POLITICALLY-minded teenagers from Bury are hoping to make an impact with a campaign to lower the voting age to 16.

The group of nine youngsters, aged 16 and 17, have launched the project as part of their work with the Government-run National Citizen Service: The Challenge scheme.

After being tasked with tackling issues that were relevant to them, the team, who come from across the borough, decided to take on the challenge of improving political education and engagement among young people.

Team member Cameron Young, of Altham Close, Bury, said: "We were told to think about what issues were really affecting people our age, and there are some big ones like university fees that people have very strong opinions on and don't feel like our MPs always represent our views.

"I think people our age deserve a say and should have more of an influence when it comes to issues that affect us, but there's definitely a feeling that we don't get listened to or don't have enough ways to make ourselves heard.

"When we asked people as part of our survey, 93 per cent of those we asked agreed that they would vote if they had the chance, but only 23 per cent felt like they had enough knowledge to make an informed choice.

"Lowering the voting age would make politics a lot more interesting and accessible to young people, but as well as that, it's important that we are given much more education about politics and how we can get involved at all levels."

The group will be out in Bury town centre on September 27 to hand out leaflets and encourage shoppers to sign a petition on the issue, with local MPs invited to attend.

The 16-year-old, who is starting his A-level studies at Holy Cross College this week, added: "I heard about the project when they came into our school and I thought it would be a good thing to do with my summer, where I could help the community and meet new people.

"It's been really good so far and the response we have had to the campaign has been really positive."