Abigail is voice of youth in UK

The Lurgan native has been chosen to voice the concerns and experiences of young people with the newly formed LifeSkills Youth Advisory Council (LYAC), co-created by LifeSkills and Barclays.

Abigail is one of just fourteen young people to be hand-picked for the Council, and there is no doubt she is well qualified for the role!

“I heard about LYAC after being the Member of Youth Parliament for Upper Bann,” shares Abigail.

“I was very interested in getting involved as my term as MYP had ended and I still wanted to help the young people of my area. After the application was sent away, I was shortlisted for a phone interview with Barclays and, the following week, I heard I would be attending the first meeting at Barclays Head Offices in London!”

The nineteen year old certainly has her plate full - as she is about to embark on her second year at Scotland’s University of Stirling, studying Politics with Journalism Abigail is quick to acknowledge Lurgan College for fuelling her passion for politics.

“My sister studied Politics and that gave me an interest,” she explains. “After chatting to the Politics teacher, Mr Uprichard, I selected it as one of my A-levels. I shadowed two MLAs at Stormont for work experience and, after that, I was hooked! Mr Uprichard encouraged me to get more and more involved and has got me to where I am today!”

Abigail will join spoken word artist and BRIT nominee, George the Poet, who is Chair of the Youth Advisory Council. He shared his excitement: “Abigail really impressed me and I can’t wait to work with her to construct new and innovative ways to inspire the next generation to go after the future they want.”