speak%20to%20the%20world%20overview%20report

Report from the Speak to the World consultation with children and young people

Contents

Section 1 Executive summary: main findings and recommendations Pages 2-10

Section 2 Introduction Pages 11-14

Section 3 Findings from the survey of European Pages 15-23 non-governmental organisations

Section 4 Understanding and awareness of European and Pages 24-28 international decision-making processes

Section 5 Desire to be involved in European and international Pages 29-33 decision-making processes

Section 6 Experiences of participation Pages 34-37

Section 7 The best European and international Pages 38-41 participation processes

Section 8 Speak to the World project partners Page 42

TerminologyThe term ‘children and young people’ is used throughout this report to refer to people aged 17 years and under, consistent with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Introduction and background

The purpose of the Speak to the World project was to investigate children’s views on engaging in European and international decision-making. The project was grant funded by the European Commission (EC) under the specific Fundamental Rights and Citizenship programme (2007-2013).1

The programme supports the development of a European society based on respect for fundamental rights. In the case of children and young people (those under the age of 18), those rights are solidly based on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), including children’s right to express their views freely; to have their views given due weight; and

to have their views heard in all judicial and administrative proceedings affecting them.

The Speak to the World project focused on participation rights as described by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child: ‘information-sharing and dialogue between children and adults based on mutual respect … in which children can learn how their views and those of adults are taken into account and shape the outcome of such processes’.2

This project did not investigate participation or consultation processes in general, but concentrated on identifying children and young people’s views on their engagement in participatory decision-making processes. In addition, the focus was not on local, provincial or national decision-

Children have better insight than adults in matters of their own concern. (Young person, Austria)

Section 1

Section 1: Executive summary: main findings and recommendations

making processes but on participatory processes at European and international level. However, the project found that processes and structures at the local and national levels are sometimes critical to the most effective decision-making at European and international levels.

In Europe, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union3 established children’s rights to participate in all matters or decisions that affect them. The Charter was given force of law by the Treaty of Lisbon and Article 24(1) provides that children ‘may express their views freely. Such views shall be taken into consideration on matters which concern them in accordance with their age and maturity’. Thus, engaging and listening to children and young people in matters that affect them is mandatory.

More recently, in February 2011, the EC issued a new Communication, An EU Agenda for the Rights of the Child.4

The “child rights perspective” must be taken into account in all EU measures affecting children.5

In setting out its agenda for children’s rights, the EC acknowledges that the full recognition of participation rights is far from achieved and that new approaches to providing easily accessible information about rights and European policy development mechanisms need to be developed.

It was against this developing background that the Speak to the World project was undertaken.

The project

The purpose of the Speak to the World project was to research children’s views on their engagement in European and international levels of decision-making. Coordinated and led by the Children’s Rights Alliance for England (CRAE), it was implemented by partners working in seven EU and non-EU Member States: Children’s Rights Alliance (Ireland), CRAE (England), Estonian Union for Child Welfare, Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights (Austria), Save the Children Romania, Child Rights Information Centre (Moldova; associate partner) and YUNPRESS (Russia; associate partner).

Structure of report

This report is structured around the themes of the consultation events taking account of the findings and recommendations from the literature review and the NGO survey.

All quotations from children and young people in this report are taken from the national consultation events unless mentioned in footnotes. Some show age, gender and country, but some were taken without all of these things being recorded.

In five partner countries, national consultation events with children and young people took place between November 2010 and February 2011. Other elements of the project include a children’s guide, How children and young people can have a say in European and international decision-making prepared by CRAE and the partner organisations to support the consultation events; a survey of NGOs in Europe on their experiences of involving children in these processes; and a literature review. Separate reports have been produced on the literature review, the European NGO survey and each of the five country event reports. These reports, along with the children’s guide, are available from CRAE.

All elements of the Speak to the World project, in line with the core consultations with children and young people, were framed around the same set of themes:

• Children’s current knowledge of European and international decision-making processes

• If, and how, children are informed of opportunities to participate in European and international decision-making processes

• Children’s expectations of involvement in European and international decision-making processes

• Children’s desire to be involved in European and international decision-making processes

• Children’s experiences of participation in European and international decision-making processes

• Children’s views on the best European and

international decision-making processes.


Main findings

Understanding and awareness of European and international decision-making processes

Main findings

• Levels of knowledge about European and international decision-making bodies are limited and vary from country to country. The number and complexity of European and international decision-making processes is daunting.

• Children and young people should not be expected to take full responsibility for searching for information and opportunities to participate.

• Knowledge and awareness can be enhanced by attention to school curricula and extra-curricula activities. At present, the effectiveness of schools as a source of information varies but is generally poor, with some providing none.

• Youth organisations and NGOs should provide more outreach resources to schools and colleges.

• Organisations representing specific groups (such as those in alternative care), some of which are self-led by children and young people, should be engaged effectively.

