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Happening in Holyrood

Factual: Politics

BBC Radio Scotland - Happening in Holyrood

20 years after it opened, how have ordinary people campaigned to make changes in Holyrood?

Twenty years after the creation of the Scottish parliament, how have ordinary people campaigned to shape policy in Holyrood. How have lives in Scotland been impacted?

20 years after the creation of Scottish Parliament, this documentary reveals how ordinary people have campaigned to shape policy in Holyrood; how lives in Scotland have been impacted by these changes and how the next generation of Scots can use their Parliament to mould Scotland into a country they want to live in.

14 year old Scottish high school student Rachael is passionate about a lot of issues; from human rights to LGBTQI+ equality.  The climate change protests instigated by 16 year old Swedish activist Greta Thunberg in 2018  not only inspired her to join her local school strikes, but to create her first online petition to reduce waste in the school canteen.  As the signatures for her online petition mount up, Rachael admits that despite her drive for change, she had never considered petitioning the Scottish Parliament.  It's not an institution that feels either accessible or relevant to her.  But if real change can be enacted through Parliament, then how is it done?  What are the opportunities and barriers to making a tangible difference?

With the help of mentors such as BSL campaigner Erin McCluskey, LGBTQI+ activist Tim Hopkins, Petitions Convener Johann Lamont and Youth Engagement Officer Hayley Forrester, Rachael studies some of Parliament's most successful cases of the past twenty years and explores the ways and means Parliament can be accessed to make changes for the better.

Rachael also hears from young voices similar to hers on what they'd like to see happening in Holyrood during their lifetime and uncovers just what is happening right now in Holyrood.

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