REPRESENTING Southend's 15,000 young people could easily be a full-time job.

But for the town's youth mayor, it's one which must be fitted in around studying for GCSEs, homework and after school activities.

It's a role, however, which is becoming well respected among the community and is allowing the young people of the borough to get their voices heard.

This important position even comes with its own chains of office, worn at meetings and important ceremonies.

Becoming a youth mayor, though, isn't about status or how academically skilled you are, anyone who is a member of Southend Council's youth council can step forward for election.

The youth council is open to all aged 13 to 19 and it is these teenagers who decide who their mayor will be on a yearly basis.

The first youth mayor was elected in 1951, but this role and the youth council folded some 30 years ago.

Then two years ago, Southend Council decided to reinstate the youth council and the position of youth mayor needed filling once again.

Ayesha Modi, 17, has just finished her term of office as the second mayor of the newly reformed council, handing over responsibility to 16-year-old George Kemp in February.

The Echo caught up with the pair, who both attend Southend High School for Boys, to find out what Ayesha thought of her time at the top and what George was expecting from his new role.

TAKING on the role of youth mayor has left a lasting impression on Ayesha, even influencing what she plans to study at university.

The teenager joined Southend Youth Council in April 2005 while still a pupil at Prittlewell High School, now renamed Chase High School.

She says: "Prittlewell was put in special measures and I thought no one was listening to me and I thought I'd join and see if I could get anything done about it."

It was her have-a-go attitude which then made her decide to stand for youth mayor, even though she wasn't totally sure what her duties would be.

Ayesha chaired the monthly youth council meetings and award ceremonies soon started filling up her diary. She also fitted in a trip to Parliament.

Ayesha believes the youth council's hard work during her time in office has helped strengthen its place among the community and other governing bodies.

The role also helped her decide what to study at university.

"I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to do, but I'm hoping to do a politics degree at university," she adds.

GEORGE has Ayesha to thank for his involvement in the youth council.

It was with his schoolmate that he attended his first meeting of the committee 18 months ago and after enjoying his time as a member, he decided to stand for mayor.

He says: "I've always been on school councils and I just really enjoy representing people. I thought it could be a fun thing to do and was important to get young people's voices heard.

"For this generation, the youth council is reasonably new, so it's like being a pioneer of the youth council.

"It's important to me to keep it fun and keep the energy to it which it's had since 2005."

George hasn't yet decided what causes he will be backing during his time in office, seeing he only took up the position last month and just chaired his first meeting last night.

He adds: "It's early days for me to be making policies, but I don't think of them as policies because that's an older politician's job and you're more a figure head.

"I just hope I do well representing the youth council."

With a smile George says one of the most impressive things he has already discovered about the job is he now appears on the search engine Google when his name is typed in.