The weekend of the 3rd of July saw the first Activate training event of the new Liberal Youth term roll into Peterborough. With the annual membership-training course being held just 2 days after the elections, new executive members could have been forgiven for feeling a little out of their depth. If that was the case for anyone organizing the event, it certainly didn’t show! In spite of a few issues with advertising, the event itself ran very smoothly indeed. There was a good turnout, and lots of new faces from all over the country.

As a new-comer to both the executive and Liberal Youth events I had all too often heard cries of ‘clique’ from those on the outside of Liberal Youth. This event blew all these preconceptions out of the window. I do not believe that there was one moment in the whole weekend where I was made to feel excluded, and I could not have asked for a better group of people to spend my weekend with.

The proof, as they say, is in the pudding, and within a few hours of being put in a room together new and old members alike were firing off exciting new campaigning ideas. These included everything from celebrity endorsements to flash mobs. It looks like Liberal Youth is going to be having a busy year!

The true value of the weekend I believe came not necessarily from the training that was provided, excellent though it was, but from the weekends’ ability to engage. The simple action of bringing together like-minded people, and giving them the chance to share their experiences and beliefs, left all those who attended eager to get more involved.

Events like Activate are demonstrations of our party at its best, inspiring people and empowering them to go back and fight on their local issues as well as national ones. All great campaigns start at the grassroots, and Activate has left Liberal Youth with a whole host of new campaigners up and down the country.

I am already looking forward to more of the same next year!

Catherine Smith is a General Executive Member of Liberal Youth.