Why I’m an Inclusion Ambassador 

The Inclusion Ambassadors are a group of secondary pupils from across Scotland who all have additional support needs. Here, Eve explains what the Inclusion Ambassadors do, and what it is like to be involved.

Being an Inclusion Ambassador means you share your opinions to help make change in your school and schools across the country. We meet regularly online and get to share our views, as well as meeting in-person sometimes, too. It is really great fun because we get to share our views and catch-up with our new friends!

As an Inclusion Ambassador, you’ll meet so many lovely people all while making your opinions heard to our lawmakers. You take part in so many varied activities and there are so many things that we talk about, from school uniforms to how our schools and staff help us. 

For example, for the last two years I’ve taken part in our Success Looks Different Awards and events with the Scottish Government, among lots of other fantastic things! 

This is such a big part of what we do. Young people need to be listened to because we all have needs that are different. Listening to us and adapting to what we need helps us to flourish and be the best we can be! 

I don’t think our young people are listened to enough. We are often overlooked, and others make decisions for us. Listening to young people can change their experience in school to be more positive because they will feel like those supporting them are taking their opinions on board. They will feel more involved and heard by the staff who support them.

My time as an Inclusion Ambassador really has meant a lot to me. It’s built my confidence to speak out about issues that affect me without being judged, as our community is such a friendly one! It means I’ve had a chance to be valued and heard!