Why aren’t young people interested in local government? 

The local paradox

I’m surrounded by young people who are politically interested, sympathetic towards all kinds of issues and concerned about creating a more equal society. However, every year when LGIU collaborates with IPSOS to produce The State of the Locals report, a paradox emerges and my view is conflicted.

The annual research that looks at attitudes towards local government consistently finds that young people (in the 18-24 age group) are apathetic towards local government. Despite their political interest, young people do not translate this into local participation.

The report continues to serve as a reminder that local government is not a part of conversations among young people, even those politically engaged. This remains a conundrum for localists who, every year, are left scratching their heads wondering how to untangle the politics from the local. Questioning: Why do young people feel this way? Why does it matter that they do? And what can local government do about it?

In light of the recent English local elections, this blog begins to think about these fundamental questions and proposes a framework within which local government can look to swing the pendulum and start to work with young people more closely.

The context

Our 2022 study revealed that 27% of young people never vote in local elections, and in 2023, this figure, rather underwhelmingly, rose to 36%. In comparison, just 12% of those in the 55-75 age group in 2023 said they also never vote in elections, and in 2022, this figure was only 10%. It might be tempting to infer from this that the remaining young people exercise their right to vote, but in the 2024 local elections, it is estimated that just 30% did so. In comparison, 65% of young people voted in the general election in 2024, though even this figure is hard to applaud. Mirroring the findings in our report, a study last year by the Electoral Commission discovered that only 36% of young people simply have an interest in local government.

The first simple takeaway from these statistics is that older generations seem to be more interested in local government. Secondly, and perhaps more confusingly, there is a disconnect between young people, who seem politically engaged in a broader sense, and their participation in local government.

Part of the explanation may lie in how young people’s political behaviour is framed in public rhetoric. Negative portrayals that label young people as disengaged can create a reinforcing cycle leading to further disengagement while also overlooking crucial nuances. To this end, my argument is based on recognising young people as forward-looking. I believe this must be the starting point for any meaningful conversations about their political behaviour.

Understanding the disconnect

Although these figures are concerning, they are not entirely surprising when you consider what the reasons might be.

Young people today operate in a political space that is different to any that existed before. Traditional methods of structured and thoughtful engagement, council chambers and manifestos have been replaced with faster and digital means – means that young people are at the forefront of through their phones. In other words, a new era  has arrived as traditional politics and townhalls have been replaced with hashtags and virality. If we use this context for our understanding, there are many possible reasons why young people are not interested in local government.

The first reason could be that many have grown up in a time dominated by austerity, the whittling of public services, and rising housing costs, all of which lend themselves to a demoralised ‘renting generation’. These factors could have contributed to a general malaise towards state authority, and last year, NatCen found that 45% of people never trust governments to prioritise the country’s needs over its political party.

Unfortunately, councils seem to be collateral damage from young people who are not convinced that any tier of government has operated in their interest. One example of this was the viral research that emerged in 2024, suggesting that young people would rather live under a dictatorship than a democratically elected party. Later disproved, it may still serve as a poignant reflection of where we are if an idea like this can become so widespread.

Looking elsewhere, young people are perhaps more interested in national and international developments, which ironically feel more important to their lives. To use an overplayed trope – why would you care about potholes when it’s 89 seconds to midnight? As such, national and international issues have more appeal to young people who operate in worlds where big headlines and short explanations land. The cost of this seems to be attention on local politics, which, as we know, is also integral to our immediate lives.

Or perhaps it could be put down to the lack of education about local government. The previously mentioned Electoral Commission study found that 74% of people in the 11-25 age group trust what they learn about politics in school. However, at the same time, it revealed that these young people feel they don’t learn enough about politics at school, be it local or national. The potential of education is therefore obvious.

This resonates with my own experience. While I was at university studying social policy, I was the only person in my classes who paid local government any kind of real attention. This was at university, let alone school. The results of this undereducation are therefore quite clear, and many young people unfortunately do not possess knowledge about local government and are unsure what a council does, its municipal purpose or its democratic importance.

The image created above is intentionally multifaceted, seemingly mismatched, and probably not wide-reaching enough. Only when we understand that from a young person’s point of view there is a web of interconnected reasons – covering economic insecurity, education gaps and global political concerns – can we begin to look for solutions.

