Youth Forum
What is the Youth Forum and what do we do?
The RSBC Youth Forum is a group of blind and partially sighted young people aged between 16 and 25. We’re committed to creating positive change and championing the voices of vision impaired young people, as well as influencing all areas of work across RSBC.
We work to raise awareness and challenge perceptions of young people with vision impairment. We aim to represent their views and opinions, and highlight the issues that affect them. And we do our best to influence the people who can push for change and help improve services within RSBC itself, as well as other organisations.
The Youth Forum meets regularly with trustees and people across RSBC so that we make sure the voices of blind and visually impaired young people are heard and drive the charity’s services and engagement.
Meet Zenny
Chairperson
Hey, I’m Zenny! I’m the chair-person and social media ambassador for the youth forum. I’ve been a part of the Youth Forum for a couple of years now and I joined because I strongly believe that there is no-one better to truly represent and educate others on blindness than those of us who are blind. Outside the Forum, I work within the entertainment industry, specifically voice acting, singing and song-writing. I’ve done some modelling in the past as well. I’m also hoping to start a small vocal coaching business. I’m very excited for the future of the Forum; we’ve got some great ideas and plans in the works.
Meet Camille
My name is Camille. I joined the Youth Forum at the beginning of the Covid 19 pandemic in 2020, and I’ve really enjoyed being part of it since. I first heard about RSBC and the Youth Forum thanks to my specialist teacher, Aimee. I joined at a difficult time, when I felt very isolated and could not see my friends. This society was appealing to me because I wanted to make a difference and be part of a community. I quickly felt that our voices were being heard, and that together we were understood. Some values that I align myself with are kindness, helpfulness and organisation. I’ve recently graduated from a supported internship, and in my spare time I like to write books for children. Through the Youth Forum, I’ve learnt several new skills, such as how to speak up for myself and how to express my feelings and emotions, as well as asking for help when needed. Most of all, I now feel that I am not alone!
Meet Rufus
Hi, I’m Rufus and I’m from East Dulwich, South London. I’m about to start an internship with Guys and St Thomas’ Hospital, working as a patient access coordinator. In my spare time, I enjoy listening to music, going for walks, seeing friends, and meals out. I decided to join the Youth Forum because I enjoy the RSBC activities and wanted to give back to it. I enjoy the Youth Forum meetings, especially the pizza!
Meet Rona
My name is Rona and I am completely blind. I really like helping others, and I’m passionate about making everyday objects — such as menus in restaurants — accessible to blind people, so that they can maintain their independence. I currently volunteer monthly for my local theatre. I really feel that I can make a difference and improve the lives of VI young people around the UK. I want to make society more inclusive for VI young people like myself, and smash down the barriers that affect us day to day. This should help us maintain our independence in the long-term.
Meet Lauren
Hey! My name is Lauren, and I’m blind. I’m studying health and social in college, but in my free time I like to play video games, use makeup and experiment with new looks, and advocate for equal opportunities and accessibility for vision impaired people. As a young blind woman, I aspire to help advocate for the rights of sight impaired people and for those who don’t have a voice. I also like to educate people about living with a visual impairment, challenge misconceptions and raise awareness of sight impairment. I am a massive advocate for self care as a sight impaired person, and showing what it may look like. I want every vision impaired person to know that they do have a place that they belong, and that they deserve to have the same opportunities as our sighted counterparts, whether that be through education, workplaces or the community.
Meet Mohammed
Hello, my name is Mohammed. I’m a university student, studying a degree in Digital Education. As a fully blind person who has used technology extensively, I hope to make a positive contribution to the Forum through the knowledge I’ve acquired during my studies. I believe technology is truly empowering for people with disabilities, and we should make the most of it to help each other overcome challenges. I’m also interested in helping to make the internet an accessible facility for all, by bringing to attention accessibility issues when accessing services or websites.
Meet Alyssia
My name is Alyssia, and I am registered severely sight impaired. I can see light and colour, and I use a cane to navigate.
In my spare time, I enjoy listening to music, singing and creative writing. I also do judo.
I joined the Youth Forum because I want to make a difference in the lives of young people with a vision impairment. I am passionate about making the world more accessible, to ensure that blind and vision impaired people can live an independent and fulfilling life. I’m also passionate about mental health, and I believe that discussions need to be had about mental health for VI young people.
Meet Molly
Hello, my name is Molly. I have what’s known as Optical Atrophy but I like to call it tunnel vision. I’ve had to power through these past few years with one fully functioning arm and leg but it’s never stopped me from making my way through life with a smile. I like listening to music and drawing digital art. I’m always keen to make new friends and learn more about people! I’ve had to put up with my visual impairment for almost four years, with my first year involving me bumping into everything and accidently getting myself into hilarious scenarios. Despite my vision loss, I’ve always been a huge fan of drawing and taking part in creative projects with friends. Playing games has also always been a fun thing I like to do and I’ve adapted from playing them and avoiding my disabilities and turning them into super abilities!
Our Manifesto
The Youth Forum has worked on a Manifesto that lays out our aims, values and beliefs. We’ve focused on three key areas:
- Transport
- Mental health
- Employment and education
Eyes On
Transcript
Juliette Parfitt 0:00
Hi, I’m Juliet, and I work at RSBC, and today I am chatting to the lovely Camille, who is a member of our youth forum. How long have you been part of the Youth Forum, Camille?
