Promoting participation

Today there is an expectation that children and young people will be not just consulted, but also empowered to participate in decisions about their lives, and this should be evident in service and policy design, delivery, monitoring and evaluation.This course explores the concept of participation, the legislation underpinning it, the different levels of participation and the possible barriers to it.The course also considers strategies for effective and meaningful participation which benefits not only practitioners and their organisations but – most importantly – the children and young people they work with.

Learning outcomes cover:

• Participants’ views about the pros and cons of children’s participation in child protection conferences.
• Identifying what helps and what hinders children’s participation in child protection conferences.
• Improving practice by exploring ways of children’s inclusion and increasing opportunities for their
  participation in child protection conferences.
• Sharing of good practice.