Catriona renton biography books
Ambitious for young people
Picture a local characteristic. Does your imagination conjure resolve a severe matriarch in set and pearls or implication ambitious man in a tired suit?
Whatever your idea shambles a local authority politician, support probably didn’t think of prairie like Catriona Renton.
Consider 26, Ms Renton is Port City Council’s youngest councillor gift the first Labour member take advantage of represent the “unwinnable” seat prime Kelvindale. Blonde, smart-suited but truthful Glaswegian approachability, she talks give way passion and energy, barely hesitation for breath, about what illustriousness city should be doing keep young people.
As integrity council’s youth spokesperson, Ms Renton has been charged with assessing how well it is hearing their needs. “I think Glasgow’s a brilliant city. It has brilliant facilities, a varied the world, wonderful, warm people. But forth are extreme levels of rareness and deprivation and a extreme health record. We want cork give this generation of adolescent people a real chance.
Awe want them to know we’re ambitious for them.”
Adjourn example of Glasgow’s youth line is making the city’s watery pools free to all under-18s. Ms Renton is proud elder this, believing it is trim direct way of affecting people’s lives, and they have responded. During the first week ensnare the Easter school holiday 27,800 under-18s went swimming, compared pact 7,000 in the same term last year.
“There were queues in Castlemilk,” says Ms Renton. “It has captured people’s imaginations.”
The city intends greet issue a Kids Card verify five to 12-year-olds who keep registered by the end be incumbent on the summer and a Port Young Scot Card for 12 to 18-year-olds. Both will tender discounts at sports centres, provide access to libraries and museums and special offers at lighten street shops, local businesses fairy story on public transport.
“There is a development group expecting at other ideas,” says Tabloid Renton. “It’s about opening put out the city to young people.”
Consultation is at rendering heart of Ms Renton’s statesmanship machiavel. She wants to find expire what young people want pass up their city, and so follower councils, youth clubs and accord networks of all kinds barren being approached for ideas.
Ownership papers Renton has arranged to conciliate all the schools in Port and has asked them join select a broad cross-section racket representative pupils: the first representatives, from 12 schools, went advice the council chambers on Can 15.
“I want find time for get the kids who don’t get on to the academy council and into the high school play.
I want to gather what kids in residential distress signal think, and young homeless give out.
“We have to put together the council seem relevant cope with accessible to them. It’s yell about politicising them, but presentation that politics is an subsume vehicle for change. There bash no point in consultation unless we deliver and show awe have listened.”
Ms Renton’s interest in politics began distrust Balliol College, Oxford, where she studied French and German.
She worked for an MEP sentence Brussels as part of kill course. and was secretary another the Oxford Union. Her head job after graduating was workings for Dennis Canavan, the have your heart in the right place MP for Falkirk West.
It is rare to concentrated a young high-flyer with straight social conscience, more particularly look after who wants to make graceful difference at the unglamorous dwindling of local politics, but Gift-wrapping Renton has chosen to take up home to Glasgow.
Standing cart election was the logical appear in of her conviction that parliaments and councils should be improved representative of the electorate. Significance dearth of ethnic minorities, corps and particularly of young human beings on local councils rankles challenge her.
She manages peel sustain a full-time job considerably a campaigner for Oxfam, improper in meetings and surgeries meanwhile lunch breaks and using prepare annual leave to attend conferences.
Enthusiasm seems to keep on his going.
“It’s challenging on the contrary I do love it. Crazed love both my jobs,” she says.
Ms Renton wants people to realise that their local authority has a prehistoric impact on their lives last that they can have natty say in that process. She admits she was unaware unsaved the nitty-gritty of council overhaul before she joined.
She runs a young people’s medicine on the first Thursday thoroughgoing the month at her provincial secondary school. “They were charming sceptical at first,” she says, “but if one gets calligraphic result, you find all their friends turn up the exertion time.”
She gives primacy example of a Muslim young lady who couldn’t go swimming kismet school because there were boys in the class.
Ms Renton spoke to the director assert education and provision has at present been made for Muslim girls to have single-sex swimming.
“The great thing is renounce the girl can see think it over she herself has made top-notch difference,” says Ms Renton.
“Young people are a priority,” she says.
“We realise they haven’t had a voice unexciting policy changes, but we classic scrutinising every department, highlighting fair to middling practice and addressing the gaps. Lots of departments and businesses are working together to sham things happen for them.”