Youth Forum

The Youth Forum is a group of young people from Grangetown who want to help the area grow and develop.  They are aged from 14 years old to 25 and support the numerous events and activities that take place within the community. The group mainly provides opportunities for young people to engage with multiple activities in Grangetown such as the business forum, football clubs and University visits, and they help inform individuals in their community about the work of Community Gateway, the Grange Pavilion Team, and Cardiff University.

The Grangetown News has praised the work of the Youth Forum in the past, stating that “at a time when there is so much negativity towards young people the Grange Pavilion Youth Forum members are a credit to the community of Grangetown and rise to the occasion to demonstrate that they are not representative of the stereotype of the small minority letting the community down and often get the attention.”

Key Accomplishments

In 2017, The Youth Forum attended the Street Games National Awards and won a National Doorstop Engagement Award for all the work they did to ensure that sports become a larger part of the community.

Recently, ITV news ran a news story about Grangetown’s girls only football club, featuring their coach Ayah Abduldaim, a member of the Youth Forum.

https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2019-05-23/inclusive-football-team-encourages-more-girls-to-take-up-the-sport/ (Embed video)

At the 2019 Grangetown Festival, the Youth Forum was also awarded the annual Joan Gallagher Award for Community Champions.

Member Profiles

Below, are the profiles of some of the key members of the Youth Forum. In one to one interview they revealed how and why they got involved with the group, and some fun facts about themselves!

Getting Involved

If you would like to join the Grange Pavilion Youth Forum, please contact Ali Abdi at AbdiA1@cardiff.ac.uk

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  Ridwan

  Grange Pavilion Youth Forum member

  Ridwan is 19 and a 1st Year Undergraduate Student at Cardiff Metropolitan University studying Youth and Community Work. He has been a member of the Youth Forum since the summer 2016 and is one of the original members of the Forum. He has known Ali for ages, so when the Youth Forum started Ali got him involved straight away. Ridwan likes playing football, video games, and watching movies and his favourite food is burgers and Macaroni & Cheese.

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  Rafi

  Grange Pavilion Youth Forum member

  Rafi is 19 and a 1st Year Undergraduate Student at Cardiff University studying Law. He was always interested in doing charity work, and started off volunteering with his uncle’s charity by helping build mosques and wells in 3rd world countries. While volunteering in a local mosque, he met Ali Abdi, who introduced him to the Youth Forum and helped him get involved. Rafi likes pootball and practicing Islam and Arabic. His favourite food is gummies

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  Shoruk

  Grange Pavilion Youth Forum member

  Shoruk is 19 and a 2nd Year Undergraduate at Cardiff University studying Architecture. She became involved 3 years ago, and has been involved with Community Gateway and the Pavilion through helping out with tutoring, various fairs, and involving the Architecture society with the project. Shoruk likes cooking, makeup, and fashion and her favourite food is Macaroni and Cheese.

• Zaid

  Grange Pavilion Youth Forum member

  Zaid is 21 and works full-time. He originally worked with Ali at Citizens Cymru, and then later got involved with the Youth Forum. As his passions are photography and film, he has been the photographer for many of the Community Gateway events, including the Night Market and the Grangetown Festival. Zaid likes photography and film-making and his favourite food is anything!

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  Anas

  Grange Pavilion Youth Forum member

  Anas is 16 and a Year 12 student in High School He originally met Ali and Kalil at the Butetown Pavilion and got involved through knowing them Anas likes playing football and video games and his favorite food is chips.

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  Khalil

  Grange Pavilion Youth Forum member

  Khalil is 16 and a Year 12 student in High School. He had known Ali since he was young, and he was very active in the old pavilion and cannot wait for the new one to open. Khalil likes photography and graphic design and his favourite food is pizza.

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  Nirushan

  Grange Pavilion Youth Forum member

  Nirushan is 20 and a 1st Year Undergraduate at Cardiff University studying Law and Politics, also working part-time at Victim Support. He got involved with the Forum through volunteering at different sports sessions throughout the years while he was in school to gain work experience. He loved it so much, that he decided to never leave. Nirushan likes volunteering, reading, watching films and anime. His favourite food is pizza and coke.

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  Ibrahim

  Grange Pavilion Youth Forum member

  Ibi is 21 and working full-time as a cohesion officer at Cardiff Council. He got involved with volunteering in Grangetown when he was 18 while he was completing his Welsh Baccalaureate, and then he went on to running his own football sessions at the old Grange Pavilion. Ibi likes boxing and his favourite food is everything!