#YouthVoice News: Bitesize 28th January

Welcome to #YouthVoice News & Opps – a regular roundup from the world of youthvoice, participation, and influence. This weeks bumper edition includes:

⭐Social Media bans – Is youthvoice being heard in the debate?
⭐NI Youth Assembly Stormont debate – 2026 priorities vote results
⭐YouthStrategyWatch – DCMS Jan26 Newsletter & Opps
⭐Votesat16Watch – new national partnership
⭐Youth Council UK Pre-Launch – age range confirmed
⭐UNESCO – International Day of Education backs co-production policy
📅Electoral Commission – Your (youth) Vote week dates
✍️Review – Centre4YouthVoice training on Peer Research
💡Call for Evidence – for a report to NHS and Decision-makers
👀Recommended Reads – Rylie Sweeney, Kirsty Young
👀Opportunities for young people – Mobilise your youth voice/HaveYourSay surveys.
👀Opportunities for supporters – Exploring Elections, Politics Project
👀Centre4YouthVoice – free Training & Resources
🎁Resources

#YouthVoiceNews is produced by Young Voices Heard CIC as a non-profit venture, and edited by a volunteer. Join 590 who subscribe to get this Newsletter via LinkedIn and access to back issues, for free here.

NEWS

🤔Editorial Proposed bans for social media and smartphones in schools for under 16’s: Are young people 1/ being listened too? 2/ invited to be around the table shaping policy? Alot of media coverage features binary arguments that overlook both the complexity of the topic and the challenges of implementation. The Govt’s Youth Strategy’s promises to engage young people in policy making, and the UN Convention Right’s of the Child’s right is committment to having their views heard and taken into account. Young Voices Heard echoes young people’s calls to ‘talk with us, not about us’. If you have polls, surveys, or opportunities to inform and influence the debate, please share them with politicians and the media, and send YVNews a copy so we can share them. Ed/JC (The Govt announced a 3-month consultation on the social media ban legislation which will be lead by the Dept for Science, Innovation and Tech, liaising with DCMS YouthTeam. More details to follow – watch this space. Read more for details/terms of reference)

Here is what FlippGen, a youth-led digital wellbeing movement, have to say about it. FlippGen’s Statement of Position on a social media ban for under-16’s in the UK Rec Read

⚡Northern Ireland Youth Assembly round up and results of priority ballot for 2026 – A survey of 1700 children and young people in NI prioritised 11 keys issues for YAM with the top three being Health (mental and physical) , Education and Addition. Results Report Here. Ninety members (aged 12-16) then debated the full list last week and voted for 1. Health, 2. Rights & Equality and 3. Education to be their priorities for 2026. Also in the round up : New members training/ blogs, & YAM TV! Read More here

DCMS Youth Team Newsletter/January 2026: Packed with news about DCMS-supported initiatives and resources, including #youthvoice impact and opportunities. CONTENTS include: Youth Strategy roadshow – links to share with young people to register/attend Youth Strategy presentations; (also ones for “professionals”); Youth Strategy presentation slides and toolkit; Erasmus+ news; Youth Select Committee (UKYP) update; AND a link where you can sign up direct to the Newsletter. [#YouthStrategyPromisesWatch – “thumbs up!” Ed]

⚡Votesat16Watch: Association for Citizenship Teaching partnership with Electoral Commission – “This collaboration comes at a pivotal moment. With significant electoral reforms now put forward – including the extension of the vote to 16- and 17-year-olds – there is renewed national focus on how schools and colleges prepare young people to participate confidently, knowledgeably and impartially in democracy.” Read more here

⚡Votesat16Watch Scroll down to “Opportunities” for young people to be heard in new survey by the Economist Education Foundation

⚡Youth Council UK prelaunch event. Sat 24th 12.00-1.30, Book asap. Over 40 people attended this online pre-launch event which was an opportunity for non-members to learn about the background and aspirations of the revival of a national youth council. (Founding members had their first network meeting the previous week) Facilitated by the #NationalYouthAgency. Presenters included Esther Horner-Aird, Lasharne Bent and Arthur Templeman-Lilley. Breakout groups were invited to consider the question: “How can YCUK embed national collaboration by bringing orgs and up together across the UK. (Slides will be available soon).

