Votes@16Watch: “I used to say Votes at 16 would herald a new age for democracy. Well its nearly Springtime and the new age is nearly here! I’ve been collecting a virtual ‘scrapbook’ of news, posts, polls and briefings since when I took up the role of CEO at the British Youth Council in 2008, and inherited their V16 campaign and became part of the Votesat16 Coalition movement. This edition of #Votes@16Watch is my selection of those from July 25 (when the Govt confirmed its intention to introduce legislation) to Feb 26 (when the Representation of the Peoples Bill was introduced). I’m sharing these posts and sources here to help inform the debate on the next steps to introducing the reforms of across the UK. (A timeline of the V16 campaign from 1999 to date can be found here)
One common theme emerging is the need to prepare these first time voters to vote including the mechanics of ‘how’, the ease of ‘where’, the point of ‘why’ – a learning journey which will benefit all of us in the long-run, perhaps introducing a new wave of younger leaders standing as candidates in future elections? Consequently the focus of stakeholders has been shifting to ‘how’ to do this well and lots of materials are coming on stream (Is there going to be a benchmark to ensure consistency?). We no longer have the Votesat16 Coalition (2003-2024) which focused on the arguments for electoral reform, but lots of initiatives are now networking to prioritise the how (locally and nationally) and we will doubtless see massive first time voter registration and turnout campaigns, many led or influenced by young people themselves. However, democratic engagement and works both ways, doubtless to be boosted with digital communication and media literacy. Are political parties ready for the youth-vote? How quickly will they respond to prioritise the youth agenda on issues that matter to them, and how will they listen, respond and communicate? We may see a rebalancing of priorities to take account of a more engaged electorate, with policy action and well as promise, before (and after) elections, not just during them. And I wonder who will be the first party to announce the promise of a new cabinet level Youth Minister to coordinate and drive policy, be the ‘national listen’ to young people’s ‘national voice’ on the issues that matter to them, not just at 16&17, but with a revived 18-24 yr-olds going forward? Whatever your view, enjoy the debate!” Ed/James Cathcart Feb 26
Note: Items are arranged by month. Its been compiled for information only is by no means exhaustive as there is an increasing amount of commentary, briefings and resources coming online and I couldn’t track and report them all. Views are those of the posts/sources authors and shared to illustrate different perspectives and questions arising. Whilst every effort has been made to check sources and dates, readers are urged to verify and reference sources before quoting, especially around polling/surveys. People change their views over time as more information becomes available. You can keep up to date with Votesat16Watch by subscribing to #YouthVoiceNews.
➡️History of Votes at 16 Timelines of Parliamentary Activity, Activism and International (Draft – feedback/amends or corrections welcome)
➡️Votesat16Watch technical briefing/parliamentary process – with extracts from the House of Commons Library, Electoral Commission and Association of Electoral Administrators on the Parliamentary process.
VOTES AT 16 Watch July 25 – February 2026
⚡NEWS: Representation of the People Bill 2026 2nd Reading/Debate – 2/3/26 – House of Commons. Read More
⚡🔗News and Policy Paper: Votes at 16 – Representation of the People Bill 2026 introduced in Commons 14th Feb (1st Reading) is lowering the voting age to 16 for all UK elections, expanding the list of accepted voter ID and introducing more automated forms of voter registration + registration at 14; safeguarding data; the right to donate; provisions to ensure those in care & those living overseas included. “Alongside the legislative measures [we will be].. empowering and equipping young people with the knowledge and skills they need to participate will be vital part of successfully implementing this change. We are working closely across government and with the devolved governments and civil society to develop a package of additional measures focusing on practical democratic and civic education and engagement. Read the Policy Paper here
🔗BRIEFING: Roadmap to V16 – published by Democracy Classroom – reshared from 2025 last year, and supported by a V16 network who hold monthly meetings – this ‘manifesto’ spells out the measures many campaigners want the Government to support. Read here.
