“While consultation is important, participation in its truest sense gives children and young people an active involvement in planning, decision-making and subsequent evaluation” The Participation Charter, 2006
Is it time to revisit and revive this Charter? Has it stood the test of time? ‘The Participation Charter 2006’ set out a vision of #youthvoice empowered to have say in decision-making. Many of its principles still apply today but is it enough in 2020 and beyond? How can we collaborate with young leaders, listening to, working with and investing in participation and leadership to refreshed a vision and charter?
Whilst not the earliest youth voice charter we’ve come across, this ‘Participation Charter’ was published by Children Young People Now magazine on 6th June 2006*, in association with the Participation Works Consortium**. James Cathcart, former CEO of one of the Consortium founder members, The British Youth Council, puts it into context and selects his ‘best bits’ from the charter that mirror what young leaders are calling for today. ‘The Children Now Participation Charter 2006 is an excellent reference point for anyone wanting to measure progress of the Youth Voice Movement since then, and inspiration to those considering a reboot of a unifying vision for the road head’ JC. Although the consortium disbanded around 10 years ago, Young Voices Heard still uses the charter as one of its benchmarks for reviewing and assessing best policy and practice. [For more info on the YVH Quality Mark Service and our other services such as mentoring and fundraising- please complete the contact form at the end. [This article was first published in a shorter blog for in Children Young People Now 24th Sept 2020]
“Prompt and honest feedback by adults is one way of letting children and young people know that their views are valued – and without prompt feedback, and real evidence of change rather than statements of policy or intention, they are less likely to participate in the future”.
Participation Works – Consortium and Charter
‘Participation Wor
ks was initially a network of people, projects and organisations, and then a small consortium of large and small charities in the youth sector, working together to promote better youth participation in public life between 2003 and 2011. Children and Young People Now published ‘The Children Now Participation Charter’ in June 2006 in association with the PW consortium. It was drawn up “in conjunction with experts and organisations in the field, children and young people”. It was not a charter that organisations were invited to sign up to or self-assess against, as there was no means at the time for an independent or youth-led body to hold them to account. Instead it set out a “vision for giving children and young people a say in the decisions that affect them” in seven statements with accompanying detail on ‘what should happen’. It is an excellent reference point for anyone wanting to measure progress of the Youth Voice Movement since then, or for those considering a reboot of expectations going forward.
“Most organisation need to change in order to make participation real”
The charter was also supported by the Children’s Commissioner and it was the same year the Education and Inspection Act 2006 was passed into law with associated guidance on youth participation in local authorities/youth councils – guidance which is being reviewed again in 2020. Although it wasn’t the first Participation Charter (Ive found one dated 1992) I remember this one, having been the CEO of one of the consortiums founding members, who collaborated to offer national support to both the voluntary sector and local authorities throughout England. Although many of the Consortium’s resources can still be found on internet if you know what to search for (we are tracking them down to share with other publicly available Youth Voice resources in an updated ‘Participation Still Works’ hub) the Participation Charter was not widely reproduced or referenced and is largely forgotten today. Yet it is a significant reference point for anyone wanting to measure progress over the last fourteen years or considering a reboot of the ‘youth participation’ agenda, not least by today’s young leaders who are already at the table, pen’s posed and devices ready, with a list of expectations to ensure ‘parity of participation’, rather than ‘participation by invitation’.
The original PW network for England was launched in 2003, and its network of members (participation workers, youth workers, project and organisations) were soon calling for a national hub to coordinate support and commission new universal resources. The PW ‘consortium’ was first convened by The Carnegie Young People’s Initiative in 2005. Carnegie were a key driver and national sponsor of the ‘youth participation’ movement at the time, grant-funding publications, projects and networks across the UK between 1996 and 2005. They wanted to embed their legacy into existing organisations and bodies around the UK as the ‘Initiative’ wound up. This included continued support and help to secure £4m Lottery consortium funding for 3 years from 2007, only one year after the charter was published.
Today, funders are again playing a leading role in funding, coordinating and supporting national and local youth voice and participation initiatives, and several are establishing their own advisory forums/councils/leaders and ambassadors to inform and influence the shape of things to come. This time around I expect young people to be more active as the architects of youth participation standards and good practice. They will find that many of the old bad habits and stereotypes still persist but they’re participation in the debate about youth participation is now more likely to get a sympathetic hearing as the ‘power of youth’ gets plugged in. Their voices on issues are also more likely to be reported on media platforms. and there is a growing appreciation of the added value of ‘youth’ perspectives in the boardroom with the growth of the Young Trustee Movement for charity boards, with matching interest and good practice in the private sector, as well as from those outside the traditional education/youth services sector, such as in employment and health spaces.
“Participation is a dialogue to influence change”
Perhaps the most significant breakthrough has been the post Brexit referendum rise in the number of self-empowering social entrepreneurs setting up youth-led organisations or campaigns independently of adult invitation. This has all been in the context of increased democratic engagement in some parts of the UK, with Votes at 16 in Scotland and Wales, new Youth Parliaments in Northern Ireland and Wales and the mass participation in the UK Youth Parliament’s series of Make Your Mark ballots which mobilises the votes of around a million teenagers annually. Finally, the cross sector supported ‘#iwill campaign’ over the last seven years has included and legitimised ‘youth-led’ campaigning as a positive social action. #Iwill has increasingly promoted ‘meaningful youth participation in decision-making’ as a priority and part of its legacy. Its ambassadors recently called on organisations to “listen to us, work with us, invest in us!” All of these examples, and others, too many to list, will and should result in a greater expectation by young people and their allies, that future quality standards or youth participation charters must not only be pledged to, or self-assessed, but be implemented, evidenced and externally recognised, not least by young leaders themselves – so that an even broader ‘coalition of the willing’ in the sector can again come together to celebrate the best and support the rest.
