Agenda item

For the Select Committee to receive an update on the Participation Strategy for Young People 2022-2025.

Contributors:

Councillor Anita Cranmer, Cabinet Member for Children & Education

Krissie Hutton, Youth Participation Co-ordinator

Gareth Morgan, Head of Early Help

The Chairman invited Cllr Anita Cranmer, Cabinet Member for Children’s and Education, Simon James, Service Director for Education and Early Help, and Gareth Morgan, Head of Early Help, to speak on this item.

The recently launched strategy focused on involving young people in decision-making processes in the areas of the service’s work affecting them. A key factor in the strategy was the introduction of a properly safeguarded and monitored participation champions’ programme. This included children’s panels for the recruitment of high-priority senior staff within the Council, the launch of the Youth Voice Hub website (https://www.youthvoicebucks.co.uk) and the ‘Shout out for SEND’ programme. The strategy’s success would be measured over the coming months.

During discussion, comments and questions raised by the Committee included:  

·       The Councillors welcomed the development of the strategy and expressed their enthusiasm for the programme.

·       Gareth Morgan explained that the Council would roll out a programme to identify young people as community board youth ambassadors. The youth voice executive would initially identify volunteers to share opportunities through schools and community-led youth centres. A new website was also in development to ensure accessibility on phones to involve young people in local democracy, recruitment and other activities.

·       Simon James advised that the councillor mentoring scheme would be a corporate-wide programme rather than solely run by Children’s Services. Councillors would be trained and supported through the corporate team. Chrissy Hatton had recently been appointed as the Participation Coordinator to engage young people and communities. She had been making links with local organisations and also the young carers commissioning service to ensure the inclusion of young carers’ views in the programme.

·       The Youth Interview Panel was launched as an opportunity for young people to be trained on interview questions. It was noted that the programme was an important priority for both Officers and Cabinet Members, as it could prepare young people leaving school for further education and employment.

·       The Youth Voice Hub Website had gone live on the 7^th September 2022. The design and content had been co-produced with children, young people, and Buckinghamshire Council’s partners. It was built by the team’s identification of best practice, was made fully accessible via mobile phone and would be reviewed regularly. The website would be promoted through social media channels, the Council’s Youth Voice Executive and through school bulletins. The team would also include younger employees with significant interest and knowledge in social media.

·       Councillors raised suggestions on further promotion opportunities and offered to seek engagement through resident Facebook groups in their own wards.

Action: Councillors

·       It was also suggested that the programme team could seek contact with families through local housing associations, for example by forwarding links to tenants or advertising the website on their own. Simon James welcomed the suggestions and agreed to implement them.

Action: SJ

·       In relation to the financial implications of the programme, Simon James noted that the participation work was part of the service budget and not dependent on external grants. A breakdown of the service budget can be found in the Council’s budget. A cost breakdown of the participation work could be provided to the Committee.

Action: SJ

·       Simon James advised that in order to ensure that young people across the entire county would have the opportunity to participate, an event would take place in central Buckinghamshire before Christmas. This would be designed by young people themselves with the aim of ensuring that as many young people as possible could attend.