• The Internet, including social networking websites, is underdeveloped as a source of information and opportunities, yet children and young people identify considerable potential.

• Internet-based communication should be useful for, mainly, individual children and young people so long as it is interesting and fun with multi-media resources. Social networking sites, such as Facebook, have greater potential for reaching groups of children and young people.

• It would be useful to consult children and young people more specifically about the most effective use of the Internet, including making links directly to child-friendly European and international decision-making sites.

• Youth organisations and NGOs can be a source of information and opportunities but tend to be accessible to their own established young members and networks rather than to children and young people widely.

• Only just over a half of NGOs responding to the survey were currently supporting, or had previously supported, children and young people to participate in European or international decision-making processes.

• Children and young people are very clear that they tend to prefer participating with others, with friends, rather than alone.

• The impact of information and opportunities is enhanced when it is received through “personal interactions”, be that with teachers, youth workers, NGO staff or experienced children and young people. Such approaches are also capable of adding encouragement in a way that other approaches might lack.

• Information and opportunities for children and young people regarding participation in decision-making processes must be child-sensitive and provided in media and mechanisms that recognise that levels of understanding vary according to children and young people’s maturity.

• Non-discrimination obligations demand that special attention be given to reaching marginalised and disadvantaged children and young people.

• The publicising of examples and models of participation that have worked well, including the impact of these, is not well developed.

We’re as much as part of this world as others. (Young person, Ireland)

Section 1

Desire to be involved in European and international decision-making processes

Main findings

• Children and young people do want to be involved in European and international decision-making processes, although some want to restrict their involvement to local and national processes. Many do not want to be involved personally but do want their views to be represented by other children and young people.

• There is a desire for representative structures and mechanisms to enable this.

• Children and young people wish to exercise their participation rights and also believe that they have a useful contribution to make. They want to make an impact on decisions.

• They also want to have more of a say in setting the agenda of what are the important issues or topics for them. Children and young people believe that they know best what are the important issues relating to their needs and concerns and that they also know best the solutions and what is in their best interests.

• In addition to decision-making about current issues, children and young people often have concerns about the future and want to influence the way the world develops for when they are the adults. There is a strong body of opinion that it is children and young people who have the greater stake in the future and are more highly motivated than many adults to make that a better future.

• Younger children value involvement in European and international decision-making but many tend to want to be involved in local decision-making processes. Younger children tend to have an interest in the issues that they have experience of in their own current lives.

• Younger children need different approaches/events and many say that they do want parents with them.

• NGOs report little activity undertaken with younger children and none for those aged below five. Most NGO resources are directed at those aged between 11 and 17. Many NGOs work with those aged over 18 (more than with the 5 to 11 age group).

• Definitions across European policy with regard to age and youth are varied and potentially confusing.

• Children and young people think that legitimacy is only afforded to decision-making processes through their participation.

• Children and young people do perceive their contribution as being capable of challenging entrenched positions, offering a unique perspective, a fresh and innovative perspective, and correcting inaccurate assumptions about what is important for younger citizens.

• A large proportion of children and young people have a worrying lack of faith that their views and opinions will be taken seriously or have an impact on the outcome of decision-making processes.

• Many favour a voting age that is lower than age 18.

Children have the right to express their opinion on all aspects of their lives. (Boy, 15 years, Romania)


Experiences of participation in European and international decision-making processes and barriers to involvement

Main findings

• A very small proportion of children and young people has direct experience of involvement in European or international decision-making. A much larger proportion has experience in local, regional/provincial or national processes.

• The majority of children and young people who have experience of involvement in European or international decision-making were introduced to the process through NGOs. Yet only a small number of respondents overall cite NGOs as a source of information and opportunity. The conclusion, supported by other findings, is that NGOs work well and effectively but with a relatively small number of their own membership and contacts.

• Those with relevant experience also report good support from the NGOs.

• Children and young people value encouragement and NGOs note that support starts with encouragement.

• Support for children and young people to participate is often marred by time-constraints and limited funding.

• Very few children and young people participate directly in European or international decision-making processes independently, other than those who do so through online surveys, questionnaires or polls.

• NGOs report that the most common way that they support children and young people’s participation in European and international processes is by holding in-country events and consultations that are then fed directly into the process. This is thought to be easier and less demanding on resources.

• There is a widely held perception that participation in European or international decision-making can be tokenistic, lacking in impact and that children and young people’s voices are not taken seriously. However, contrary to that, those who have direct involvement tend strongly to enjoy a positive experience and a sense of importance and influence (as well as benefiting from personal development and gaining skills).

• There is incongruence between what children and young people say is the main, if limited, source of information and opportunities, namely through school related routes, and what is said by those who actually do participate in European and international levels of decision-making. The latter overwhelmingly find out about and pursue opportunities through, and with the support of, NGOs.