Rebuilding the relationship between local government and young people

Although those in the local government sector believe that everything happens locally and therefore can be solved locally, it’s easy to forget that many don’t share this sentiment. I believe the goal therefore is not to expect young people to fit into local government but for local government to fit into young people’s lives.

Whether you call it an ether of political curiosity or a gold mine of potential, the untapped energy of young non voters is sitting on local government’s doorstep.  To unlock this, we need to move away from short-term, fragmented pushes such as voter registration drives, which do not address underlying issues and instead aim for long term solutions. There’s also a need to improve the lack of cross-sector integration, such as between schools and local government. Additionally, genuine methods of participation must replace tokenistic ones.

Here are just some examples of approaches I would put forward to tackle these points and help acknowledge the complexity of a young person’s life and their barriers to engagement:

• Education and early exposure: The political socialisation of young people in schools by introducing them to local democracy helps them to understand its relevance while also fostering long-term engagement. This tackles undereducation and bridges the gap in knowledge that leaves young people uninformed.

This was the guiding principle behind the Hackney Young Futures Commission which empowered young people to lead consultations, shape the recommendations and deliver these directly to the local leaders. This resulted in clear policy shifts around youth services, safety and mental health – helping to demonstrate how early involvement and exposure to local government leads to positive outcomes.

• Working across services: A cross-sector approach and collaboration between local government, schools, and community services ensures clear and consistent messaging and avoids siloed working between these organisations, which can create waste. This helps to tie everything together for young people and makes local government make more sense through a coherent narrative.

Newham Council’s permanent citizen assembly is more than a participatory initiative, it is a cross-sector platform that provides a space for councils, community organisations, providers and residents (including young people) to come together and co-design solutions to local issues. It can help to align strategies across sectors and centre young people in that process.

• Meeting young people where they are: Utilising digital methods where young people are so comfortable helps to overcome logistical hurdles that may limit participation. This will also allow local government to keep up with the fast-paced world young people tend to operate in.

Some councils have experimented with using TikTok to break down and explain council services and responsibilities. Westminster Council, for example, has used the app to explain council tax and waste collection through short and engaging videos. These experiments show that evolving communications to match the immediacy and expectations of young people on digital platforms is highly important.

• Redefining participation: Looking at engagement beyond voter turnout to create spaces for young people to participate will ensure voter turnout does not become the sole metric for ‘success’.

The Great Manchester Youth Combined Authority is a strong example of redefining participation – by bringing young people into direct collaboration with local government, schools and different services. It empowers young people from passive observers to active players with political agency.

• Building trust: Creating a system with feedback loops and consistently acting on young people’s input can help build trust by ensuring young people know their participation is meaningful.

North Ayrshire Council’s Youth Participation Strategy was co-developed with young people and published progress reports and video updates explaining what’s been done –  creating a system of feedback loops. This sustained dialogue shows young people that their voices are respected and acted upon, not just heard.

Why does all of this matter for local government?

Beyond the administration of local affairs, local government is the cornerstone of democratic participation where citizens can engage via electing representatives. In theory, this engagement is important for ensuring that public matters and issues are acted upon for those with immediate stakes – local people.

With this in mind, low voter turnout among young people in local elections and then low engagement with local government present more than a troubling statistic. It represents a deficit which continues to put the integrity of democracy at risk at all levels, and we’re seeing that decline of democratic systems worldwide. In order for democracy to be healthy and sustainable into the future, everyone must be a part of it.

Greater participation by young people in local government is therefore incredibly important. It will strengthen the legitimacy of local democracy, reduce the democratic deficit that exists by politically socialising future generations, and encourage future-facing local thinking.

Final thoughts

Reversing the trend of low voter turnout amongst young people in local government will not happen overnight, and short-term fixes are unlikely to lead to long-term changes. Young people offer an opportunity for local government to work with a population that is politically curious but disconnected from a local system that feels distant and unimportant. When local decisions feel visible, relevant, and connected to the issues young people care about, participation will hopefully follow. The challenge for local government now is to bridge that gap, not by forcing interest, but by making a stronger case for why local government is not only worth more than their attention, but also their participation.