Political Awareness and Education Sub-Committee Minutes (Part A)

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Privileges and Procedures Committee
Political Awareness and Education Sub-Committee (3rd Meeting)

15th January 2026

  Part A (Non-Exempt)

All members were present, with the exception of Deputies K.M. Wilson of St. Clement and R.S. Kovacs of St. Saviour , from whom apologies had been received.

Deputy C.S. Alves of St. Helier Central , Chair

Deputy I. Gardiner of St. Helier North , Vice Chair

Connétable A.N. Jehan of St. John

Connétable K. Shenton-Stone of St. Martin

Deputy C.F. Labey of Grouville and St. Martin (present for item Nos. A3- A10)

In attendance -

J. O' Brien, Head of Digital and Public Engagement, States Greffe

M. Gladwin, Education Manager, Digital and Public Engagement, States Greffe

J. Le Cornu, Outreach Manager, Digital and Public Engagement, States Greffe (present for item Nos. A1 - A3)

C. Tucker, Secretariat Officer, Specialist Secretariat, States Greffe

Note:  The Minutes of this meeting comprise Part A only.

Minutes.  A1. The Minutes of the meeting held on 6th November 2025, having previously

been circulated, were taken as read and were confirmed.

Democracy  A2. The Sub-Committee, with reference to its Minute No. A3 of 29th January 2025, research: Drs.  welcomed Dr. C. Pich, Associate Professor in Marketing, Nottingham University C. Pich and G.  Business  School  and  Dr.  G.  Armannsdottir,  Senior  Lecturer,  Department  of Armannsdottir.  Marketing, Nottingham Trent University and received a PowerPoint presentation in

connexion with findings and recommendations arising from democracy research.

It was recalled that Dr. Pich had previously undertaken research in November 2022, which had identified barriers to political engagement in Jersey and had put forward 8 recommendations, 7 from the focus group participants and one from the author. Dr.  Pich  had  undertaken  to  carry  out  further  research  in  relation  to  political engagement in Jersey to uncover any gaps within the existing provision.

Drs. Pich and Armannsdottir advised the Sub-Committee that ethical approval had been received from the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University to undertake further research in connexion with political engagement among young Islanders and funding in the sum of £7,000 had been provided. The project team had undertaken one hour long interviews with 23 educators, policy makers, industry specialists and charity representatives on the Island, along with 5 focus groups with segmented voter groups, including young people. Initial findings from the project had been published in a paper entitled Votes at 16 in the United Kingdom (UK): Opportunities and Ethical Challenges for the Hard-to-Reach and Seldom Heard

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Youth  Segment'.  Research  revealed  that  barriers  to  engaging  young  Islanders included  confusion  around  electoral  roles,  apathy  and  mistrust  and  a  lack  of knowledge of the democratic process. As a result, further funding had been secured to allow continued research into the education provisions in place on the Island.

The Sub-Committee was informed that the next stage of this research project (envisaged to take place between January and June 2026) would focus on the requests  of  educators  and  students  for  a  consistent   Island-wide  approach  to democratic  education.  An  inaugural  roundtable  event  would  be  held  with  35 educators on 16thMarch 2026, at Highlands College to introduce the project.

The Sub-Committee thanked Drs. Pich and Armannsdottir for attending and they withdrew from the meeting.

The Sub-Committee requested that Drs. Pich and Armannsdottir be requested to provide further updates on the project to avoid duplication of effort in the context of work being undertaken by the States Greffe Digital and Public Engagement team. The  importance  of  mitigating  survey  fatigue  among  targeted  groups  was  also highlighted.

Outreach  A3. The Sub-Committee, with reference to its Minute No. A5 of 18th September Strategy: 2026.  2025  heard  from  Ms.  J.  Le  Cornu,  Outreach  Manager,  Digital  and  Public

Engagement (DPE), States Greffe in connexion with the Outreach Strategy (the Strategy).

It was recalled that the Strategy comprised a 4-year programme designed to build understanding,  trust  and  engagement  with  Jersey's  elected  parliament.  The establishment  of  strong  working  relationships  with  corporate  and  community stakeholders was also envisaged.