✍️POST: Votes at 16: the UK government has a fight on its hands – but are politicians all missing the point? Recommended Read Andy Mycock, Chief Policy Fellow at Leeds Uni, writing in The Conversation, reflects on the introduction of Representation of the People Bill. Read more
✍️POST Giving 16-year-olds the vote is a policy Labour cannot U-turn on, William Mata (LBC Radio) “What do teenagers know about real life? Quite a lot, actually. How much power do they have to make a difference? Well, maybe a little bit more.”- Read Here
🔗BRIEFINGS: ShoutOutUK – APPG/Media & Political Literacy : V16 Joint Statement and Lowering Voting Age Policy Brief, and Evidence submission on APPG Schools inquiry on V16💡
👀”Hurdles to the ballot box: Why voting is not a foregone conclusion for young people”] What can we learn from research in Germany? Jan Eichhorn introduces a new report based on research of 18-29 yr-olds, with a number of practical recommendations. “Voting is often shaped not by a lack of motivation, but by unequal starting conditions and structural obstacles”. Link to introduction and report. You will need to translate but its worth it.. Read more
👀Engaging young people /V16 Nottingham Uni et al/ Christopher Pich – introduces new study underway across UK to inform and influence young voter engagement. A total of 120 schools and colleges across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and all regions of England have been recruited as project partners by 12 Universities led by Nottingham, supported by Electoral Commission. More than 700 young people aged 14–16 are expected to participate between September 2025 and March 2026. – Emerging findings include: Strong awareness of proposals to lower the voting age/Limited knowledge of voter registration, polling stations and ID requirements/High intention to vote, but widespread apprehension about the responsibility/Difficulty distinguishing between political parties and candidates; many could not name their local MP/Heavy use of social media, but concerns about its reliability/Clear demand for impartial, school-based political education to build confidence and understanding. Read More
✍️POST: Votesat16 – Electoral Commission response. Press Release here.
📢#YouthVoice: “We want the right to vote for the same reason as everyone else… “Alex Nurton, Youth Parliament MP joined the BBC Radio 4 ‘Today’ Programme to share his perspective on the Representation of the People Bill and the ongoing conversations around Votes at 16. Listen here. NOTE Alexs “Quote of the Year” to the BBC in July last year when he said “We’re not just adults in waiting – we’re active members of society… for everything you say we cant do there are arguments for the things we can” For full interview watch UK Youth Parliament’s reaction to UK Government’s plans to lower the voting age to 16 | BBC News
✍️POST Samantha Dixon, Minister for Democracy discusses V16 with yp in Hackney – Are young people ready? “yes .. definitely. I think yp are much more engaged and much more thoughtful than people give them credit for”. Response from Hackney pupil “Initially I felt quite uncomfortable – I felt like I wasn’t ready – but after hearing the Govt plans and how they feel and the kind of intentions on kind of putting 16 & 17 year olds on this journey, I feel quite more comfortable on the govt’s ideas” . Roundtable facilitated by Hattie Andrews, The Politics Project – Watch here
✍️POST Why voting is not like drinking or smoking – Electoral Reform Society. (Voting does you no harm). A fresh argument in the debate on votes at 16 . Be prepared for lots of media attention – for and against. Read More
👀RESEARCH: Call for Evidence on preparing yp to vote/ APPG for Schools, Learning and Assessment inquiry into how schools can enable young people to feel empowered and enfranchised in anticipation of the introduction of votes at 16. They will also be hosting oral evidence sessions to further explore the topic. (Deadline 27/2)
✍️POST: MP warns Social Media ban consultation must factor in Votes at 16 and be compatible. Read more (source Politics Home)
Keep scrolling through previous months for other briefings/polling and views shared over the last year..
JANUARY 26
⚡Votesat16Watch: Association for Citizenship Teaching partnership with Electoral Commission – “This collaboration comes at a pivotal moment. With significant electoral reforms now put forward – including the extension of the vote to 16- and 17-year-olds – there is renewed national focus on how schools and colleges prepare young people to participate confidently, knowledgeably and impartially in democracy.” Read more here
DECEMBER 25
✍️Democracy Minister Samantha Dixon MP backs youth voice in democracy, explaining why the Government is lowering the voting age. Video (Votes for Schools) Link
NOVEMBER 25
⚡NEWS/Poll Votes for Schools New Report – 53,000 children & young people polled on whether schools should be preparing them for Votes at 16. Here is their results report. Perhaps the surprising result was that amongst secondary age young people, 46% didn’t think their schools should help prepare them to vote at 16. The report speculates that this might be to do with an overfull curriculum? Votes for Schools did a poll 3 years ago on whether Votes at 16 should even be introduced – with a majority against – however other polls before and since had found in favour and it can depend on the wording of the question sometimes young people believe in the right to vote, but don’t believe they are ready (see Votesat16Watch polls). Its expected that legislation will be accompanied with a drive to introduce measures to prepare young voters through a range of source – perhaps by organisations led by young people themselves. You can also see more analysis here Click here for full results
💡RESEARCH: Youthwork and V16: Last week Carole Pugh, presented the findings and recommendations from her research into the role of youth work and votes at 16. You can watch a recording, which also included input from Votesat16 academic Andy Mycock and Charlee Brewster (Regional Youth Work Unit/Yorks&Humber) HERE The event explored ✨ How youth work equips young people for political citizenship✨ The role it could it play in engaging disadvantaged groups of young people✨ The barriers and policies that limit youth work’s capacity to support political socialisation✨ How can we maximise youth work’s capacity to ensure that 16-17 year-olds are adequately supported to vote .