• The question of whether children and young people can influence decision-making processes and outcomes does not necessarily chime with their opinion as to whether they have done so. Matching perceptions and opinions with the reality of children and young people’s influence, whether their voice has counted, depends on mechanisms for measuring and monitoring their impact. NGOs surveyed mainly think that the impact of children and young people’s participation is limited. However, those that conduct monitoring activities on outcomes and impact have a more optimistic view.

• There is a common view, or even a consensus, amongst children and young people that there is something of an “elite” group of individuals who tend to become involved in European and international decision-making processes – remaining involved thereafter through knowledge of key NGOs.

• The main barrier to participation is the lack of information and opportunities.

• Other barriers to becoming involved are to do with poor educational experience and / or attainment, family disadvantage and poverty, negative family attitudes, geographical location, having excessive responsibilities, a lack of encouraging adults or mentors, fear of being seen as not “cool” by peers, having no belief in the impact they might have, discrimination and, ultimately, not being in touch with key NGOs.

• NGOs are, overall and with exceptions, not good at recording, data collection and monitoring of their activities or demographics.

• Decision-makingprocessescanbeeitherone-offprocessesorperiodicinnature.Childrenandyoungpeople’sparticipation in the latter should be approached systematically.

Section 1

Recommendations

Low levels of awareness and access to opportunities to participate indicate a considerable weakness in the flow of communications and provision of accessible information from “duty-bearers” to “rights-holders”. There is an imbalance between, on the one hand, an expectation that children and young people should seek information and opportunities and, on the other, the legal obligation upon decision-making bodies to seek to reach children and young people to secure proper participation. The gap between what is essentially good European and international policy and practice as experienced by children and young people needs to be bridged.

It is in line with the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child’s General Comment No.126 that governments and international bodies should seek to establish direct links with children and young people. However, the findings of this project suggest that there should also be further development of communication, and then participation, through a tiered structure, from local (e.g. school council) structures, through regional/provincial structures and national NGO fora and their cross-national organisations to the European and international decision-making bodies. The general flow of information and opportunities should be from the top down to reflect legal obligation and to help to dispel the considerable lack of confidence that children and young people express with regard to whether they are truly taken seriously and can have an impact on decisions and agenda- setting. However, children and young people make a strong case for playing a part in setting the agenda for European and international decision-making bodies and processes. They believe that they know best what are their needs and concerns as well as the solutions. Thus, children and young people want to be asked to have a say in decision-making processes on all matters that affect them as well as to be asked what they want to be changed or developed.

Much can and should be done to improve understanding and awareness through a tiered system of communication and through its constituent parts, such as the education system, youth organisations/NGOs and Internet-based communication and resources. At present, the key to the best participation processes and opportunities would appear to be the collective, supported approaches available through specialist youth organisations/NGOs. NGOs and children and young people identify inadequate funding and tight timescales as barriers to best participation practice.

Children and young people identify the Internet and social networking (e.g. Facebook) as being underdeveloped at present, yet having considerable potential as a source of information and participation opportunities. They indicate this as particularly useful for individuals (and their immediate friends) rather than for whole, wider groups – for which schools and tiered networks are preferable. Internet communication should be designed with and by children and young people who have creative ideas about what they want and what works best.

I think we all should take part in international and European processes because we are the first affected by decisions taken in the international level. (Girl, 16 years, Romania)

Children and young people do not generally believe that their voice will be listened to seriously or that they will have an impact on decision-making at the European and/or international levels. Many have the same perception with regard to local or school-based processes. The spectre

We have a lot of experience and knowledge about our situation and this makes us better judges than the adults of the services that impact us. (Girl, 16 years, Romania)


of tokenism remains in place for many children and young people. There is still the need to take action to ensure that significant strategies are implemented to eradicate such perceptions and then to convince Europe’s children and young people that this has been achieved. This can be done by encouraging, at every tier of decision-making and participative/consultative structures and processes, systems of measurement and monitoring of outcomes and impact. This does occur in some settings and organisations but needs to be further developed and sophisticated, and used more widely across Europe and internationally. It is evident that those children and young people who have encountered monitoring and feedback have considerably more positive perceptions of the value of their participation.

Children and young people described barriers to participation in decision-making processes, from lack of information and opportunities, poor support to individual circumstances and background. Typically through the consultation events, participants were energetic in seeking solutions and many thought that such barriers could be overcome. In particular, children and young people identified the notion of rapid growth of capacity once the seed of participation has been activated. Thus, growing experience will result in increasing self-confidence and motivation. Much depends upon sharing experiences with others and receiving encouragement and support from peers and adults.

However, overcoming some barriers depends upon adults and European and international institutions. Children and young people recommended better marketing, increased (or better targeted) funding, use of child friendly language and attention being given to strategies that reach widely (including to those with no access to the Internet).

Schools were also viewed as critical agents for overcoming barriers. For example, schools should have greater commitment to participation principles and should provide information about decision-making structures and opportunities in the curriculum (such as through citizenship type lessons). Schools should also encourage youth participation organisations and NGOs to offer school outreach programmes and to ensure that this occurs systematically, particularly in lower income areas.

