PROMOTING PARTICIPATION AMONGST CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE WHO

EXPERIENCED VIOLENCE: WHAT WE DID AND HOW WE DID IT

 

 

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WHAT IS “CHILD PARTICIPATION”?

“the process of sharing decisions which affect one’s life and the life of the community in which one lives. It is the means by which democracy is built and

a norm against which democracies should be

measured.” Hart (1992:5)

AIMS AND OBJECTIVESTo promote good practice in

relation to young people’s participation in projects to combat violence against children.

This will be achieved through:

1. Drawing on young people’s experience of participating in projects of violence

2. Working with young people to develop and pilot a good practice guide and materials for practitioners, managers, policy-makers and researchers

3. Produce and make freely available the Guide

THE UNITED KINGDOM• The University of Sheffield (Prof Jan Horwath, project lead ) • Walsall Youth Service (Daniel Hodgkiss, Shain Akhtar)

GREECE• South-East European Research Centre (Dr Efrosini Kalyva,

Chrysanthi Dikaiou) • Institute of Child Health (Irene Fereti)

CYPRUS• European University Cyprus (Dr Spyros Spyrou, Maria Kalli)

BULGARIA• Social Reforms for Development and Integration

Foundation (Milena Nikolova, Kalina Yordanova)

THE PROJECT PARTNERS

UK 10 girls 15 boys Engaged in projects on forced marriageChildren in care:Vulnerable to abuse and neglect

12-18 yrs

Greece 8 girls 12 boys UASs from Afghanistan and SomaliaYoung people in care through abuse and neglect

9-19 yrs

Bulgaria 7 girls 7 boys Roma young people who experienced harassment

14-23 yrs

Cyprus 8 girls 7 boys Young people in care through abuse and neglect

10-16 yrs

33 girls 26 boys

An initial comprehensive review of the literature

Further exploration among groups of young people

Identifying key messages Translating messages into a

good practice guidePiloting of guide Amendments in collaboration

with the young people

PROJECT ACTIVITY

THE LITERATURE REVIEW AND THE VIEWS AND EXPERIENCES OF YOUNG

PEOPLE

KEY MESSAGES FROM THE LITERATURE

• When children’s views heard, services and communities can be significantly improved

• Through participation, children and young people develop useful capacities as active citizens

• Different types of participation: from manipulation to child-initiated shared decisions

• Developing awareness of needs of vulnerable groups e.g. disabilities

• Awareness of the impact of witnessing and experiencing violence on children and young people

PARTICULAR CHALLENGES FOR VULNERABLE YOUNG PEOPLE

•Lack of self esteem and confidence especially during initial encounters•Feelings of embarrassment •Fear or intimidation from participating •Concerns about limited knowledge of the issue/topic •Being verbally inadequate and unable to meaningfully express themselves•Fear of sharing personal information•Impact of past experiences

THE FACILITATOR

‘’A good facilitator listens carefully and respects what children and

young people have to say even if s/he disagrees with what they say,

because he must listen to all children’s ideas and then decide

which one is better. The most important characteristic of a good facilitator is to have open-minded ideas, but above all to understand

young people.” (16yrs)

• An effective facilitator is able to support children and young people to participate in decision-making without patronizing them and limiting their right to participate through unwarranted assumptions and stereotypes.

• A weak facilitator, on the other hand, fails to be involved with

children meaningfully and to provide them with the means to express themselves freely and to be part of the process of deciding, alongside with adults, about issues which affect their lives.

• When evaluating the effectiveness of a facilitator, children and young people pay attention to details that adults may not consider to be so important (for example, dress code) or to things that could not possibly change, such as gender and age.

THE FACILITATOR KEY MESSAGES

Children and young people need an environment in which they are able to:•express themselves freely•feel they have given meaningful consent •be treated with respect by others•know their views to be taken seriously •have cultural and religious beliefs respected•feel safe and secure with individual needs addressed•know they are valued

EFFECTIVE PARTICIPATION & ETHICAL ISSUES

• Pay attention to group process• Do not make assumptions about needs and

experiences: check out• Give young people voice • Use a variety of different methods• Recognise the other demands and

expectations placed on young people• Make certain that opportunities for honest

feedback are available throughout • Do not take credit for what is not yours• Ensure that young people are kept engaged

/informed of project outcomes

KEY MESSAGES: WORKING WITH VULNERABLE YOUNG PEOPLE

FROM VIEWS AND EXPERIENCE TO A GUIDE

Key themes identified:

•The nature and challenges to participation

•Being an effective facilitator

•Preparation, setting the scene

•Working with children and young people in participatory projects

Hart’s Ladder of Participation

IT IS POSSIBLE

TO GO UP THE

LADDER AND

BACK DOWN

DEPENDING ON

HOW SAFE IT

FEELS

DIFFERENT FACILITATORS PROMOTE OR INHIBIT THE

MOVE UP AND DOWN THE

LADDER

IT’S HARD WORK SUSTAINING

PARTICIPATIO

N AT THIS LEVEL

DIFFERENT RUNGS ARE

APPROPRIATE FOR

DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES

DIFFERENT RUNGS OF THE LADDER REQUIRE DIFFERENT THINGS OF YOUNG PEOPLE

MISUSE OF POWER, MANIPULATION AND TOKENISM RESULT IN A SLIDE RIGHT DOWN THE LADDER

LOWER LEVELS OF PARTICIPATION ARE EASIER TO ACHIEVE BUT MAY NOT BE THE MOST SATISFYING

THE RUNGS OF THE LADDER ARE NOT EQUI-DISTANT SOME REQUIRE BIGGER LEAPS IN

COMMITMENT AND ENGAGEMENT THAN OTHERS

YOUNG PEOPLE’S VIEWS ON TYPES OF

PARTICIPATION

The nature of participation

•Participation is:•Inter-active •Multi-faceted•Dynamic•Affected by external & internal influences:

–context

– facilitator

–group dynamics

–young person

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. (Male)

IN A NUTSHELL