“Meaningful participation never stops; it is not a project or task with a beginning and an end, and it requires commitment, time, effort and resources”
There is also much that we can learn from the Participation Works model itself but Ill save that for another blog, save to say that it had weaknesses as well as strengths. I liked that it included small as well as large organisations, but I regretted that it did not have more active youth leadership and direction. Much has changed since then. I hope that in future we see more equal youth participation and user-experienced oversight of collective effort, and more representation from other sectors in public life, business, culture, education, intergenerational, all amplified and connected in a our new-normal virtual world, and dare I say, more self-aware and wary of tokenistic participation. Having said all that I’m encouraged by the latest models of youth participation that are putting young people in the lead. It’s an improvement on being at the “heart of everything that we do” (what does that mean exactly?) but at the head too (the board) and ‘all levels’ in between, on committees, recruitment, staffing, evaluation, grant-giving and decision-making. Heart and head is youth voice led.
[Every effort has been made to get dates and names correct – if you have any amendments, corrections or indeed additions and new examples of good practice to share. please send me a message using the form below – Editor]
YOUTH PARTICIPATION CHARTER 2006
The Children Now Youth Participation Charter was drawn up “in conjunction with experts and organisations in the field, children and young people”. It was not a charter that organisations were invited to sign up or pledge to, as there was no means at the time for an independent or youth-led body to hold them to account, but set out a “vision for giving children and young people a say in the decisions that affect them” in seven statements with accompanying detail on ‘what should happen’.
HIGHLIGHTS (scroll down for Full Text though this may not be visible on mobile devices. Instread refer to the original CYPNow article here .or contact us using the form below)
Ive listed below the seven heading with some of my favourite quotes.
1/ Participation is a right (based on the UN Charter for the rights of the child)
“Widespread education about the implications of the right to be heard and taken seriously, and its benefits to children and wider society”
“The education of children and young people, through schools and other services, about their right to participate and how to get involved”
2/ Children and young people are the best authorities on their own lives
“Services that involve them meaningfully in individual decision making and in planning, delivery and evaluation will be better able to meet their needs and be better used by them”
“Children and young people must have the freedom to set agendas, direct activities and discussions and determine their own priorities, with appropriate adult or professional support to enable this to take place”
“While consultation is important, participation in its truest sense gives children and young people an active involvement in planning, decision-making and subsequent evaluation”
3/ Participation depends on respect and honesty
“It requires honesty about how contributions are going to be used and exactly how much power and influence they can really have”
“Question the way decisions are made in your organisation – don’t accept processes just because they have always been done this way”
“Have clear goals for the involvement of children and young people, developed in conjunction with them if possible, and communicate clearly the likely benefits for the children taking part, as well as for the wider community”
4/ Participation must be accessible and inclusive
“Children who are very young, disabled, or who have special educational needs have the same right to participate as other children. Services and organisations should be proactive in engaging them, as well as those who are socially or economically disadvantaged, excluded or discriminated against on any basis”.
“Appropriate resources, adult professional support and training must be made available to children and young people to ensure maximum involvement according to their age and understanding”.
Practitioners/Support
“Young people should be supported and encouraged to act as mentors to their younger peers”.
“For children and young people to contribute effectively to decision-making, they must have ready access to support, including independent advocacy, as well as to relevant information that is accessible, jargon free and culturally appropriate”
“Participation is a dialogue to influence change”
“Prompt and honest feedback by adults is one way of letting children and young people know that their views are valued – and without prompt feedback, and real evidence of change rather than statements of policy or intention, they are less likely to participate in the future”
“Adults involved in the participation process should act as facilitators and avoid dominating proceedings or manipulating them towards particular outcomes”
“Sometimes it is more appropriate for children, young people and adults to work together to improve policy and practice. For example, in schools teachers and students may have a stronger voice if they try to influence decisions in partnership”
5/ Participation is ‘Built In’
“Meaningful participation never stops; it is not a project or task with a beginning and an end, and it requires commitment, time, effort and resources”
“Most organisations need to change in order to make participation real.
“For participation to be meaningful, organisations must also be prepared to make changes to policies or services in response to what they subsequently find out from children and young people”.
“Children and young people must be involved in evaluating decision-making processes and any changes that have resulted from their involvement”.
6/ Participation is everyone’s responsibility
“Appointing a participation or children’s rights champion within an organisation can provide a point of focus and support and help to spread awareness and knowledge”.
7/ Participation benefits everybody
“Communicate the benefits of participation and the resulting changes to policy makers, services, and organisations as well as to managers, practitioners, parents and the general public.”
James Cathcart, Director of Young Voices Heard
- *Original Participation Works members and Charter supporters: The British Youth Council; Carnegie Young People Initiative; Children’s Rights Alliance for England; Children’s Commissioner for England; National Children’s Bureau; National Youth Agency; Save the Children.
- **The original CYPN article can be found here but is also reproduced with formatted paragraphs and numbered sections below
Participation Charter 2006 (this may not be visible on mobile devices – send us a message below and we’ll send you a copy).
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