The directors and senior managers of key City of York Council services are to get a grilling from young people at the York Youth Festival later this month.

The festival is being run by the York Youth Forum which now has around 300 members across the city. The forum has invited a panel of high-powered guests from the council to answer questions in one of the key features of the day-long event at York St John College on Saturday, August 31.

City of York Council, the NSPCC and York St John College are all backing the event which is being organised by the young people as a day of entertainment and a chance to explore issues which concern and affect them.

Jim Crook and Patrick Scott, the council's directors of community services and education respectively, will join colleagues Colin Knight, head of transport planning, Charlie Croft, head of leisure, and head of youth services Paul Herring as panellists at the event.

But there will also be a series of thought-provoking interactive workshops throughout the day with discussions on self-worth, alcohol awareness, sexual health, stress management and leisure and transport options in York on the agenda.

As part of the alcohol awareness session children and teenagers will get the chance to shape the contents of a new CD on alcohol awareness which is being produced by the York Alcohol Service for city schools.

There will also be a series of practical workshops giving advice to young people on a number of activities from how to make their own music to designing their own web pages.

The event is open to all 11 to 19-year-olds and admission is free but only by advanced ticket. Tickets for the York Youth Festival are available on line at www.cycyouth-festival@fsnet.co.uk or by emailing YORKYOUTHFEST@hotmail.com. There will be a strict no ticket, no entry policy on the day.

York Youth Festival trainee Kat Bailey, 18, said, "The festival is designed to enable young people to come together and have a say in issues that concern them, to find out more about youth issues, to gain new skills and to celebrate young people coming together and to have fun.

"This is an opportunity for young people to get involved in a range of activities and to be entertained as well as informed. The idea of having a panel from City of York Council is to give us a chance to ask the head of each service how they can make York better for us."

The event will end with a variety of music and other entertainment with HTD, Junior, Konspiracy, Dead pets, Fadge, 5FD, RSJ, Flint and Fake among the live bands.

Bob Scrase, City of York Council's executive member for community safety, local affairs and commercial services, said, "Young people have lots of ideas and its our responsibility as local councillors to listen and respond positively.

"This is a great initiative. In October we will be launching the Older Persons' Assembly, so it's important that younger people also have a voice and a way to get involved."

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Notes for Editors:

The York Youth Project was born in 1998 after City of York Council's Children's Services Working Group decided to fund the project in September 1997 A Shadow Youth Council was set up to steer the project involving youngsters who had taken part in several annual York Youth Conferences since 1996 and other interested young people. The Forum is for young people who want to speak out on local matters or try to get something changed. It offers practical support, training, a newsletter and lines of communication with elected members.