The You Respond Guide to Promoting Effective Project Participation by Young People Who Have Experienced Violence is the result of a two-year project funded by the EU under their Daphne funding stream. The Guide is designed to develop the knowledge and skills of practitioners, managers and policy-makers keen to promote participation amongst young people who have experienced violence. This quote, from a young person who participated in the project, highlights the key issue that the team attempted to address: ‘In theory, a child should be consulted when decisions are being made about their wellbeing and future. However, in reality not every decision made by adults about children allows children to participate. In many cases, adults and professionals seem to fear losing their authority to the very people they are providing services to’.
The project team of local academics and practitioners worked collaboratively with young people from England, Greece, Cyprus and Bulgaria who had all experienced different forms of violence, including abuse and neglect, domestic violence, war and conflict, racial harassment and bullying. Based on the experiences of the young people and the literature, best practice was identified with regard to meaningful child and youth participation by young people who have experienced violence. The Guide draws on this best practice to not only highlight key messages for practice but also to promote self-directed and group learning through a series of exercises included in the Guide. A 12 year old girl reflecting on her experience of being involved in this project concluded: you make children feel worthy and able to express themselves without any fear whatsoever’.
The FREE 134 page guide to good practice, which includes material for self-directed and group learning is now available and can be downloaded. This Guide has been funded by the EU under the Daphne stream and can be freely used as long as the source of the materials and the copyright (J. Horwath et al.) is always acknowledged. A limited number of hard copies are also available free, although a small charge will be made for postage and packaging. For further information on the project or to obtain a hard copy of the Guide please contact: J.Horwath@sheffield.ac.uk
Download your YOU RESPOND guide now
Further public documentation can be obtained from the link below:
There have been three very successful launches in England and Northern Ireland with very positive feedback. Young people from Walsall were involved and exercts were shown from the Greek DVD which was very well received.
Press Release - Northern Ireland
22 February 2011
NI Launch of European Training Initiative Promoting Participation
Amongst Children and Young People who have Experienced Violence
Dan Hodgkiss, "You Respond" project co-ordinator; Masurma Firdowsi
(Age 21);Dean Cordelle (Age 16); Shain Akhtar, "You Respond"
associate project co-ordinator; and Philip Gould (Age 21).
Back Row (l-r)
Philip Gould (Age 21); Pauline Leeson, Director of Children in Northern Ireland (CiNI);
Shain Akhtar, "You Respond" associate project co-ordinator
Middle Row
Dan Hodgkiss, "You Respond" project co-ordinator;
Masuma Firdowsi (Age 21); Dawn Purvis MLA, and Chair of All Party Group on
Children and Young People; Professor Jan Horwath from Sheffield University,
the project co-ordinator for the "You Respond" project;
Front Row
Paula Keenan, Strategic and Operational Advisor, Participation Network; and
Dean Cordelle (Age 16).
(l-r) Pauline Leeson, Director of Children in Northern Ireland (CiNI);
Dawn Purvis MLA, and Chair of the All Party Group on Children and Young People;
Professor Jan Horwath from Sheffield University, the project co-ordinator for the "You Respond" project; and
Paula Keenan, Strategic and Operational Advisor, Participation Network.
A pioneering European training and practice guide was launched in Northern Ireland recently (21 February) to help local childcare practitioners, managers and policy-makers who are keen to promote participation amongst vulnerable young people who have experienced violence.
Professor Jan Horwath from Sheffield University, the project co-ordinator for the “You Respond” project, outlined the rationale that informed the development of the guide:
“The You Respond Guide to Promoting Effective Project Participation by Young People Who Have Experienced Violence is the result of a two-year project funded by the EU. The project involved young people from England, Greece, Cyprus and Bulgaria, who had all experienced different forms of violence, including abuse and neglect, domestic violence, war and conflict, racial harassment and bullying. These young people worked collaboratively with a team of practitioners and academics to identify, based on the literature and their views and experiences, best practice. And, in light of this, to specify key messages for prospective facilitators and to design training exercises, educational materials and a good practice guide which aim at developing the knowledge and skills of practitioners, managers and policy-makers keen to promote participation amongst this marginalised group.
A young person from Cyprus who was involved in the ‘You Respond’ initiative provided the following personal perspective: “In theory, a child should be consulted when decisions are being made about their wellbeing and future. However, in reality not every decision made by adults about children allows children to participate. In many cases, adults and professionals seem to fear losing their authority to the very people they are providing services to.”
The Participation Network, a local project that develops the capacity of local government, statutory agencies and government departments to effectively engage children and young people in decision-making, hosted the Northern Ireland launch of the “You Respond” guide. The Network has been supporting Northern Ireland’s decision makers for over four years. Their experience shows that, where there is an impact on children and young people, talking directly to them leads to more effective policies and more relevant service provision.
Paula Keenan, Strategic and Operational Advisor, Participation Network, welcomed the “You Respond” launch:
"The Participation Network is all about making sure that people designing services for young people talk directly to those young people about what they need. Doing that is all the more important when children and young people have been subjected to violence, in their homes or on the streets. 'You Respond' is a great training resource that will be of enormous help to workers addressing such sensitive and harrowing issues."
As Northern Ireland has a legacy of violence, engagement with young people who have experienced violence is particularly important as Pauline Leeson, Director of Children in Northern Ireland (CiNI), the umbrella organisation for the children’s sector in Northern Ireland, explained:
"CiNI is delighted to be facilitating childcare practitioners and policy makers in Northern Ireland to hear the lessons of the 'You Respond' project. We can all learn from this pioneering work undertaken across Europe. Sadly, workers here know all too well about how conflict can impact on children but hearing the voices of children brings us a fresh and crucial perspective that contributes to the on-going work of developing polices and services that match their needs"
For further information on Participation Network log on to www.participationnetwork.org, email participation@ci-ni.org.uk or call 028 90 401290.
CHILD PARTICIPATION PROJECT
A copy of the Children's Participation: Beyond Rhetoric, Confronting Reality Report, October 2010 can be downloaded here. Funded by The University of Sheffield Rapid Response Scheme.
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