Simmering is finally getting its own children and youth parliament!

Simmering is finally getting its own children and youth parliament!

Something is happening for the young generation in Simmering! At the most recent district board meeting, the topic of children's and youth parliaments was discussed lively. District leader Thomas Steinhart from the SPÖ answered the relevant question from ÖVP party chairman Luis William. What is surprising is that Simmering is currently the only district in Vienna that does not yet have an active children's and youth parliament. But that should change!

The planned youth parliament will be implemented in four phases from June 2025 to May 2026. These begin with inviting schools and planning, followed by awareness-raising workshops. The delegation work then takes place before the public action days take place. The aim is for children and young people to bring forward their concerns and ideas, even if they cannot present their applications directly to the district council. However, district councilors are invited to attend meetings to promote dialogue. Intensive participation of the district council in the events is also planned.

Reach your goal with partners

The aim is to cooperate with the “Balu & Du” association, which is committed to outreach child and youth care. In order to support the implementation of the project, a separate website for the Children and Youth Parliament is also being planned. Supporting materials and contact persons should be made available to the schools to ensure that everything runs smoothly.

The “Strong Children and Youth Parliaments” initiative supports such projects nationwide and aims to strengthen the political participation of young people. The Academy for Children and Youth Parliaments offers qualifications for young parliamentarians and their companions and enables exchange between the various youth parliaments. This initiative shows how important a sustainable anchoring of youth participation is for democracy, even if it does not provide its own funding but points out that there are other funding options. The network thus strengthens the democratic participation of youngsters and promotes networking.

A look at Germany

In a figurative sense, one could learn from the experiences in Germany, where there are now over 500 children and youth parliaments. These have established themselves as important platforms for the participation of young people and make a significant contribution to political education. A study has defined essential factors that promote the success of such committees and recommends integrating them into various forms of participation. A cooperative approach can lead to different projects cross-fertilizing each other and creating a “participation landscape” from which everyone benefits.

It remains to be seen how financing will be secured for the implementation of the project in Simmering. The possible amount of over 650,000 euros is currently listed in the district budget for outreach child and youth care, but clear sources of funding have not yet been named. One thing is certain, however: the coming months in the Simmering district will be exciting when it comes to launching the youth parliament and making young voices heard.

For more comprehensive information about the initiative and successful concepts in other regions, it is worth taking a look at the website of the Initiative Strong Children and Youth Parliaments and the [Study on Children and Youth Parliaments]. Youth Parliaments].

Overall, we can be excited to see how the political commitment of young people in Simmering will develop and how their concerns and ideas will be carried to the district council. One thing is clear: youth have a voice and they are heard!

For more details about the resolutions and developments in the meeting, take a look at the article from My District.