A call to listen: empowering children to feel heard and placing their voice front and centre
Marcus Adams
Creating a world where all children thrive ? Disrupting how we support children's wellbeing ? Empowering leaders to transform their approach, standing for what’s possible in every interaction.
As practitioners and professionals working with children, young people and their families, we have a duty to protect and support children, ensuring their safety, wellbeing and developmental needs are met.
But in order for us to do this effectively, we must listen to and empower children to have a voice in the decisions that affect their lives.
This article contains links to a range of practical resources and tools to support you in ensuring children have a voice!
There's a lot of talk about 'the voice of the child' but there is often a gap in the actual actions and steps taken to make this a reality and to make it meaningful.
Legal Framework
(It's not only best practice... it's law!)
The Children Act 1989 and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) both recognise the importance of listening to and involving children in decision-making processes.
Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018) statutory guidance emphasises the importance of putting the child at the centre of safeguarding and protection processes.
In order to empower children, we must recognise that they are the experts in their own lives.
They have unique experiences, feelings and perspectives that need to be taken into account when providing care and support.
Children are not passive recipients of support - they are active agents in their own lives who need to be engaged with and listened to!
Empowering children to have a voice in the decisions that affect their lives is particularly important in the context of Safeguarding and Looked After Children, Special Educational Needs and Disabilities and Mental Health and Wellbeing.
When children are supported to articulate their needs and feelings, they are more likely to be able to identify when something is wrong and ask for help.
They are also more likely to feel in control of their own lives and be better able to cope with difficult and challenging situations that may arise.
Professional practice
In the context of Safeguarding, it is vital that children are involved in decisions that affect their lives.
This includes decisions around where they live, who they have contact with and any services or support they receive.
Children must be listened to and taken seriously when they raise concerns or disclose abuse or neglect.
Some useful tools
In the context of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, it is important that children are involved in decisions around their education and support, particularly children who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
Children with SEND often face additional barriers to accessing education and require tailored support to achieve their potential.
It is essential that children are involved in decisions around their support to ensure that their needs are met and they can fully participate in school life.
See below the spotlight resources from Derby City Council on the voice of children with SEND.
In the context of Mental Health and Wellbeing, it is important that children are supported to identify and articulate their feelings as well as to ensure they are able to voice their thoughts, feelings, wishes and concerns about any care or treatment they receive.
It is important that they are given the tools and support they need to communicate their needs.
There are several ways in which the voice of the child can be incorporated into mental health support.
It is important that we use of child-friendly language (appropriate to the age and understanding of the individual) and materials.
When we use language and materials that are age-appropriate and understandable to children, they can better communicate, better understand and are in a space where they can build trust and meaningful connections with those supporting them.
YoungMinds have some brilliant examples on their website. Please click here to explore their 'young people' section!
Empowering children to have a voice in decisions around their care can also increase their engagement and sense of ownership over their recovery.
Visual: UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
Roger Hart's Ladder of Children's Participation
This is a useful tool for professionals who work with children to understand how to involve children in decision-making processes.
It is a framework that outlines different levels of participation, from non-participation to shared decision-making and can help professionals to determine how much control and influence children should have in different situations.
The ladder consists of eight rungs, with each rung representing a different level of children's participation.
The ladder of participation is a useful tool for professionals who work with children because it helps them to determine how much control and influence children can have in different situations.
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It allows professionals to assess the level of children's participation in decision-making processes and to identify ways to increase their involvement.
For example, if a school is planning a new playground, professionals can use the ladder of participation to determine how much control children should have over the design process.
If the school is only consulting with children and taking their input into account before making a final decision, they are at the fifth rung of the ladder.
However, if they decide to give children equal power in making the final decision, they would move up to the sixth rung.
By using the ladder of participation, professionals can also identify areas where children's participation may be limited or absent.
For example, if a school is only asking children for their opinion on matters such as school rules and policies, but not involving them in the decision-making process, they are at the second rung of the ladder.
Professionals can use this information to identify areas where they need to work to increase children's participation and influence.
*Resource Spotlight: Derby City Council SEND*
For the full page, please click here.
Autism
Non-verbal and complex needs
Hearing impairment
Learning disability
Early years
Visual impairment
Let's do our bit to put the voice of the child front and centre and show them that they are heard, valued and listened to!
The most important thing to remember is to take action.
All the information in the world won't make a difference unless you put it into practice!
I really appreciate you investing the time to read my article today, especially knowing your busy schedules and your ongoing to-do lists!
I really do hope that these articles give you the practical tools to implement and make a difference to the lives of the children and families you support.
We are all on a journey of learning, taking the latest research and best practice into account and developing ourselves and our practice.
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As always, please feel free to reach out to me with any questions or comments, all feedback is warmly welcomed.
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1 年Nothing can be done without you!
Director @ Think CYP Talking about all things mental health ???? Facilitator, Consultant, Coach.
1 年Nothing about me without me! Co-production all the way.
Steven Talbot Consultancy - training - motivation - inspiration
1 年Fantastic stuff. Thank you for sharing Marcus Dyke