For more information about the Youth Council UK https://lnkd.in/etYqT7AK |To find out if your organisation is a member, contact ycuk@nya.org.uk

⚡Electoral Commission –Your Vote Week 2026 will take place Monday 9 March to Sunday 15 March. The Electoral Commission’s annual week celebrating democratic education. We invite all schools, youth groups and anyone who works with young people to join us in supporting young people to learn about democracy and voting.   The theme for Welcome to Your Vote Week 2026 will be ‘Why Voting Matters’. The focus is on supporting young people to explore why voting is important to them and discuss the impact their vote can have on their everyday life. Register here.

⚡ UNESCO International Day of Education – co-producing policy. January 24th marked this year’s International Day of Education | UNESCO and this year the theme was to champion the ‘power of youth in education’. “Youth under 30 constitute more than half of the global population. When it comes to shaping the future of education, youth have a special role to play – their futures depend on it. On this International Day of Education, we are reaffirming a simple yet powerful belief: the belief that young people have a rightful place at the decision-making table – not only as beneficiaries, but also as full-fledged partners.” Read more on how the Days events & resources/guides including how to empower youth to shape Education Policy. Something for UK Govt to consider as part of its Youth Strategy?

⚡ Review Peer Research Toolkit Training: Intro to Peer Research⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

⚡ The Centre for Youth Voice is running a series of eight free one-hour recorded “lectures” (dates and booking details below) on the Centre’s recently launched toolkit resource. This review is based on attending the first session.

“I attended the introduction module, the first in a series of eight between January and April 2026. Presenter Matthew Walsham delivered a well-paced and thorough talk referencing a series of slides which had just enough text, engaging graphics, and sources to follow up. I particularly liked the combination of his talking head in front of the slides – as if in a lecture theatre. If you missed anything or want to study them in detail you can browse and pause the recorded versions of the sessions, which are due to be circulated. I was particularly impressed with the section that explained the choice and scope of youthvoice theories, which neatly placed the role of peer researchers into context to help you decide who, where and when to deploy this methodology. There was also time for Q&As at the end. The rest of the course promised to cover everything from budgeting to impact, and if the sessions are of the same quality as the introduction, I would say it’s time well spent checking them out! ” James Cathcart.

Call for Evidence

State of Child Health: Call for evidence

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) are seeking examples of children and young people’s engagement, views and wishes on preventable poor health outcomes to build an evidence base on the state of child health in the UK. We are inviting you to share with us examples of published and unpublished youth engagement to help us understand the solutions to help young people stay healthy, happy and well, and what action they’d like to see UK Governments do to achieve this. If you have anything relevant to share, then please complete this MS Form which provides further details on what we’re seeking and how we will use the information to support our work: State of Child Health: Call for evidence – Fill in form. The deadline to submit is Friday 13 February 2026 and if you have any questions about this work then please contact Olivia Lam olivia.lam@rcpch.ac.uk

YOUTH VOICE OPPORTUNITIES

Our pick of #Youthvoice Opportunities & Have Your Say Surveys

⚡Economist Education Foundation – Votes at 16+ Have Your Say Survey “We’ve launched a short, gamified Play Verto survey for young people about voting, politics and discussing issues in the news – and we’re keen to involve as many UK-based 11–18-year-olds as possible”. More info post

🗓️ Survey open: 26 Jan – 13 Feb 🔗 Take part here: https://lnkd.in/eyTHfBeq

Health: Age 7-25+ Have you say to prioritise what area of health decision-makers in the NHS should prioritise by casting your vote (link below) for either 1. “Support for your Physical Health”, 2. “Support for you Emotional Health & Wellbeing”, 3. “Support to feel confident and ready to manage booking your appointments, get your prescriptions or visit health services on your own”, OR 4.”Giving your ideas & getting involved in shaping health services to meet your needs” More details online including access to a symbols ballot, online ballot form, a presentation to use with groups and details of next steps and further background to the project. Any questions or queries on this element please email allison.guiton@rcpch.ac.uk Deadline 15th Feb

⚡Youth Futures Foundation is recruiting 18-24 yr-olds who have faced challenges when trying to get or keep a job, and wants to help change the system for young people? £14.80 / hour! Full application pack➡️ https://lnkd.in/eB3KZigD The deadline to apply is Sunday 22nd February 2026. Read more.

