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Children and Young Peoples Participation Toolkit.Pdf Children &Young People Participation Toolkit A guide for borough council staff and partner organisations Participation is not just about using services Contents Who is this toolkit for? 1 Introduction 3 The Charnwood Borough Council Children and 4 Young People Participation Toolkit 1.1 What is participation? to help Council staff and colleagueshas from been partnercreated 1.2 What are the benefits of involving children and young people? 6 organisations tailor their approach to enabling children and young people aged 5+ to have a voice 1.3 How the law supports participation 6 1. introduction in what goes on around them, participate in decision making and express their views on projects, activities and services. 2 Planning 7 Children and young people’s participation is not just It is primarily addressed not towards child 2.1 Participation practicalities 8 about them using our services. It is the process in which children and young people are asked what works, what participation 'experts' or young people themselves, but has been designed as a support pack for those 2.2 Barriers to participation 9 does not, what could work better and how they want to seeking support and guidance on undertaking youth be involved in delivering the solution so that their voice 2.3 How to find and engage children and young people 10 participation. Our aims are to: can influence decision making and bring about change. 2.4 Managing expectations 11 • Offer practical methods to help children and young people influence change 12 Many decisions taken locally, nationally and internationally are 3 Delivery made by adults even though the choices of these older people • Enable users to ensure that children and young people have access to decision-making forums 3.1 Icebreakers 14 will have a profound impact on the current and future lives of children and young people. Their participation is vital in order • Ensure that something happens because of 15 to improve services and respond to actual needs. Charnwood 3.2 Ground rules their involvement Borough Council is committed to upholding children and young 3.3 Exercises 16 people’s right to be involved in decisions that affect their lives The toolkit is a resource to help you to access and act through the Corporate Plan. We strive to embed a culture of upon the views of children and young people. 4 Review of children and young people’s involvement 17 participation into everyday working practice. When you are using it, you may well be working on a consultation/project with a much wider total 4.1 Review of participation 17 Participation brings with it many benefits for organisations, audience (i.e. also involving older community young people, and the wider community. Generally members). We understand that you could be 4.2 Areas to review 18 organisations find it easier to consult with and involve older working on a much broader task to plan, implement people. This toolkit can be used as a guide to: and review a whole project and that the 5 Feedback 19 • Involve children and young people specifically involvement of younger people may be a small part of this. 5.1 Examples of giving feedback to children and young people 20 • Ensure that children and young people are incorporated into a wider consultation/involvement agenda Appendix 1 21 Involving young people in Council service design and delivery saves time and money. Planning, Community Safety, Sport Effective participation can add a sense of ownership and even 25 and Active Recreation, Green Spaces, the Improvement and bring added outcomes of responsibility and confidence about Appendix 2 Organisational Development Team and Street Management, presenting views and opinions. A major challenge across all have examples to showcase young people’s meaningful all forms of participation and consultation is to ensure Appendix 3 29 participation. Developing effective engagement processes can representation of the widest possible range of young people’s help deliver the department’s or organisation’s vision. views. It is particularly important to explore how other organisations can help you to involve those who are the ‘hardest to reach’, as engaging these young people will often help you to foresee future challenges, use financial and other resources effectively and understand how your service can Young people and staff from Charnwood Arts are make the biggest possible impact. relaxing in the garden that they designed and created (funded by Positive Activities for Young People) in a previously unloved space beside their building. 2 Children and Young People Participation Toolkit www.charnwood.gov.uk 3 Levels of engagement with children and young people, as with any Roger Hart’s Ladder of Young section of the community, can vary hugely. The Ladder of Participation People’s Participation and the examples of CBC’s work at different levels illustrates the degrees of participation that organisations like ours can achieve. In relation to your work, where are the opportunities to involve children and young people at different levels? This will be dependent on the appropriateness of and usefulness to what you are doing at any given time. A Charnwood Borough Council ladder of participation. Using examples linked Rung 8: Young people to different elements of Positive Activities for Young People (PAYP) funding and adults share (the activities themselves and the process that allocates funding to projects), decision making the ladder illustrates different levels at which children and young people can be involved: Rung 7: Young people (PAYP funding is devolved annually to Charnwood, a panel allocates it to lead and initiate action organisations who provide services and activities for 10-19 year olds): Rung 1: Young people are required to attend the PAYP funded activity in Rung 6: Adult-initiated, shared decisions with their area, regardless of their thoughts or wishes (NB This does not Participation of Degrees young people happen in reality!) Rung 2: The funder is visiting! Young people are lined up to show that they attend. Appearance is everything 1.1 What is participation? Rung 5: Young people Rung 3: Young people are told what they will be doing the next consulted and informed week – the things the adults think they should want to do. One Participation is about children and young people young person is invited to attend the planning meeting, but their understanding issues that affect them and coming up These delicious cupcakes have been designed and made opinions or reflections are not invited. with possible solutions. It is supporting them to shape by young people at Sorrel Youth Cafe for a ‘thank you’ Rung 4: Young people Rung 4: Young people are kept in the loop and told “here’s the different stages at which decision-making takes place evening where Charnwood Youth Councillors received assigned and informed what you need to know about the activity schedule for the including planning, implementation, monitoring and certificates of achievement for their work in 2012. next few weeks”. They can ask questions, but this doesn’t evaluation. Involving children and young people in decision CBC staff have used Sorrel Youth Cafe to cater for } change the decisions that have already been made by adults making should be fundamental to the work of CBC so that all external events in order to support the charity to Rung 3: Young people children and young people are encouraged and supported to generate income and train young people in catering skills. Rung 5: Young people are invited to the PAYP funding tokenized express their views regardless of ethnicity, culture, religion, panel and asked what activities they would like to faith, language, sexuality, disability or personal circumstances. see funded. These opinions are taken into account when the adults decide which organisations to give money to. Rung 2: Young people Non-participation Rung 6: Adults ask organisations to bid for money are decoration Examples of young people’s participation and at the funding panel allow youth opinions to hold just as much weight and merit as their own. in Charnwood Borough Council business: Rung 7: Trained ‘Young Inspectors’ visit Rung 1: Young people are manipulated • Reviewing and updating policies organisations to evaluate their work, they then inform the funding panel about what they • Recruitment and interview panels have found and who they recommend to • Planning and delivering training fund. Adults accept that decision as informed, allowing youth to make that } • Young Inspectors/mystery shoppers decision with complete independence. • Youth forums The quality of children’s participation and children’s ability to Rung 8: Leicestershire Youth Council gives money to Charnwood Youth • Funding panels benefit from it are strongly influenced by the efforts that adults make to provide an ‘enabling environment’ in which children and Council to spend on activities. The • Focus groups/user panels young people feel able to participate fully and actively in all adults are informed and asked to aspects of the proceedings. Children and young people will need participate in this decision making • Members of Boards/committees to be made to feel welcome, valued for their views and treated process in which young people are responsible for the money and Eight levels of young people’s participation. The ladder with respect by the adults with whom they are working. metaphor is borrowed from Sherry Arnstein (1969): the outcomes of the decisions. the categories are from Roger Hart. 4 Children and Young People Participation
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