To mark the 20th anniversary of the awards ceremony, James Cathcart went along to meet the young judges and hear their take on it.
“I simply love going to the Children and Young People Awards dinner! Now in its 20th year the annual celebration at the Novotel West Hotel welcomed over 450 guests representing 100 finalists in 24 categories. Something of a marathon evening to ensure every finalist was acknowledged, but winners were sprinting, even dancing their way up to the stage, to the ‘finish line’ end of the evening.
Despite yet another no-show from a minister, in this case the recently appointed Josh McAllister MP, but he did send a video message. “Lots of the work you do will be behind closed doors, won’t be seen by many people, it may not make the front pages – but it is life-changing work.” But with such a high turnover of 16 Children’s Ministers in 20 years most of those present didn’t seem to mind he wasn’t there in person – after all, the real VIPs were those enjoying their moment of recognition.
Some of the best contributions were the unscripted remarks by award presenters before they announced their category winner. They are not really supposed to say anything to keep to time, but they were following the example of this year’s very impressive and high-energy compere (book him again, please!) TV presenter and author Ashley John Baptiste, who shared his experience of growing up in care, was moved to particularly congratulate the any award winners from that sector. Consequently, many took the opportunity to highlight their heartfelt appreciation of the staff, volunteers and causes their category championed. ‘Shoutouts’ that I remember included those who support refugees, children in care and foster-carers, but I think the biggest cheer went up for the acclamation of youth workers after Mark Russell, CEO of the Children’s Society, declared “I am a Youth Worker!” and went on to praise all the youth workers in the room. I particularly admired young judge and award presenter Kaiden Walsh (16) who also took advantage of having the microphone to make a shoutout for #iwillweek 2025. The #iwillmovement emphasises the power of youthvoice in leading volunteering social action, and #iwillweek is a celebration of the amazing contribution of tens of thousands of young volunteers, like Kaiden, who is an #iwill ambassador.
I was again privileged to sit on the Young Judges Table with Kaiden and others, because 16 years ago I started working with CYP Now to source and support young people to be its judges. Their votes get equal weight to those of the older folk! I was given time off from this task this year as all ten of the judges were sourced by Participation People from their associate pool. Antonia Dixey, CEO of PP praised proudly, “Let’s be honest, nothing gets past them. They can spot tokenism and horse poop at twenty paces. Their insight kept the awards honest, grounded and genuinely reflective of what young people value”.
It was great to know so many of them already, personally or via social media, including: Hayden Cutler, #youthvoice champion, #iwill ambassador, and Member of Youth Parliament who helped keep it going with his petition letter to Government when the British Youth Council closed; Amelie Abass, #iwill and Make Votes Matter ambassador and Young Campaigner of the Year 25 for amplifying #youthvoice and campaigning for electoral reform; Megan Perkins, former Member of Youth Parliament, Diversity, Equality & Inclusion speaker, bringing faith, football and #youthvoice together; Lauren Bennet, founder of Amplify and Youth Advisor to Duke of Edinburgh and Scouts, and the youngest Kaiden Walsh (16) #youthvoice champion, #iwillAmbassador and Blackpool Youth Councillor.
So for the first time in my annual blogs about the event Id like to conclude with some quotes direct from those that I shared this inspiring evening with.
“WOW! What an evening presenting at the award ceremony. The standard of entries was so high that scoring entries proved very challenging. This award night really means something to me as a young mother. I know just how invaluable social care services made exclusively for children are. From foster care to violence prevention, these professionals often put in immeasurable hours for very little financial gain all for the benefit of the next generation.” Amelie (LinkedIn)
“The CYPNow awards were an amazing event, and as a judge, I can truly say that each and every finalist deserves to feel proud of the work they’ve done, and how they’ve inspired the sector as a whole. It was certainly a tough call on many occasions as to who came in first. Nevertheless, well done to all the winners, those awards are all thoroughly deserved, and thanks to the team at CYPNow who made the awards happen, as well as the team at Participation People who facilitated myself and the rest of the young judges.” Hayden
“After an inspiring, late-night at the CypNow Awards gala, I’m reflecting on the incredible talent celebrated in the Children and Young People’s sector. It was a genuine honour to serve as a judge and presenter. As a 16-year-old volunteer who devoted significant time to the judging process, the commitment of young people to this sector is immense! … Congratulations again to all the winners.” Kaiden (LinkedIn) pictured with Ashley John Baptiste.
“The evening was a beautiful celebration of all those working to change the lives of young people. Having judged the Awards I felt touched by the stories of hardship and love poured into youth services. It was an honour to be asked to present an Award and appreciate that moment with the winner” Lauren
James Cathcart, Founder of Young Voices Heard and Editor of Youth Voice News
[This blog first appeared in ‘Children and Young People’ Now magazine on 24/11/25. You can read more about the event and the winners in this CYPN article by @DerrenHayes.]