⚡Kids in Museums remote volunteering opp for ages 16-25 🚨”We’re looking for six young people who are passionate about heritage and culture to join the Kids in Museums Youth Panel. We especially want to hear from• Young people from global majority and working-class backgrounds • D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent young people • Anyone based in Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales Deadline: 5pm, Friday 13 February” Find out more and apply: https://lnkd.in/eJjmnHty

⚡Youth Council UK – Executive Committee/Board and electorate Deadline 170+ founder members have been sent election packs on how to nominate, and then elect young people to the National Youth Agency hosted national youth council YCUK (replacement for the British Youth Council which closed in 2024). Information about the size of the committee, the electorate, the deadline have not yet been made public on the website but the age range was shared in the recent pre-launch event as 16-25. If interested, then ask your youth organisation if they are members and how they will be selecting nominations and voting delegates as soon as possible. For more info or to find out if your organisation is a member, contact ycuk@nya.org.uk

⚡Trustee positions – Interested in becoming a trustee? Only 3% of trustees are under the age of 30. Find under-30-friendly trustee boards through the Young Trustees Movement

If you have a #youthvoice opportunity coming up, drop us a line info@y oungvoicesheard.org.uk

SUPPORTERS OPPORTUNITIES

⚡The Politics Project – Exploring Elections: helps you support young people to engage confidently with upcoming elections in England. We’ll cover practical ways to start conversations about voting, how to discuss issues important to your area, and guide young people through registering to vote. With local elections taking place across the country in May 2026, this training is ideal for youth practitioners preparing first-time voters for the elections ahead. We are running this training twice for youth practitioners, all online. Please sign up to the session most convenient to you: Youth Practitioners: Wednesday 25th Feb, 1.00 -2:30 pm, sign up here |Tuesday 10th March, 11-12:30, sign up here

⚡Centre for Youth Voice: Free Training and Events timetable

February 24th – Community of Practice: Evidencing Impact and Change of Youth Voice: We’re bringing organisations together to look at how we collectively evidence the impact of youth voice.

Multiple dates – Involving Young People in Services: Professor Kaz Stuart is delivering three training sessions around creating opportunities, supporting, and evaluating young people’s involvement in services

February 10th – Supporting Young People to be Involved in Services
March 10th – Evaluating Young People’s Involvement in Services

Multiple dates – Peer Research Toolkit Training: Based on the toolkit, we are delivering 90-minute training sessions on different aspects of the peer research approach, with presentations and Q&As.

Peer Research Toolkit Training – Session 1: Introduction to Peer Research
Tuesday 20 January, 11am – 12.30pm.
January 27th – Setup, recruitment, budgets of peer research
February 3rd – Co-designing research aims and questions
February 17th – Participatory research methods
March 3rd – Ethics, safeguarding, and data protection
March 17th – Conducting fieldwork with peer researchers
April 14th – Involving young people in analysis
April 28th – Impact and embedding participation

The Centre for Youth Voice is funded by the National Lottery Community Fund and delivered by the Network of Regional Youth Work Units. Note: Publications/Resources are on the opening page and scroll down :).

RESOURCES:

⚡Involving Young People: A Toolkit for Peer Research- free produced by the Centre for Youth Voice, 2025. See Opportunities for training dates. Intro and link to downloard here. “Too often in the past research in the youth sector has traditionally been done on young people, treating them as subjects to be studied. However, a growing consensus, across a range of sectors, recognises that young people are often the best-placed experts to investigate the issues affecting their lives”

⚡Resource/ Training – Gamifying Democracy, The Politics Project

“This training is ideal for youth practitioners and teachers looking for meaningful, practical, and enjoyable ways to bring politics to life with young people. In this training, we’ll share games and activities you can use in youth settings to start conversations about politics and democracy. Designed for group settings in informal spaces, youth clubs, and classrooms, these games help young people explore their power, voice and their ideas for change. The easy-to-use games we’ll share in the training are specifically designed to support young people to explore their power and agency, their ideas and opinions about local, national and global topics, and their emotions towards politics and politicians. We are running this training three times, all online. Sign up asap:

Wednesday, February 18th, 1-2.30pm

For other YVH recommended resources, go to the www.YoungVoiceHeard.org.uk main website / RESOURCES.

NEWS