Voice2Vote supporting guidance Vote 1 This guidance will help you to use the Voice2Vote resource pack, giving hints and tips to make the sessions as successful as possible. Hints and tips to help you Voice2Vote host your own Voice2Vote Supporting guidance sessions. This guidance will help you to use the Voice2Vote resource pack, giving hints and tips to make the session as successful as possible. Encouraging democratic engagement and increasing the numbers of young people on the electoral register is really important. If you are not on the register, you cannot vote. Voice2Vote is the perfect way to inspire young people to discuss and debate what they care about whilst considering why they should register to vote. This supporting guidance contains hints and tips, curriculum information and frequently asked questions to help you get the most out of the Voice2Vote resource pack, ensure the success of your sessions and get many young people signed up to the electoral register in no time. Hints and Tips This section contains hints and tips to help you plan your sessions and includes further activities and information you can use to keep your group enthused and energised. Curriculum for Wales This section outlines how Voice2Vote can be used to support the curriculum in Wales and suggests further related resources and information. Frequently Asked Questions This section answers common questions about registering and voting that you or your group may have. REGISTER TO VOTE: � Remind them to check at home that they can complete the invitation to register form sent to the household as part of the annual canvass. � They can register to vote online during Voice2Vote at bit.ly/Voice2Vote. � If they don’t have internet access they can print forms off at 1 bit.ly/RegistrationFormWales. Hints and tips Getting Started Before using Voice2Vote remember to tell people participating in advance that they may be asked for their National Insurance number, but they do not have to have one to register. Remind them to check at home that they can complete the invitation to register form sent to the household as part of the annual canvass. They can also register to vote online at bit.ly/Voice2Vote. You can do this on a mobile, tablet or laptop. If you do not have access to the internet during the session then you can print off blank registration forms online at bit.ly/RegistrationFormWales. Alternatively, your local Electoral Registration Office can provide you with the appropriate forms and perhaps send someone along to your session who can explain more to your group about registering and voting. Their contact details can also be found on The Electoral Commission website: www.electoralcommission.org.uk/. Remember that any completed forms you receive from young people will need to be stored securely in compliance with General Data Protection Regulation. If members of your group are from different areas then their completed registration forms will need to be sent back to the appropriate Electoral Registration Office. Using local information and examples Make the activities as relevant to your local area as possible by looking up statistics relating to your Member of Parliament (MP) and Member of the Senedd (MS). You can find out who your local MP, MS or Councillor are by typing your postcode into the Write to Them website: www.writetothem.com. Alternatively, you can find your local MP using the search engine here: members.parliament.uk/FindYourMP; and your local MS here: bit.ly/FindYourMS. What is happening in your area? Some of the activities are designed to make learners think of issues and relate them to specific policy areas for which elected bodies are responsible. These will differ from area to area. Adapt the facts and examples used in any of the activities to take into account local factors. Flexibility What next? You can run the activities Once you have run session 1 in Voice2Vote you could follow in the order suggested up with other activities in the resource pack and encourage on pages 2 and 3 of the your group to register to vote. Pages 27, 28 and 29 of resource pack, change the the Voice2Vote resource pack also has examples of other order to suit you or run resources that you may find useful. activities individually. 2 Curriculum for Wales The Voice2Vote learning resource can be used in a variety of contexts including schools, collages, youth organisations and other extra- curricular activities. The theme of Active Citizenship encourages learners to become active in both their local communities and on a more global level. They can develop a practical understanding of their rights and of links between political decisions and their own lives. The following information relates to the new Curriculum for Wales 2022: � The Voice2Vote learning resource will support learners to become ‘ethical, informed citizens of Wales and the world’, one of the four purposes of a school’s curriculum. � The resources will specifically support our young people to develop as ethical, informed citizens who ‘understand and exercise their human and democratic responsibilities and rights.’ � The main integral skills developed in the activities are critical thinking and problem-solving and personal effectiveness. � Main Area of Learning and Experience: Humanities � The Voice2Vote learning resource have been designed to be used mainly with learners aged between 13 and 17 but can be adapted, simplified, or extended to be used with all learners on progression steps 4 + 5 and post-16. Suggested use: Year 7-11: Personal and Social Education (PSE) / Wellbeing (or similar lessons) Post-16: Assembly / Contemporary Studies � Also, for post-16 learners, some of the issues and topics explored in the sessions could be beneficial for completion of the Individual Project as part of the Skills Challenge Certificate and Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification. � For Essential Skills Wales, activities can be used to introduce discussion of roles and levels of government and about electoral processes. 3 Curriculum for Wales continued All the focus on Wales … Session 3 : We’ve got the power (pages 10-16 in your Voice2Vote resource pack) The activities in this session focuses specifically on the different levels of government in Wales and corresponds to the Devolution and Welsh Parliament PowerPoint presentation on Hwb. There are five different activities, with alternative options and ideas to adapt or extend all activities. 3.1 Opening exercise (10 minutes) Introduce your group to the idea of devolution. 3.2 Who’s in power? (20 minutes) Challenge your group to divide powers to different levels of government and use class discussion and group persuasion to correct wrong answers. 3.3 Getting in touch (15 minutes) Working in small groups, use problems/complaints cards to learn how having different levels of government works in practice. 3.4 Government or Parliament? (10 minutes) Use visuals to quiz and learn about the differences between the Welsh Government and the Welsh Parliament. 3.5 Final exercise (5 minutes) A summarise activity to recap what your group have learned about the Welsh Parliament (Senedd Cymru). 4 Curriculum for Wales continued More educational resources and information to support the curriculum: Welsh Parliament: Education Welsh Parliament’s Education and Youth Engagement service has a range of teaching resources available online, including information about educational trips and virtual sessions. Their online resources have educational packs for all ages, including activities, videos, and vlogs. bit.ly/WelshParliamentEducation Our Senedd A series of animated videos and resources for Year 7 to A Level teachers and youth workers to use with learners to explore what is the Welsh Parliament, and how government and decision- making works in Wales. Includes a personal and social education session, a series of school assemblies and resources for a youth group session. Available on Hwb: bit.ly/OurSeneddV2V Welsh Baccalaureate Support � ‘How to Succeed in Your Welsh Bacc: The Individual Project Essentials / Sut i Lwyddo yn dy Fagloriaeth: Hanfodion y Prosiect Unigol’: a free online short course designed specifically to help prepare for the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate – Individual Project. The Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) will support all post-16 students as they prepare to complete the WBQ project, EPQ project or even a university style essay/ dissertation. Available both in English and Welsh. www.futurelearn.com/courses/welshbacc � Welsh Baccalaureate support by Aberystwyth University, The Welsh Parliament and The National Library of Wales includes three workshops of no more than an hour each. Various topics have been covered by each institution and will greatly benefit the journey to completing the individual project to the best of their ability. www.aber.ac.uk/en/undergrad/hub/online-course/ � Welsh Baccalaureate Experience at Aberystwyth, designed for students studying the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Diploma and is usually available for schools and colleges throughout Wales. Chance to visit and experience workshops based on the qualification at The International Politics Department at Aberystwyth University, The National Library of Wales, and The Welsh Government. www.library.wales/fileadmin/addysg/pdf/aberystwythbacexperience.pdf 5 Frequently asked questions General Questions: Why is it important that young people register now? Only around half of young people who are eligible are currently registered to vote.1 Young people are also less likely to vote in elections - in the 2019 General election only an estimated 47% of 18-24 year olds voted.2 Once registered you have the choice whether to vote or not; if you are not on the register, you will not be able to vote. Not being on the register can also affect a person’s credit rating and access to financial services. Who can register to vote? � Anyone in Wales aged 14 and over can apply to be added to the electoral register.