Children’s Express – Why we love it
Children's Express is so good that young members can be found queuing outside the door before the staff have even arrived on a Saturday.
| Children’s Express has opened up so many opportunities to me. |
"I like it because I have met new people and it has helped me improve my self-confidence," Amy Magowan Greene, 12 said.
Opened in Belfast a year ago, Children's Express provides a unique opportunity for young people between the ages of eight to 18 to have their opinions heard through the media.
Members get together to decide what issues affect their lives and then plan what angle the story is going to take. They do research and carry out taped interviews and all the information is pulled together into an article which is sold to the local and national papers.
BBC radio journalist Maggie Taggart, said "We have all seen the wonderful publicity brochure about the Children's Express Programme but it does not really compare to the scope of work they are doing. It offers young people a platform to express views on matters that affect their lives to be seen and heard."
Based in Belfast's city centre, around 40 young people use the programme.
"I come because it is a fantastic way to learn about journalism and it also teaches you valuable life skills," Conor Magowan Greene, 10 said.
There are six bureaux in the United Kingdom with plans to open another in Blackburn. Teen trainers from each bureau induct all new members in the Children's Express rigorous story process.
"Children's Express has opened up so many opportunities to me. I am a trainer, which has helped me take responsibility and develop social and leadership skills," said Hugo McIlveen, 15.
About the team
This article was produced by the Belfast members quoted above. It was published in art.ie, the monthly Northern Ireland Arts Council magazine.
