Delivery Team Reflection – Part 2 – Children and Young People’s Voice thematic project

 

---

Between November 2020 and February 2021, the Tackling Child Exploitation (TCE) Support Programme has been exploring how children and young people’s views are included in strategic decision-making. To start with, we wanted to consider how we begin to define ‘hearing the voices of children and young people’. It has been confirmed that many different terms are used in relation to children and young people’s ‘voice’ – participation, consultation and co-creation, for example. We have also identified some key skills and behaviours required from senior leaders to enable participation, which we will use for the foundation of this work. The skills that feel central to this are:

• Investment of time and energy to move beyond feedback to collaborative service design.
  
  
• To listen with intent and embed feedback loops in order to disrupt the cycle of young people contributing and receiving minimal or any feedback as to how they have informed or influenced the system.
  
  
• To act bravely and work creatively whilst working hard to share power and control with young people.
  
  
• To respect and be honest with young people about why certain things are happening and what is required from their involvement, by honouring their views, knowledge and experiences of their own lives, whilst being prepared to acknowledge and respect that what professionals may want to hear might not be the answer received.

From the activities undertaken to address this priority, examples of participation of young people’s voices in strategic decision-making, particularly child exploitation responses, are often presented as exceptional, and therefore unusual, practice. Barriers presented have so far appeared to be due to beliefs around the value of what youth voice can offer or systemic barriers such as funding or the capacity of services that assist to prioritise and undertake this work as part of ‘routine practice’. 

So far, this work has identified that commitment can be lacking by agencies because it feels difficult. An easier option is to not engage young people because there is apprehension and anxiety from individuals about how to carry this out in a way that is meaningful and not tokenistic. It has also been reflected to us that senior leaders do not have the space or time to carry out this work. Although will and motivation is present, it feels desirable rather than essential. We feel that this could be due to the complexity of the nature of child exploitation and professionals’ fears of mirroring the grooming activity undertaken by offenders in order to engage children and young people in consultation. Children and young people who have to navigate and overcome hurdles of child exploitation pathways in order to receive support that feels most meaningful for them can mirror some of this apprehension and anxiety expressed by professionals.

The Language adopted by professionals and senior leaders in this example can obscure evidence of how youth participation is contributing to strategic developments. For example, what does the sector mean when it says consultation with young people or young people’s voices has informed a piece of work? What specific actions have been carried out and would young people agree? If so, which young people? The sector needs to be more explicit and honest about what activities are taking place to show the extent of young people’s influence in their decision-making.

This blog is part of a series –

Good practice principles: hearing the voice of children and young people

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5