Listen Up - Social Welfare Portal

listenup!58 | Chapter 8Young person participationThis chapter describes the range ofmethods used by the organisationsin the project to consult with andinvolve young people in servicepractice development and deliveryfrom grass roots up to a strategic andoperational level.All eight partner sites prioritised the participationof the young people using the service, anddemonstrated successful, effective and meaningfulyoung person participation in developing manydifferent aspects of the service.“Young people participating in the project haveshown a high level of commitment and enthusiasmwhich suggests that it is meeting a need for theirvoice to be heard.”Project worker, Experience in Mind, Mind In Brightonand Hove, and Hove YMCAYoung person participation brings added valuein terms of benefits, positive outcomes and/orchanges to both young people’s lives (see chapter9) and the services they access. For services,benefits included improved access for youngpeople; development of a more responsive serviceto meet the range of needs of all young people inthe local community; increased accountability totheir funders and other organisations they workwith; and more informed training to service staffwith regards to young people’s mental health andemotional wellbeing needs.Young person participation can sometimes bechallenging for organisations to achieve, mainlydue to lack of human or financial resources. All theorganisations strived to overcome these challengesthrough a variety of strategies.“It is essential to not become blasé about thesuccess of service user participation, but instead tolook constantly for ways to improve or build uponthe ways in which young people are involved inthe service… projects must adapt their manner ofworking to suit each new set of young people.”Project Worker, Caterpillar Service,Barnardo’s Marlborough Road Partnership, CardiffServices need to devote sufficient staff, time andmoney to achieving effective and meaningful youngperson participation that is not just tokenistic. They