Camille 0:17
I am not a 100% sure but I would want to say about two, maybe two and a half to three years. I’m not too sure when, when I started.
Juliette Parfitt 0:27
Quite a while though!
Juliette Parfitt 0:30
So I’m going to be talking to Camille about her writing and her job today. So Camille, let’s dive straight in. What are your books that you’ve published called, and what are they about?
Camille 0:45
So my books are called friends. And Book One is about a goldfish called crazy who is lonely and is looking for friends. And Book Two is about crazy going on an adventure around the world with friends and meeting new people.
Juliette Parfitt 1:06
Sounds great. Where does he go to?
Camille 1:09
All different places, all different countries, such as Belgium, France, and I can’t remember the others. [Laughs]
Juliette Parfitt 1:18
That’s great. What inspired you to write your books.
Camille 1:22
I got inspired because I had the goldfish ones who got a homesick when I was on holiday. And I had a really good joke with Emma Blake, who taught me how to write stories.
Juliette Parfitt 1:34
That’s brilliant. What happened to the goldfish when you went away?
Camille 1:37
He got homesick, so we had to take him to the vet.
Juliette Parfitt 1:41
Awww, was he alright?
Camille 1:44
Yeah, during COVID, we bought him a friend.
Juliette Parfitt 1:47
Ah nice! So what is your favourite part about writing your own books?
Camille 1:52
I don’t really have a favourite part about writing my own books, but if I had to choose, it would probably be the greatest aspects of it, and having to put the ideas together to create nice stories.
Juliette Parfitt 2:07
Yeah, it must be really satisfying coming up with ideas and actually like sitting down and writing them and seeing something that you’ve created become real.
Juliette Parfitt 2:15
What was the inspiration for the poem that you wrote about King Charles?
Camille 2:19
It was a mixture of things. For example, talking with my grandma, do a bit of research. I also spoke with my nanny Arya, obviously, final version, get out of my own brain. But I really enjoyed it.
Juliette Parfitt 2:39
I really liked the way that in the poem, you kind of go through all the different senses and give examples of like, things that you use to see with those senses. And it was really, like, evocative, like, the imagery was amazing.
Juliette Parfitt 2:51
I really enjoyed it.
Camille 2:52
Just the imagery really came to my head like that. I didn’t think it. I didn’t even have to think about it.
Juliette Parfitt 2:59
Yeah, you can tell it feels really different and really like, like, really punchy. Like, it was like, I was like, Oh, I’ve not read anything like that before. I really enjoyed it.
Juliette Parfitt 3:09
So how did you feel when you found out that you were the runner up in this competition?
Camille 3:14
When I got told I was the runner up, I was really not expecting it. I got told during a Youth Forum meeting in July, so
Camille 3:22
I was a bit surprised.
Juliette Parfitt 3:26
So you must have been a nice surprise to get during the meeting.
Camille 3:29
Oh yeah, I looked at Sonia like “Really?!”
Juliette Parfitt 3:34
I know we were excited! So yeah.
Juliette Parfitt 3:37
Cool, and we’re going to talk a little bit now about your job. So can you tell me, like, what is your job? How long have you been working for?
Camille 3:45
I’m working at something else and Community Centre as a support officer and receptionist. I have officially been doing paid work for a year. But before this, I did a volunteering in the same job.
Juliette Parfitt 4:06
What’s your favourite thing about your job?
Camille 4:08
My favourite part of my job is the community as I feel like we’re a big family, that’s really nice.
Juliette Parfitt 4:19
So, what are some of the challenges that you faced in work as a visually impaired person?
Camille 4:26
I mean, I think that the biggest challenge that I’ve faced within work is having to wait for access to work to come and do an assessment, but also having to wait for the government to get here, and one of them is defective, so we have to send it back.
Juliette Parfitt 4:46
That’s really frustrating, isn’t it, when that happens and having to work and having to wait for things that you need in order to do your job properly, it’s really frustrating, isn’t it?
Camille 4:56
Definitely.
Juliette Parfitt 4:58
What advice would you give to a young, visually impaired person who was thinking about looking for work, or who was wanting to work?
Camille 5:07
I would tell them that if they want to work. They should go for it. They would need to work hard, but also get lucky in some way.
Camille 5:16
I’m not sure what I would do without my neighbor, Tim, who is the trustee at my workplace. Well, head of trustees actually at my workplace and knew i was looking for a job.
Juliette Parfitt 5:31
That’s really nice. It’s nice when other people can help us, isn’t it?
Camille 5:35
Definitely.
Juliette Parfitt 5:37
And then, do you have any advice for any young people who are visually impaired who want to write as well?
Camille 5:43
I would tell them that they should follow their passion and not let anything bring them down.
Juliette Parfitt 5:52
I love that. That is a great message to end on.
Juliette Parfitt 5:54
Camille, thank you so much for chatting with me. I’ve had a great time been here you.
Camille 6:01
Premium
Podcasts
Tune in to the Youth Forum’s RSBC’s Unseen podcast, and tap into conversations that young people are having. They’re driven by young people themselves, and cover a wide variety of topics. These podcasts are a fabulous way to gain insight into things we care about.