The Sub-Committee was informed that the outreach plan included the following ongoing projects –

- discussions with activity co-ordinators at Jersey Prison Service to educate prisoners on the democratic process;

- continued promotion of tours of the States Chamber for members of the public;

- collaborative projects between Vote.je and Jersey Finance, such as an online session due to be held on 29th January 2026, enabling 160 finance professionals to discuss the electoral process. It was noted that a further session targeted specifically at 18 to 30-year-old Islanders within the Finance Service was due to take place on 5th February 2026, at the Royal Yacht Hotel to educate younger Islanders;

- meetings with representatives of the Jersey International Cultural Centre on 14th January 2026, to share information on the States Assembly and the forthcoming  2026  public  election,  with  further  collaboration  between  the groups being planned;

- informative Vote.je sessions which were due to be held with over 10 external organisations;

- continued collaborative work with Parish secretaries which had resulted in increased sharing of information in connexion with the electoral process;

- a series of 8 informal sessions between February 2026 and June 2026, when members  of  the  public  would  receive  a  tour  of  the  States  Chamber  and information on the electoral process. Portuguese language sessions were also planned to take place at times to ensure maximum engagement;

- lunch and learn sessions for Government of Jersey employees to explore the political landscape would commence in February 2026 until June 2026. Further

online training was also available to employees via the Connect Jersey intranet platform;

- a monthly blue badge political walking tour programme for members of the public; and

- increased accessibility arrangements, such as the continued production of easy- read guides and the provision of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps and coloured  overlays  for  polling  stations.  Work  was  also  ongoing  with  the Government of Jersey Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Department to provide deaf awareness training to the DPE team.

The Sub-Committee thanked Ms. Le Cornu for the update and requested that a consolidated list of outreach activities be circulated to States Members to increase awareness of activities planned for 2026.

Coming-of-age  A4. The Sub-Committee, with reference to its Minute No. A2 of 6th November events.  2025, received an oral update from Connétable A.N. Jehan of St. John , in connexion

with the Coming-of-Age' events which were due to be hosted by parishes to increase political engagement.

It was recalled that the events sought to encourage engagement with the democratic process. The Comité des Connétable s had been due to discuss a schedule of events during Quarter 4 of 2025.

The Sub-Committee was advised that the matter had not yet been discussed by the Comité des Connétable s and the Connétable undertook to update the Sub-Committee at a future meeting.

Automatic  A5. The Sub-Committee, with reference to its Minute No. A5 of 6th November Voter  2025, received and oral report from Ms. J. O'Brien, Head of Digital and Public Registration  Engagement, States Greffe, in connexion with the Automatic Voter Registration project.  (AVR) project.

It was recalled that, in adopting P.27/2025 – draft Elections (Electoral Registers) (Jersey) Amendment Law 202-, the States Assembly had approved changes which enabled a move to AVR, replacing the current paper-based opt in' system with a database created from the People Directory. In practice this meant that, rather than completing an annual statement which listed those eligible for inclusion on the electoral register, members of the public who were over 16 years old and who met the residency criteria, would automatically be included on the register. It was anticipated that this would make it easier for people to exercise their democratic rights and would remove barriers to voting. It was further noted that the Privy Council had approved the Elections (Electoral Registers) (Jersey) Amendment Law 2025 and the Elections (Jersey) Amendment Law 2025 on 15th October 2025.

The Sub-Committee was advised that project testing by the Parish authorities had commenced in November 2025 and was ongoing. Testing was vital to the success of the  process and  ensured that any issues were identified and resolved  prior to implementation.

Having discussed the matter, the Sub-Committee agreed that it would be beneficial to invite representatives of the Comité des Connétable s to attend future AVR Board meetings. It was also suggested that this matter be included on future agendas of the Comité to allow Connétable s to receive regular updates on AVR, with the possibility of a member of the AVR Board presenting to the Comité periodically.

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Ms. O'Brien undertook to extend an invitation to Connétable s K. Shenton-Stone of St. Martin and A. N. Jehan of St. John for the next AVR Board meeting, which was due to be held on 16th January 2026.

University  A6. The Sub-Committee, with reference to its Minute No. A6 of 3rd April 2025, College  received an oral report from Ms. J. O'Brien, Head of Digital and Public Engagement London  (DPE), States Greffe, in connexion with ongoing research into political engagement. research –

update.  It was recalled that research had been undertaken by University College London

(UCL), with 2 focus group having been established which included young people between the ages of 18 and 25. Over 140 responses to a survey circulated in February 2025, had been received.

The Sub-Committee was advised that a first draft of the findings had now been received and this would be circulated to Members electronically in due course. Initial findings revealed a preference for political information to be presented via social media platforms and this had already been embedded in communication plans.

Deputy  C.F.   Labey  of   Grouville  and  St.  Martin  suggested  that  democratic engagement with students who were studying off-Island could be achieved by sharing information in the Island Identity Project newsletter and Ms. O'Brien undertook to explore this option.

Public election  A7. The Sub-Committee received an oral report from Ms. J. O'Brien, Head of candidate  Digital and Public Engagement (DPE), States Greffe, in connexion with the public course.  election candidate course which was planned for 2026.

The Sub-Committee was advised that the 6-week course was designed to assist any Islanders considering standing for election in 2026 to understand the roles and responsibilities of States Members. The free course, organised by the States Greffe Digital and Public Engagement team, was due to commence on 28th January 2026, with weekly sessions taking place between 6.30pm and 8.30pm.

