Young people from different parts of Scotland have taken the mic to speak up about issues affecting their lives on our thought-provoking podcast, The Young Rights Champions, with the six-episode series available on Spotify.
From access to free school breakfasts and period products, to Votes at 16 and breaches of children and young people’s rights, the podcast has seen the Young Rights Champions — a group of MSYPs — discuss how these issues relate to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), and interview both adults and other young people with expertise in each subject, challenging preconceived ideas while offering youth-led solutions.
The podcast is part of The Right Way – a project run by SYP and funded by the Scottish Government which aims to show decision-makers what meaningful participation with young people actually looks like in real life, whether it’s through in-person training or creating checklists, guidelines and other resources – all available here.
Nymeria Drayak, MSYP for Orkney Islands and a Young Rights Champion, said:
The idea of hosting a podcast came after we saw the need to take our advocacy work one step further, bringing different MSYPs together and having the space to chat to people who can answer some of the questions young people have about what matters to them.
The Young Rights Champions podcast is also an excellent resource for decision-makers, as it allows them to hear from young people themselves to understand their needs and expectations, as well as what can be done to make sure they’re included in conversations about their present and future.
If you haven’t listened to the first series of the Young Rights Champions podcast, here’s a brief overview of each episode:
Breakfast, Rights, and a Better Start – episode one discusses children and young people’s rights and how they relate to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), as well as why access to free breakfast in schools is essential to pupils’ wellbeing. To shed light on this subject, Emma Henderson MSYP interviews Magic Breakfast about why every child deserves the best possible start to their day.
The Right Way Checklists and Cabinet Takeover – in episode two, the Young Rights Champions discuss Article 12 of the UNCRC and what meaningful participation means in practice. This episode also includes questions asked to First Minister John Swinney by SYP Chair Ellie Craig at the 2025 Cabinet Takeover – a meeting where MSYPs have a chance to speak directly to the First Minister and his Cabinet.
Accessibility of Period Products across Scottish Schools – episode three dives into access to period products in Scotland’s schools, exploring why this topic still carries so much stigma. The Young Rights Champions chat with MSYPs Mairi Millar and Ella Quinn, who founded the PADS campaign (Providing Access, Dismantling Stigma), alongside the team at Hey Girls.
Youth-led Boards – in episode four, the Young Rights Champions focus on why youth-led boards are important and how they honour Article 12 of the UNCRC by ensuring children and young people’s voices are taken seriously. In this episode, you’ll hear from SYP Board Trustee Hamish Nott about his experience of serving on a youth-led board.
Breaching Children and Young People’s Rights – episode five aims to explain what happens when children and young people’s rights are breached and how to support someone in that situation. Here, Nymeria Drayak MSYP speaks to Nick Hobbs, Head of Legal at the Office of the Commissioner for Children and Young People Scotland.
Votes at 16 – to wrap up the first series, Ava Williamson and Bennie-Ann Wood MSYPs invite SYP Chair Ellie Craig MSYP to talk about Votes at 16: what it has meant for Scotland and what extending the voting age could mean for young people’s participation in democracy beyond Scotland.