The methods of participation should be those that children and young people identify as most effective for them and it is, again, through improved data collection, monitoring and evaluation that this should be approached. It was through the methods used at the consultation events – the workshops, use of different models of interaction, the sharing of experiences and knowledge in a creative, child-friendly atmosphere – that useful results were achieved and the true value of giving children and young people a say was demonstrated. Children and young people said that they wanted those people facilitating opportunities to be creative, and recognise that formal meetings are not always the best way to elicit the views of children and young people.

In line with other findings contained throughout this report, the potential, largely unrealised, of schools and youth organisations/NGOs was highlighted by children and young people. Bringing their findings together to consider a best model, children and young people from at least four of the country consultations turned again to ideas of student representative bodies, supported or enhanced by links with youth participation organisations/NGOs.

One of the features of best models of student representative bodies, or school councils as many tended to call them, was that they would be genuinely

Section 1

representative in nature. Currently, school councils are not often well respected by children and young people with a feeling that schools and adults do not take their views fully into account. Whole school commitment to participative principles is needed with appropriate changes to curricula and lesson content.

Children and young people participating in the project described a framework for a strategy for participation that reaches out for the voice of the individual child from European and international decision-making institutions. To quote directly from the Ireland Speak to the World country consultation report:

The young people believe that the participation process

would be different if they were in charge as children, in

that they would actually be listened to through better

student councils and a tiered (local, provincial, national)

representation system for all young people in the country

– there would be a democratic, youth-run model [of]

children’s government that could be consulted both

nationally and internationally. There would be more fora

for young people to become involved by having more

youth workshops and consultations, and by providing

funding for [Irish Second-Level Students’ Union] to

further develop its student council network. The voting

age would be lowered to 16 years and an online voter

registration system introduced. Younger people would

be enabled and empowered to become involved in the

EU and run for election to the European Parliament so

that representatives were not as out of touch with young

people. They would put in place a facility whereby all

policy could be reviewed online prior to implementation

so that the public could submit their comments on it.

Child delegates would be sent to the EU and UN to

speak on certain policy issues. Young people would

definitely be involved in decisions that affect them.7

Seeking true representation was a key theme, and overcoming the barriers to ensuring that all age groups and isolated or excluded groups are involved. Similarly, recruitment and selection processes should be reviewed, particularly to address the factors identified as impacting on the likelihood of being involved. The NGO survey

showed that a range of, sometimes creative, methods have been used in recruitment and selection. NGOs think that they do attend well to seeking representative groups and yet children and young people do not tend to agree. More attention is needed to find, inform and engage disadvantaged or disabled groups, including provision of good quality interpretation services and support for those whose first language is not that of the home country. To assist those who are not able to engage or attend in person, those who are responding alone or in a group from distance, suggestions were made for school-based discussion groups, online surveys and questionnaires, focus groups and the use of social networking websites (including video messages) to gather and submit views and opinions.

On the other hand, there remains some potential tension between the right to have one’s individual voice heard and taken seriously and pursuing the collective, representative voice. This would seem to be an issue that would benefit from further study, including the relative effectiveness of different ways to engage minority or disadvantaged groups.

Children’s views will be known, heard and put into practice. (Boy, 13 years, Romania)


Finally, the findings entirely reflect the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child’s General Comment No. 12 on the right of the child to be heard, which explains:

…States parties should encourage the child to

form a free view and should provide an environment that

enables the child to exercise her or his right to be heard.

…The concept of participation emphasizes that

including children should not only be a momentary

act, but the starting point for an intense exchange

between children and adults on the development of

policies, programmes and measures in all relevant

contexts of children’s lives.

…Ensure appropriate conditions for supporting and

encouraging children to express their views, and

make sure that these views are given due weight,

by regulations and arrangements which are firmly

anchored in laws and institutional codes and are

regularly evaluated with regard to their effectiveness.

…Children should be supported and encouraged to

form their own child-led organisations and initiatives,

which will create space for meaningful participation

and representation.

…Such participation opportunities are, meanwhile,

established in many countries also on the district,

regional, federal state and national levels, where

youth parliaments, councils and conferences provide

forums for children to present their views and

make them known to relevant audiences. NGOs

and civil society organizations have developed

practices to support children, which safeguard the

transparency of representation and counter the risks

of manipulation or tokenism.8

Conclusions from the literature review

As a general observation … it has to be noted that it was challenging to gain access to documents specifically dealing with children’s views on participation processes. There are plenty of reports and publications on the outcome of consultations and [decision-making processes] and on the various topics addressed (violence, child care, poverty etc), but … few of these documents included evidence of what children think about their involvement themselves, on the challenges and barriers they faced to get their voice heard, success stories, on the outcome and to what extent it reflected their own views or on follow-up. But only through such feedback, systematically collected, documented and made available for exchange and research, will it ultimately be possible to devise good practices for participation of children and young people and ensure that their right to participation as set out in the UNCRC is fully and meaningfully implemented.

