Young Health Ambassadors

Who are the Young Health Ambassadors?

South Tyneside Young Health Ambassadors (STYHA) is a programme led by the South Tyneside Public Health Team.

We are a group of young people with a passion for health and wellbeing, who want to make a difference by raising awareness for young people in South Tyneside.

Anyone aged 14 - 18 years (school years 9 -13) is welcome to be part of the group.

What do we do?

Young Health Ambassadors:

  • attend training around public health topics
  • offer support and advice to friends, family and school/college community
  • inspect health services, and give valuable suggestions to help them provide the best experiences to support young people
  • give their views on lots of different health initiatives, including websites, information and even service design
  • are supported to design and run their own health campaign across South Tyneside
  • have the opportunity to hear from 'special guest' visitors who provide talks about health topics
  • are given the freedom to develop their own ideas as ambassadors or as part of smaller groups

What's in it for me?

  • Besides the branded hoodie and polo shirt, you'll receive a certificate, ID badge and other goodies on completion of your training.
  • You will develop and gain confidence, skills and experience which will benefit you in a wide range of careers.
  • You can use the project as examples for college, university and job applications, or as part of your Duke of Edinburgh Award. We're happy to give references too.

What if I access services myself?

There may be some tasks that might not be suitable for you to take part in, or that you don't feel comfortable taking part in, but generally speaking we believe your personal experience can make you a better Ambassador!

Confidentiality is important to us and we will never ask you to talk about your experiences if you don't want to. If anything we talk about makes you uncomfortable, let us know!

We may visit the services you are using as part of our inspections, but we will never breach your confidentiality and you can opt-out if you need to - no questions asked.

What about coursework and exams?

Once you have completed your training, you are free to pick and choose which sessions you attend. There's no pressure to take part in any opportunities if you don't want to.

What if I don't want to be an Ambassador anymore?

That's absolutely fine, no hard feelings. You can withdraw from the programme at any time, just let us know you won't be returning.

When we meet

The training takes place over 6-8 weeks (depending on holidays) in October and November. You will be expected to attend ALL of these sessions.

After this, STYHA usually meet:

  • Once a fortnight
  • 4:30PM - 6:30PM
  • The Word
    Market Place
    South Shields
    NE33 1JF

Come along as often as you can!

How can I get involved?

Privacy notice

Please see our privacy notice to find out more about what information we collect about you, how we use that information and who we share it with.

Our latest campaign

For this year’s campaign, we have created a website, giving advice and guidance on mental health topics and encouraging everyone to talk about how they're feeling without judgement.

We have also created our podcast - What The Health Are You Talking About!? - where we have interviewed local services across the borough to showcase what they do, how to access them, and give young people an idea of what to expect from them. This will ensure that young people are able to access the right service for them, in the right way, without having the stress of worrying about what to expect. We hope that listening to real people from the services in our area will make it easier and less scary to ask for help!

Keep an eye on our socials for progress of the campaign!

View campaign

Services we work with:

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