bernicia, NCC Sports Development Team, Beyond Youth, Koast Radio, Health Trainers and more.
Ashington Town Council's Events and Engagement Officer, Sharon Parmley, used the opportunity to engage directly with students in their own environment and encourage them to share their views through the Council's online survey for young people. [Click on the link below to open the survey].
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScupOCnLoTX3q6_5h2FlAIGJ-_b5NSg0djQkXKM5OiowOXiBw/viewform
To capture students' attention, the Council offered a free tombola with prizes including Amazon vouchers, power banks, universal chargers, and collapsible water bottles, with Haribo sweets as consolation prizes.
Sharon Parmley said: "I was inundated when word spread about the prizes on offer. Hopefully, they will all go away and fill in the survey and tell us what they think about being a young person in Ashington. For the next event at the college, I will need to seek an orderly queue!"
The Council is grateful to Carla Thompson and Dukes Academy for welcoming local organisations into the school and for arranging these valuable opportunities to connect with young people. These roadshows provide an invaluable chance to meet students where they are and ensure they know what support and activities are available to them.
The community roadshows take place several times a year at Dukes Academy and Northumberland College, helping students engage with local organisations, access information and advice, and reduce barriers to services.
The next roadshow takes place at Northumberland College on 12th February 2026.