Apart from that, in all processes considered, several typical key challenges do remain for child participation in (mostly adult-driven) international/regional/European processes:

• Clearly defining the role of children and young people in the decision-making processes (expected outcome, realistic impact of young persons, methods used)

• Defining roles and preparing and training facilitators for support of children

• Development of standards for the process of selection of participants, including principles of inclusion, information and promotion

• Preparation for adults to engage with children

• Provisions to resolve language issues and meet translation and interpretation needs

• Providing comprehensive follow-up for reporting back of children to their groups and communities

• Proper documentation, with particular emphasis on children’s feedback on the process itself.9

Footnotes

1 Council Decision 2007/252/EC of 19 April 2007 established for the period 2007-2013 the specific programme “Fundamental rights and citizenship” as part of the General programme “Fundamental Rights and Justice”.

2 http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/docs/AdvanceVersions/CRC-C-GC-12.doc

3 Charter of the Fundamental Rights of the European Union (2000) at http://www.euro-parl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf

4 EU Agenda for the Rights of the Child (15.2.2011). Communication from the Com-mission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions Comm/2011/0060 final

5 See footnote 4.

6 http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/docs/AdvanceVersions/CRC-C-GC-12.doc

7 The Ireland Speak to the World country consultation report is annexed to this report and is also available from CRAE’s website (http://www.crae.org.uk/protecting/right-heard/speak-to-the-world.html) and the Children’s Rights Alliance in Ireland (www.childrensrights.ie)

8 See footnote 6.

9 Text drawn from literature review undertaken by Helmut Sax, Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights (Austria).


Section 1

Background

The Commission believes it is now the time to move up a gear on the rights of the child and to transform policy objectives into action.1

The Speak to the World project began in April 2010 with the purpose of investigating children’s views and experiences of their engagement in European and international decision-making.

The project was grant funded by the EC under the Fundamental Rights and Citizenship programme (2007-

2013)2, itself part of the general Fundamental Rights and Justice programme. The programme, incorporating activities of the EC, EU countries and NGOs, supports the development of a European society based on respect for fundamental rights.

The UNCRC is the treaty governing member states’ obligations towards children and young people under 18. Article 12 of the UNCRC provides that every child has the right to express their views freely, and to have these views given due weight in accordance with the child’s age and maturity. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has designated Article 12 as one of four general principles underpinning the whole treaty.3

How can we really actually MAKE a difference and not just talk about it. (Young person, Ireland)


Section 2: Introduction

Every EU country has ratified the UNCRC and the EC is committed to its full implementation.

Within Europe, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union4 further established children’s right to participate in all matters or decisions that affect them. Article 24(1) provides that ‘children may express their views freely. Such views shall be taken into consideration on matters which concern them in accordance with their age and maturity’. Although the Charter broke new ground as a EU treaty, it was not enforceable until the end of 2009 when the Treaty of Lisbon5 brought the Charter into law across the EU.

In 2006, the EC issued a Communication in which children and young people’s participation strongly featured, Towards a European Union Children’s Rights Strategy. In the same year, the Council of Europe launched a programme, Building a Europe for and with Children, which was revised for 2009–2011 with children’s participation as a key element. More recently, in February 2011, the EC issued a new Communication, An EU Agenda for the Rights of the Child.6 The general principle of the Communication states that:

The EU’s commitment to the rights of the child requires a coherent approach across all relevant EU actions. This objective can be reached by using the Treaties, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) as a common basis for all EU action which is relevant to children. The “child rights perspective” must be taken into account in all EU measures affecting children.

In setting out the Agenda for the Rights of the Child, the EC acknowledges that the full recognition of participation rights is far from achieved and that new approaches to providing easily accessible information about rights and European policy development mechanisms need to be developed.

In the autumn of 2010, leading up to the new strategy to be contained in the Agenda for the Rights of the Child, Viviane Reding, Vice-President of the EC, gave a speech in Brussels on a renewed commitment to children’s rights:

Providing children with the means to express their views at EU level is an extremely complex task. It is an ongoing process and is a priority. We decided to consult children directly. …As I said, this is a beginning. What did the children tell us? Most of all they want the right to participate, especially in areas of life that concern them most. Whether it is school, jobs or family problems, children want to be active participants in the decisions that directly concern them; they want to feel that their opinions count. They want more support where it is needed and they want adults to respect their freedom to be children. They want adults to listen to them, to trust them and involve them more in decisions taken “in their interest”.7

It was against this background of growing justification, personal and institutional commitment and legal obligations to engage children and young people in decision-making processes that the Speak to the World project was undertaken.

