Sunny week, sunny atmosphere, sunny programme: the summer course of the Young England and Wales Programme brought together 37 delegates for a lively three days of debate, papers and group work. Click here for photos.
On the final evening, Alex Browne of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government was named England and Wales Young Thinker of the Year for a paper motivated by a fine anger about the removal of a relative to a hospital 200 miles away without the family’s knowledge. 'However, the paper’s great achievement was its ability to see the bigger picture beyond the personal suffering. The writing had the most wonderful assurance – bold in its repetition of the key sentence, beautifully structured, as well as clear and succinct in its exposition of the injustice visited on so many mentally ill patients and their families.' Alex shares the Young Thinker title with the winners of the April and October 2018 events.
A delegate from the National Crime Agency was named runner-up for a paper 'robust and uncompromising, almost polemical in style, examining Putin’s relationship with the Russian people... strong, combative material, another piece of really good writing, enhanced by a commanding presence at the lectern.' Three delegates were highly commended: another National Crime Agency representative for an 'elegant and perceptive' paper on the narcissism of the human race; Alice Dunn of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government for a 'superbly presented, engaging and enjoyable paper on the unlikeliest topic – public toilets'; and Felicia Johnston of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme for a 'gutsy paper on a topic of extreme sensitivity' – public attitudes to paedophiles.
Jason Elmar from the Ministry of Justice and Emily Webster from the National Physical Laboratory received a joint award for best On The Spot, while Tallulah Frankland of the Ministry of Justice won the 60-second Challenge. See right for winning group.
Demand for Young England and Wales Programme places has been so high that, for the first time since the Young Programme was founded back in 2002, we have added a third England and Wales event to our annual calendar. Click here for brochure and booking form for the autumn programme, to be held in Lancaster in October.
Our major international event of the year – bringing together the 2018 Young Ireland Programme and the Autumn Young Scotland Programme – will take place in September (18th to 21st). North Queensferry is the location for this exciting and inspiring mix of delegate groups. Click here for the Ireland brochure and booking form, or click here for the Scotland brochure and booking form.
