Children & Young People
Historically, children & young people had been pretty low in the pecking order. No-one said it out loud, and there was no shortage of platitudes to the effect that these people are our furure and of course we should take their views into acount. We never did though!
It was only in this millennium that things began to change, as a result of a mixture of external political gestures and some grassroots stirrings ...
There are practical and ethical issues involved in consulting young people. Those who organise focus groups or other dialogues need to fulfil legislative requirements, of course, but great care is needed with the information obtained in such exercises.
Extracts from The Art of Consultation by R Jones & E Gammell
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Working together: Listening to the voices of children and young people
At the local authority level, Section 53 of the Children Act 2004 requires local authorities to give due consideration to the views of children and young people before determining what (if any) services to provide where these may impact on children and young people.
Each of these requirements and entitlements is underpinned by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)and the Every Child Matters (ECM) agenda and, in particular, two of the five:
- enjoying and achieving – getting the most out of life and developing the skills for adulthood
- making a positive contribution – being involved with the community and society and not engaging in snti-social or offending behaviour
While there is now widespread agreement with the principle of participation, there is no single right way of supporting children’s and young people’s participation in relation to the duties outlined above, and the process of developing effective values and structures to this end is not a straightforward one. But the principles and practices set out in this guidance, identified through consultation as key aspects of involving children and young people, offer a point of reference for local authorities and schools in taking forward this work.