⚡ Changes to the curriculum opportunity to transform democratic education in schools | Electoral Commission The Commission will work with the Department for Education, schools and partner organisations to enhance the citizenship curriculum ahead of the new curriculum’s publication in 2027. Support and guidance will be provided to teachers to ensure lessons are politically impartial.
⚡The Curriculum and Assessment review in England – recommends improvements to the teaching of democratic education and mandatory citizenship education at the primary level in line with recommendations made by the Commission earlier this year. Research by the Commission found that nearly three-quarters of 11-25 year olds wanted to learn more about politics in school. The plans would create an avenue for young people to begin learning about democracy from age five, growing their knowledge and skills as they advance through primary, secondary and post-16 education. If implemented, the recommendations would also strengthen curriculum content on media literacy, mis- and disinformation, oracy and debating.
💡BRIEFING/RESEACH :Young people want to be enfranchised as young people and not as adults – Dr Andy Mycock In a webinar, live streamed from the University of Leeds, last week, Andy explored the background and issues around Votes at 16 before sharing a number of recommendations from a forthcoming report that will be submitted to the Government team responsible for introducing legislation (date yet to be announced). Based on many years of academic research and dialogue with stakeholders and young people, he puts the current developments into the context of a wider debate that needs to be had around the engagement of young people in democracy. See the full Slides here on the YVH Resources/Votesat16Watch page, where you can find other recent materials.
⚡#YouthVoice Blog: Votes at 16 are coming, yet millions may still be ignored – Make Votes Matter In this blog Bertie Bramham (Politics student at University of Exeter), notes that many young voters opt for the smaller parties that speak to them, but are less likely to get into power because of the first past the post system. He is part of the Make Votes Matter campaign for Prop Voting in our elections. What do you think?
⚡#YouthVoice Blog – Is 16 Too Young To Get Voting? in the Blog on @ShoutoutUK, Miles Mosheshe, explores the arguments for and against and sets out his view on whats needed next.
OCTOBER
⚡POLL SUNDAY TIMES/More In Common POLL: Youth Voice Poll /Research: Views of 16 and 17-year-olds/ More In Common Aug 25 on Votes at 16 | Voting Intentions | Mental Health and WellBeing | Legacy of Lockdown | School | Vaping Smoking Drinking | Screentime, Social Media | Online Safety |AI | Feminism and Gender Equality | Pride and Patriotism | Monarchy | Climate Change | Boats crossing the Channel |…. and how their priorities diverge on the Big Issues compared with the wider public. Read the full report click : Source and Full Research results and tables: Sunday Times 16-17s Sample 1,000 / GB (Eng/Scot/Wales) 15-20th August 2025
⚡NEWS: Steve Reed MP, the new Sec of State at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, has Democracy and Elections listed as part of his Ministerial responsibilities. Samatha Dixon MP has responsibilities include Elections and is taking over from Rushanara Ali MP who resigned in the summer.
✍️POST Votes at 16: Are schools prepared for politics in the classroom? – Schools Week Education is a vital part of votesat 16 . The Association Citizenship Teachers calls for citizenship to be made statutory in primary schools as well as better training for teachers.
✍️POST UK elections chief says children need lessons from 11 to be ready to vote at 16 | Electoral Commission | The Guardian
✍️POLL Votesat16Watch – poll reveals most 16-17 year olds (59%) support lowering the voting age, but split on whether they feel informed enough to vote.More In Common – Sunday Times 16-17s
⚡NEWS Youth Parliament intend to hold a Consultation and a Petition (launched in Feb 26) on Political Education. The Youth Parliament has been consistently and repeatedly campaigning for Votes at 16 from the start and has added a call for political education to be included in Government plans going forward [as have the other key campaigners in recent years]. “The campaign isn’t over until the law has changed. The motion that appears in the current UKYP manifesto [and voted at the UKYP House of Commons debate to be its priority campaign this year] also extends to education. We are intent on holding the Government to this promise and lobby for mandatory, in-depth, political education in schools on behalf of every young person in the UK.”