The project

Children have something to say and can change the world for the better. (Girl, 11 years, Romania)

The purpose of the Speak to the World project was to research children’s views on their engagement in European and international levels of decision-making. Coordinated and led by the Children’s Rights Alliance for England (CRAE), it was implemented by partners working in seven EU and non-EU Member States: Children’s Rights Alliance (Ireland), CRAE (England), Estonian Union for Child Welfare, Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights (Austria), Save the Children Romania, Child Rights Information Centre (Moldova; associate partner) and YUNPRESS (Russia; associate partner).

In five partner countries, national consultation events with children and young people took place between


Section 2

November 2010 and February 2011.8 Other elements of the project include a children’s guide, How children

and young people can have a say in European and

international decision-making, prepared by CRAE and the partner organisations to support the consultation events; a survey of NGOs in Europe on their experiences of involving children in these processes; and a literature review. Separate reports have been produced on the literature review, the European NGO survey and each of the five country event reports. These reports, along with the children’s guide, are available from CRAE.

Consultation events

The national consultation events took the form of workshops involving around 100 children and young people in each partner country, supported by the two associate partner countries. The five events were subject to common expectations set out in a briefing prepared by CRAE in consultation with the four partners. The expectations included the number and age of participants as well as ensuring a diverse and representative group, including providing good access and facilities for disabled children. There was a variety of methodologies allowed but each needed to be appropriate for a range of ages and styles, including for very young children. The consultation events were all framed around the same set of themes:

• Children’s current knowledge of European and international decision-making processes

• If, and how, children are informed of opportunities to participate in European and international decision-making processes

• Children’s expectations of involvement in European and international decision-making processes

• Children’s desire to be involved in European and international decision-making processes

• Children’s experiences of participation in European and international decision-making processes

• Children’s views on the best European and international decision-making processes.

Standard questions were designed to explore these themes and to ensure that the project would benefit from comparable data across all five events. Each partner country submitted a report of its event with external evaluation. These reports have been published individually and are annexes to this main report.

Literature review

The literature review represented the final research component of the project. It was undertaken by Helmut Sax of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights in Austria, with support from all partners. It aimed to explore the following questions:

• To what extent do children and young people participate in international decision-making and reporting processes?

• What are children and young people’s views and experiences of such participation?

• What are the barriers limiting children and young people’s involvement in international decision-making and reporting processes?

• What are the elements that maximise children and young people’s involvement in international decision-making and reporting processes?

• What methods / mechanisms have been used to engage children and young people in international decision-making?

• Does evidence suggest that some methods / mechanisms are more successful than others?

• Is there evidence to suggest that children’s involvement has effected significant change in the outcomes of international decision-making?


Survey of European non-governmental organisations

The support would depend on the kind of opportunity and whether we have a direct role in supporting children’s involvement. (National NGO, England)

The survey formed a key component of the project, examining how NGOs across Europe support children and young people to engage in decision-making processes at European and international levels. It explored the following themes:

• The European and international decision-making processes that children and young people have been supported to engage in

• The demographics of the children and young people who engage in these processes

• The kinds of support that NGOs are able to extend to children and young people to enable them to engage in these processes

• How organisations monitor and evaluate the experiences of children and young people who have participated in decision-making processes and the impact of their involvement

• Barriers to children and young people’s involvement in European and international decision-making

• Steps that inter-governmental organisations could take to improve children and young people’s participation.

The survey was conducted from September to November 2010 and was disseminated through partners’ networks and contacts. It was also promoted through the Children’s Rights Information Network, Eurochild and the NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

We see the active participation of children:

•raisedawarenessandrespect among people of all ages about every child’s right to full and meaningful participation, in the spirit of the Convention on the Rights of the Child

•childrenactivelyinvolvedin decision-making at all levels and in planning, implementing, monitoring and evaluating all matters affecting the right of the child.

We are not the sources of problems; we are the resources that are needed to solve them.9

Footnotes

1 EU Agenda for the Rights of the Child (15.2.2011). Communication from the Com-mission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions Comm/2011/0060 final.

2 Council Decision 2007/252/EC of 19 April 2007 established for the period 2007-2013 the specific programme “Fundamental rights and citizenship” as part of the General programme “Fundamental Rights and Justice”.

3 The other three general principles are Article 2, the right to non-discrimination; Article 3, the child’s best interests to be a primary consideration in all actions concerning them; and Article 6, the right to survival and maximum development.

4 Charter of the Fundamental Rights of the European Union (2000) at http://www.euro-parl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf

5 Treaty of Lisbon at http://eur-lex.europa.eu/JOHtml.do?uri=OJ:C:2007:306:SOM:EN:HTML

6 See footnote 1.

7 http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=SPEECH/10/550&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

8 Events were held in Ireland (17 November 2010), Romania (19 November 2010), Eng-land (20 November 2010), Austria (28 January 2011) and Estonia (20 February 2011).

9 Children’s Forum, UN General Assembly Special Session on Children (2002) – quoted in Speak to the World literature review (Helmut Sax, 2010, Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights).


