Kingston Youth

Being a teenager in Kingston is

hard, we find staying at home boring and as we are too young to go to pubs or night

clubs we often conform to just ‘hanging out’ in certain spots. This often makes

us appear intimidating, but really we are just trying to enjoy our night by

relaxing and talking with our friends. A favourite place is go with friends is

the river side in Kingston, as this is a very beautiful public area where we

can enjoy our time. However it would be nice to go somewhere, without having to

worry about disturbing people. As teenagers we appreciate our time spent

together, we are unique, yet we face similar problems with school, parents,

friends ect. A safer environment in the evenings for young people would be

extremely useful as not only is it getting teenagers off the street it is also

preoccupying them, making sure they are safe.

Such things as a night club for under 18’s every so often

would prove very popular, and hopefully it would also be making sure teenagers

aren’t causing trouble. This would be particularly beneficial for the council

as they would not have as many problems surrounding teen violence. I personally

feel that a step like this would be leading Kingston into the right direction

possibly even making it a friendlier place to be.  When Julia Bjornstad was asked if opening an

under 18’s club in Kingston was a good idea she replied ‘yes for sure!’ and

when asked if she would attend with her friends ‘HELL YES!’ Rob Parker responded

just as enthusiastically to the question saying ‘Yes, I probably would if all

my friends were as well.’ Also when asked if he thought it would lower the teen

violence he stated ‘It would definitely take people away from the commons and

the parks at night which is good.’ Therefore to eradicate the problem of teen

violence the proposal of an under 18’s club, is something that should be

seriously taken into consideration by the Kingston Council.

Daisy Morris