SEPTEMBER 2025 – highlights – See Votesat16 watch column in YoungVoicesHeard for Jan – Aug 2025
🔗Voting Age’, Parliamentary Research Briefing, House of Commons Feb 25 Neil Johnstone, available online. SN01747.pdf
🔗 Votesat16 – House of Lords briefing blog Following Labour’s manifesto commitment to lower the voting age to 16, this briefing considers the potential impact on turnout, electoral outcomes and democratic engagement.
⚡💡NEWS/Poll UK Youth Poll 2025 – John Smith Centre & Video of findings(published April, covering a poll in Feb 2025 and interviews prior to that) UK wide poll of youth views. Its comprehensive and covers those aged 16-29.
AUGUST 2025 / Editorial
✍️POST: Youth Strategy? Plan for Change? Votes at 16? We need a Youth Minister to coordinate. If not now, then when? Editorial by Young Voices News founder James Cathcart
Editorial “I’ve said it before – we need a Youth Minister at Cabinet level to coordinate these, and other departmental youth policies (health, justice, education) and provide a single focal point for young people, a full-time dedicated post. We need the Government to also rationalise and coordinate its youth advisors, not as temporary co-producers of consultations, but ongoing advisors brokering views from a restored national youth council to inform and influence policy and delivery. The role of Childrens/Youth Minister used to be a single ministerial role within the Department for Education until 2013, but responsibility for youth services/volunteering and youthvoice element was split off from that of DfE’s Children’s Minister (which still resides at DfE), to be relocated first at the Cabinet Office and then to DCMS in 2016, where a revolving door of ministers who had to manage a list of other roles ranging from Sport to the Charities. The current Minister is Stephanie Peacock MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sport, Media, Civil Society and Youth, who has youth work, youth voice and is coordinating the new Youth Strategy (She has already held a co-ordinating meeting with other departmental Ministers) but has to find time for all her other roles as well!
The British Youth Council first called for the restoration of the Minister for Youth post in 2013 shortly after the role was split off from DfE. In 2019 the APPG on Youth Affairs also called for the Ministerial role to be restored to DfE. Having worked with many of these Ministers at both DfE, Cabinet Office and DCMS, I’ve been calling for it ever since, and especially now, when there appears to be an emerging commitment to young policy across Government. An expected reshuffle in the autumn may be too soon to expect such an appointment. But supporters of such a proposal should start lobbying now, calling on the Government to work with officials to plan a new office for youth affairs as part of a general re-engagement of youth in our democracy. It took 25 years of campaigning to get Votes at 16, and it may take a ‘campaign for a youth minister’ to achieve matching reform sooner. We are about to herald a sea-change in the engagement and influence of young people in public life through votes at 16, and all young people over the age of 16 (to 24?) deserve a Youth Minister to both hear young people, coordinate policies, and represent their interests at the Cabinet top table. JC/Ed]
JULY 2025
⚡NEWS: Quote of the Week – Alex Nurton, (Chair of the UKYP subcommittee on Votesat16, Youth Parliament member for Surrey) on BBC News “We’re not just adults in waiting – we’re active members of society… for everything you say we cant do there are arguments for the things we can” For full interview watch UK Youth Parliament’s reaction to UK Government’s plans to lower the voting age to 16 | BBC News
✍️Lowering voting age could deepen class divide in schools due to lack of political literacy … The Independent “Votes at 16 is an important milestone, but without proper political education in every school, we risk widening the democratic gap between …
✍️Jardine celebrates votes at 16 as ‘first step’ to electoral reform – Edinburgh News Published 24th Jul 2025
💡BRIEFING/Research: Youth Work and Political Education – Policy Briefing research paper – Carole Pugh (Jul 25)“My research shows that to effectively support the enfranchisement of 16-year-olds, voting rights must be accompanied by political education. The research demonstrates that that young people gain essential political knowledge and citizenship experiences through informal settings, and identifies practical policy recommendations that can ensure an integrated policy response that enables the democratic potential of youth work to be recognised and realised.” Policy Briefing-Youth work and political education FINAL.pdf
⚡NEWS: Votes at 16 Watch : Government announces plans for implementation for Votes at 16 and electoral reform with Policy Paper. Government at last responds to 20 years of campaigning with announcement of a new Policy Paper “Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections” which details plans to deliver on their manifesto commitment to lowering the voting age. Opposition parties respond and new poll of 16 and 17 yr-olds shows still work to be done to educate and empower the new electorate. The Electoral Commissions sums up the new measures below and invites you to respond direct. More information from the Government here.
