Why does Youth Voice matter?

…because young people matter!

For those in the youth sector, the role of youth voice lies at the heart of all we do. This is integral to my role as YEF’s Youth Voice and Project Officer.

I am part of the Youth Understanding team and I believe it is very important that youth voice is central and present in the sectors we work to influence at YEF. It is a sentiment we all hear and acknowledge as true, but let’s dig deeper.

As a frontline youth worker, I have learned the importance of my actions and words on the outcomes for the young people I serve. Everything has an impact – ranging from the slides I design and workshops I deliver, to how I communicate with the young people about their concerns and hopes, or their fears and dreams.

If we think about our own voices as individuals, and how we use it to shape our lives, it is clear how important young people’s voices are in shaping their own lives as young people. As professionals, frontline or otherwise, we have a role to amplify and support their voices – no matter our proximity and no matter our role.

Meeting young people’s needs

It’s important that we create an environment for youth voice to prevail and truly matter. To create spaces for young people to express themselves we must collaborate with them on what the space looks like. Within the confines of safeguarding and factors that might limit us (like budget/capacity), creative thinking should be encouraged by both support staff and young people.

I strongly believe we should work collaboratively with young people in a meaningful way, especially when it comes to decision making. If we are concerned about knowing what young people need, the solution is simple – ask them. Importantly, I have learned that we should ask young people in a way that is accessible to them.

Questions like: How can I support you? –  What is your preferred method of communication? – Do you have any questions for me?

We should always be thinking about how we can adapt and improve practice to ensure young peoples views are being heard and acted upon. Youth participation cannot be stagnant, irregular and tokenistic. It must be well thought out, inclusive and integrated.

Youth Voice at YEF

Youth voice is captured at YEF through the:

• Youth Advisory Board
• Peer Action Collective
• The Children, Violence and Vulnerability (CVV) report
• YEFCo (our board of which two members are from YAB)

I have the privilege of working closely with the YEF’s Youth Advisory Board – a group of passionate young people aged 16-25 across England and Wales with either lived experience of violence or a passion for bringing about a positive change to youth violence.

On my first day in the role, I had the opportunity to attend the CVV Report workshop and hear YAB members speak to the findings and share their perspectives as young people. Our CVV report is an annual survey that interviews 10,000 young people across England and Wales. It is a clear example of how YEF values the insights of young people in not just participating in our survey and helping us understand youth violence, but also values the reflections and insights through YAB. I am looking forward to the 2024 CVV report and the value it will bring.

The Peer Action Collective (PAC) is a group of young people who carry out research in their communities to find out the solutions to make their areas safer and then deliver social action projects based on this to make a change. For example, PAC members worked to create drop in youth clubs and pop up spaces for young people to access support. More can be found in their fantastic report here: PAC-Leading-research-driving-change.pdf (peeractioncollective.com)

In conclusion, our work and the voices of young people are inseparable. In fact, listening to and respecting the voices of young people helps us do our work even better! It is how we can check understanding and support the creation of generational change for young people, with young people.

Meeting up with YAB members on my first day working at YEF.