Section 2

The NGOs consulted were all specialist children’s rights organisations. There were 30 responses to the survey from a range of organisations working across Europe with children and young people.2

Respondents came from Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Italy, Romania and the UK: they ranged in size and scope, from international NGOs with over 100 members of staff to small issue-based NGOs with fewer than five staff.

This section presents the key findings from the survey, along with some conclusions about how well children and young people are supported to participate in, and influence, European and international decision-making.

How organisations support children and young people to participate in European and/or international decision-making processes

Of the organisations that responded to the question ‘Does your organisation support children to participate

in European and/or international decision-making

processes’, 56% either were currently supporting children and young people’s involvement in these processes or had done so in the past. A further 16% of the respondents said that they were planning to support children to participate in these processes in the future.

I don’t think that if I come with a suggestion suddenly they are going to lower the taxes, but if you are gathered in a group, who think the same as you, then you can get something done. (Boy, Denmark)1


Section 3: Findings from the survey of European non-governmental organisations

When asked to give more detail about the kinds of processes that NGOs had supported children to participate in, a number of processes were mentioned frequently. These are listed in Table 1, but note that there may be overlap between some of those processes.

The most common process to engage in was an in-country consultation that fed directly into international decision-making. It is likely that this is because it is easier and less resource heavy to engage children and young people in this way, rather than supporting them to directly attend an international or European event.

To me it seemed very inspired this idea to organise this event, because it helped us learn to say our views to others. (Young person, Romania)

Over half of the respondents (53%) had supported children and young people to engage in the reporting process for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, whilst a significantly smaller number had engaged children in reporting on other human rights treaties (16%).

It is striking that none of the survey respondents had supported children and young people to engage in three of the processes included in the question. Children and young people do participate in the J8 as this is a process specifically for children and young people (so in this case, it may have been a matter of the relevant organisations not responding to our survey). The fact that survey respondents have not supported children and young people to submit complaints to a UN communications mechanism or take a case to the European Court of Human Rights could indicate that these processes are not accessible, that there is a lack of awareness about how to use these mechanisms, that they require specific knowledge, resources and skills and are time intensive. This could also reflect a preference for a “softer” form of advocacy and campaigning on the part of children’s rights activists.

Table 1: Has your organisation supported children to do any of the following? (Respondents could select more than one answer)

Contribute to a national consultation that feeds into international decision-making

63.2%

Reporting processes for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

52.6%

Contribute to initiatives and projects led by the Council of Europe

52.6%

Inter-governmental conferences 42.1%

Take a complaint to the Children’s Ombudsman/Children’s Commissioner

36.8%

Take part in a UN General Assembly Special Session

36.8%

Take part in a European Commission child or youth event

31.6%

Meet their Member of European Parliament 26.3%

Contribute to consultations run by the European Commission

26.3%

Take part in a Day of General Discussion 26.3%

Take part in the reporting for another UN treaty body

15.8%

Submit a complaint to a UN communications mechanism

0%

Take a case to the European Court of Human Rights

0%

Participate in the J8 0%

Respondents were additionally invited to share information about other processes they had supported children to engage in. Answers included:

• EU Presidency Youth Conferences

• National Working Group for Structured Dialogue

• World Youth Congress

• Attending a seminar of a European network.

Respondents were also asked which issues they had supported children and young people to have their say on at European and/or international levels. The most frequent answer was children’s rights and human rights generally. Other common issues were education, democratic processes, social care/child protection, health, international development, immigration, juvenile justice, the environment, leisure and cultural activities and family. There were numerous ‘other’ topics mentioned.


Section 3

It is worth noting that the categories ‘children’s rights’ and ‘human rights’ are likely to include many of the other issues that respondents could select from. The popular choice of ‘children’s rights’ is also likely to correspond with the high number of respondents who said that they have supported children and young people to engage in the UNCRC reporting process.

As well as engaging in broad issues, it seems that there are relatively high levels of engagement in specific issues, or on specific matters (such as immigration, poverty or disability) that affect certain groups of children and young people.

The demographics of the children and young people who engage in these processes

Respondents were asked to give information about the numbers, gender and age of children and young people that they have supported to engage in European and international decision-making processes over the previous five years. Respondents were also asked to describe how they ensure that the children and young people selected to participate in these processes were representative of different groups in society.

When asked about the numbers of children and young people NGOs had supported to participate, some respondents said that they did not record this information, or that the numbers were unavailable. Others were able to give specific figures, broken down by gender.

Only a small number of organisations were able to answer this question compared to the larger number that indicated that they have supported children and young people to engage in these decision-making processes. One reason for this might be because they have not supported children to engage in processes in the last five years. Some international or European processes are “one-offs” (such as the UN General Assembly Special Session on Children) or periodic (such as the reporting processes for international treaties). It may also be easier for organisations to keep track of the numbers of children and young people that have engaged in specific events rather

than the numbers of children they supported to engage in wider processes such as external online consultations.