The course content included –

- presentations from the Greffier and Deputy Greffier of the States in connexion with the various roles;

- information on the Scrutiny function;

- the practicalities of Member security, both online and in person;

- discussions on engaging young voters and underrepresented groups;

- harnessing the power of social media; and,

- information on arm's-length bodies.

It was noted that 40 Islanders had already expressed interest in participating and further information on the course content would be circulated to interested parties in due course.

Jersey Youth  A8. The Sub-Committee, with reference to its Minute No. A3 of 6th November Assembly.  2026, received an oral report from Ms. J. O'Brien, Head of Digital and Public

Engagement (DPE), States Greffe, in connexion with the Jersey Youth Assembly (JYA).

It was recalled that the Privileges and Procedures Committee (PPC) had recently endorsed a refreshed approached to the JYA, as proposed by the Sub-Committee, which aimed to increase opportunities for young people in Jersey to engage with democracy. A new Standing Order had been considered by PPC on 10th November

2025, which would allow the JYA to present reports to the Assembly in its own right, with Ministers being required to present a response. In-committee debates on JYA reports were proposed with members of the JYA being able to participate in accordance with Standing Order 972(b), which allowed any person in the Chamber to speak during the debate. It was noted that PPC had agreed that one in-committee debate each year would be appropriate with a maximum of 3 members of the JYA participating in the debate. The Committee had also agreed that the number of reports presented by the JYA should be limited to 3 per year.

The Sub-Committee was advised that a proposition in the above regard had been lodged au Greffe' on 11th November 2025, with the debate due to take place on 20th January 2026 (P.103/2025 refers).

On a related matter, it was noted that over 150 young people were now enrolled as Members of the JYA, demonstrating the level of engagement. Collaboration with organisations such as the Commonwealth Youth Parliament was ongoing in order to continue to develop relationships and promote opportunities.

2026 Legacy  A9. The Sub-Committee, with reference to its Minute No. A6 of 6th November Report.  2025, received an oral report from Ms. J. O'Brien, Head of Digital and Public

Engagement (DPE), States Greffe in connexion with the Privileges and Procedures Committee's (PPC) 2026 Legacy Report.

The Sub-Committee noted that, in previous years, the Political Awareness and Education Sub-Committee had included a short summary of activity in the PPC legacy report, whilst other PPC Sub-Committees had produced stand-alone legacy reports, alongside the main Committee's report. The Sub-Committee was advised that whilst stand-alone reports enabled Sub-Committees to document workstreams independently,  it  also  resulted  in  multiple  reports  covering  related  areas. Consequently, the Chair of the PPC had decided that a single legacy report should be produced by the main Committee with contributions from the various Sub- Committees being included. This would ensure a streamlined approach and a single cohesive record of work undertaken by the PPC and its Sub-Committees.

The Sub-Committee expressed concerns with regard to the above approach on the basis that the scope and impact of the work it had undertaken justified the production of a dedicated legacy report. Deputy C.S. Alves of St. Helier Central , Chair, advised that she would convey the views of the Sub-Committee to the Chair of the PPC at its next scheduled meeting.

The Sub-Committee agreed that irrespective of whether a dedicated legacy report was produced, the following items should be included –

- States Greffe Outreach plans;

- the evolution of States Assembly social media channels;

- the diversification of streaming of States Assembly meetings  via social media channels such as X';

- research projects with Kings College London and the University College London; and

- the education programmes offered by the States Greffe.

It was further noted that a number of overlapping achievements would be included in the States Greffe Annual Report for 2026.

Members were asked to submit any further topics for inclusion via electronic mail or on the Teams channel.

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Women's  A10. The Sub- Committee received an oral update from Deputy I. Gardiner of St. Parliamentary  Helier North, Vice Chair in connexion with the ongoing work of the Diversity Forum Caucus.  in relation to the establishment of a Women's Parliamentary Caucus (WPC).

The  Sub-Committee  was  advised  that  plans  were  underway  for the  inaugural meeting  of  the  WPC,  due  to  be  held  on  5th  March  2026,  to  commemorate International Women's Day and invitations would be circulated to Members in due course. The event would provide a forum for the discussion of issues affecting female elected Members. Having noted a scheduling conflict with the next meeting of the Sub-Committee, and to allow all Members to attend the WPC event, it was agreed that the Sub-Committee meeting should commence later in the day.

The Sub-Committee thanked Deputy Gardiner for the update and officers undertook to circulate updated calendar invitations for the next scheduled meeting of the Sub- Committee.

Date of next  A11. The Sub-Committee noted that the next scheduled meeting would be held on meeting.  5th March 2026, from 2.00 pm – 4.00 pm in the Blampied Room, States Building.