YOUNG people in Broadgreen will be given the chance to help shape the future of their community.

A Broadgreen Youth Community Council is to be set up by local residents in collaboration with nearby schools Churchfields and St Joseph’s.

The idea came out of research for the Broadgreen Community Plan, which was officially launched last night.

More than 100 young people responded to a survey on their thoughts and hopes for the community over the next few years.

The strength of the response and the maturity of the answers inspired the Broad Street Community Council to suggest a youth body.

John Taylor MBE, a member of the community council and the project manager for the community plan, said the 111 teenagers that took part in the survey proved the younger generation care about their surroundings.

“We had some fantastic suggestions – a real variety and what struck me was how mature some of those responses were,” he said.

“The fact that we have more than 100 young people in Broadgreen who care what their area looks like was very encouraging.”

The community council will now work with the two local schools to form the youth council, which should be established by 2012.

Mr Taylor said: “We need to harness the enthusiasm and the imagination that young people have and channel that into the community.

“We are hopefully producing the next generation of councillors and community leaders.”

Maureen Harries, head of St Joseph’s Catholic College, said: “St Joseph’s is working very closely with Broadgreen Council. Students from Broadgreen took part in a survey at college at the request of the council, who were delighted with the responses of our students which will inform work being done in the area.

“The college is hoping to support the youth community through our Duke of Edinburgh Award and our Flexible Pathway Programme.

“The Broadgreen Neighbourhood Police Team also work closely with the college. They have asked us to be involved in the formation of the Broadgreen Youth Council. We will continue to forge links with the Broadgreen community.”

The Broadgreen Community Plan – a blueprint for what the community council hopes to achieve in the area over the next two years was launched last night at an event in the Broadgreen Community Centre.