💡POLL: ITV commissioned a Merlin opinion poll of 500 16 and 17 year olds on mainland Great Britain [why not Northern Ireland who are affected by the legislation?] and reported that half disagreed with the policy despite a slim majority backed it at 51% to 49%. That perhaps not surprising given that many young people do not feel prepared yet, but given the example of Scotland where democracy education has featured in they were first allowed to vote in 2014, the same poll revealed that 79% were in favour there.
⚡NEWS: The BBC reported on a roundtable meeting between a youthled campaign by @MyLifeMySay and the Minister for Democracy, with several interviews with young campaigners.
Whilst most political parties back the move – the Conservatives remain opposed with the shadow Minister claiming that the Governments attitude toward the age of majority is confused. Mr Holmes told MPs: “This strategy has finally revealed their ambition for allowing a 16-year-old to vote in an election but not stand in it, probably because young people are being abandoned in droves by the Labour Party. So, why does this Government think a 16-year-old can vote but not be allowed to buy a lottery ticket, an alcoholic drink, marry, or go to war, or even stand in the elections they’re voting in?”
The Reform Party are also opposed with Nigel Farage saying – “I don’t think you should be able to vote in an election unless you’re also eligible to be a candidate, and I don’t think 16 year olds should stand for Parliament. So no, I’m not in favour of it, but I’m really encouraged by the number of young people that are coming towards us,”
Comment: “Its been a long time coming – 25 years or successive campaigns and waves of young campaigners supported by a range of organisations passing on the baton to the next generation – all of them deserve credit for the success of the campaign. There is much more to do and the current campaigns are focusing on ensuring the transition is done well . The Politics Project coordinated efforts and input to produce a series of recommendations in their report – RoadMap to Votes at 16, launched the day before, is a excellent example – and if its measures are implemented and young people are supported with democracy education, ease of access to voting, and some media platforms to reveal to the general public what a fantastic generation of young people they are – Im sure the opinion polls of 16 and 17 year old which soon shift to compare favourable with the more positive experience of Scotland where 79% of the same age group in the same poll were very much in favour. In the meantime all parties, whatever their persuasion, would do well to paying more attention to what young people care about – especially wen as parents, teachers and employers, health professionals back the right of the views of young people to be heard and support their issues. The media will be critical mediators in this process and will need to give young people a fair hearing, perhaps appointing some ‘Youth Correspondents” to engage and mobilise young voices to not only be heard, but “counted”. JC/Ed
⚡Minister for Democracy Rushanara Ali MP, responded to lobbying for a RoadMap to V16
“Young people need to have their voices heard and that’s why I’m so proud of the fact that we committed in our manifesto to enfranchising 16 and 17 year olds.” and went on to say: “In each generation there must be a national conversation about how to protect our democratic system and culture so that we build on our advances and leave behind a democracy more robust and relevant to the next generation .. so ensuring that the voices of yp are not only heard but recognised and counted”. She went to assure that “We all agree that education of young people is critical so they can understand their rights but also their responsibilities and feel equipped and empowered to participate on our democracy”.- “We are working with the Department of Education to establish which practical steps can be taken to help the education sector to support the implement of votes at 16.” and added that there is more work to do to engage all young people and to prioritise voter registration. Speaking directly to the next generation she said ” I look forward to working with you and we together to write the next chapter of our democracy, centred on making sure that young people of our nation are heard and able to shape their future.”
Other politicians who addressed the event included Lord Blunkett (Lab) who stressed the importance of citizenship education, Will Forster MP (LD) who stress assured attendees they would support the legislation and give them hell if they didn’t follow through. Baroness Natalie Bennett (Green) called for votes at 13 and Chris Ward MP ( PPS to the Prime Minister) stressed that whilst the a majority in parliament where in favour of reform “we still need to go out and win the argument in the country”, and secondly that we needed to “get the process right, modernising the curriculum”, with a “minimum level of democracy education in schools”
- The Roadmap to Votes at 16 was funded by The UK Democracy Fund and coordinated by The Politics Project through the Democracy Classroom Network.
🎁Votesat16Watch launches new resource page on Young Voices Heard – for campaigners/supporters Votesat16 on our website – with Votesat16Timeline (a brief history of the votesat16 movement. Copy of Powerpoint presentation to the Votesat16 youth event, London 15/7 , and two research reports from 2025 – 1/ Votes 16 Research by leading academics , and 2/ Votes at 16 Briefing: House of Commons Library.
Votesat16Watch started in January 2025, with more post in the right margin of http://www.YoungVoicesHeard.org.uk website, HERE or Votesat16/Resources Page
ENDS