However, the limited information may also represent a wider issue about how NGOs monitor the numbers of children and young people that they are supporting to engage in these processes.

Respondents were able to give more detailed information about the ages of children and young people they had supported to engage in international and/or European decision-making processes.

Table 2: What were the ages of the children you have supported to engage in decision-making processes in the last 5 years?

Under-5s 0%

5-11 18.8%

11-17 93.8%

18 and over 31.3%

We do not collect this information 6.3%

The data clearly shows that very young children are largely excluded from European and international decision-making processes. It is not clear from the responses why this is the case, but it may be related to perceptions about the capacity of younger children to develop and express a view; ‘a lack of confidence and skill in eliciting these views’, noted one NGO; decision-making processes not being adapted to include younger children; and issues relating to family concerns, child protection and the cost of involvement.

The survey went on to ask how NGOs ensure that the children and young people were representative of children in-country and how children from a wide range of backgrounds are engaged in these processes. The answers reveal that organisations take a range of approaches to engaging different groups of children and young people in European and/or international decision-making processes.

A number of NGOs reported working closely with specific groups of disadvantaged children and young people to ensure that they could get involved and have


their voices heard. One said that they use the expertise of member organisations to select children and young people for opportunities.

Some respondents gave detailed information about their approach to selecting children and ensuring diversity and representativeness, for example:

The majority of these children came from

programmes outside the UK – either from within

Europe or from the developing world – and had

representative experience of an issue rather than

being representative of the children in their country.

The selection of these children was normally a child-

led peer group process shaped by guidance on

ensuring the inclusion of children from a wide range

of backgrounds. (International NGO based in UK)

[We] work with partners from different areas, e.g. in

context of CRC reporting: with refugee organisations,

Ombudspersons, medical doctors etc. (National NGO, Austria)

We have developed a programme, ‘UK Young

Ambassadors’ which aims to make international youth

representation more effective and inclusive. We train

and support young people (16-25) to carry out research

and consultation and take part in international forums

and events. We work through our membership…

and the membership of our partners… this ensures a

diversity of children and young people’s voice… We also

campaign to make international representation more

inclusive and meaningful. (National NGO based in UK)

We work in close collaboration with a wide range

of organisations and schools. However, even if we

search to enlarge the group of vulnerable children,

we never aim for a statistical representativeness as

we start from the RIGHT to participate. (International NGO based in Belgium)

We have engaged children and young people to engage

in a range of decision-making processes including the UN

Committee on the Rights of the Child’s day of General

Discussion on Article 12, the UK examination by the UN

Committee on the Rights of the Child in 2008, the UN

Special Session - World Fit for Children in 2007 and the

Council of Europe consultation on child-friendly justice…

For the UK examination, we ran a national competition

to select 12 young people to attend. Young people

could submit entries in a range of ways - including video,

writing, drawing, song or poem. Children and young

people were asked to help select the delegation, and we

aimed to ensure that the delegation was representative

of children from a range of backgrounds. The final

delegation included [Black and minority ethnic] young

people, under-10s, disabled young people, a young

refugee and children from deprived areas. To gather

views for the report to the UN, staff targeted vulnerable

and marginalised groups to ensure that their views were

part of the final report to the UN. (National NGO, England)

Worked with organisations that represent young

people from disadvantaged backgrounds to help

ensure they were involved and represented. (National youth council/youth-led organisation, Ireland)

All of the respondents demonstrated that they have a clear approach to ensure that a representative selection of children and young people can engage in European and international processes, and work hard to engage children and young people from vulnerable and marginalised groups.

The survey results also suggest that approaches will differ according to the specific opportunity and funding/resources available. For example, programmes aimed at engaging large numbers of children in UNCRC reporting will take a different approach to engaging children to those aimed at eliciting views on a specific issue – such as juvenile justice or poverty.

The kinds of support that NGOs are able to extend to children and young people to enable them to engage in these processes

Survey respondents were asked about the methods used to inform children and young people about opportunities to take part in European and/or international decision-making. The most common


Section 3

methods were face-to-face contact, putting information on an organisation’s website and e-mail. The least common methods of passing on information about opportunities were mobile phone texting and telephone.

Other methods used included communication through networks of collaborating organisations, regular newsletters to teachers encouraging participation and informing an organisation’s own members.

Survey respondents revealed that they use a wide range of methods to support children and young people to effectively engage in decision-making processes.

Table 3: What support do you provide to enable children to engage effectively in European and/or international decision-making processes? (Respondents could select more than one answer to this question)

Provision of child-friendly information 75.8%

Support from staff within your organisation 68.8%

Financial support (such as travel costs) 68.8%

Training in children’s rights 50%

Information about key decision-makers at national and international levels

50%

Skills training (such as public speaking, campaigning)

37.5%

Peer mentoring (child-to-child) 25%

Access to staff training 25%

Other 18.8%

Other responses to this question included:

• ‘[The support] changes depending on the piece of

work being undertaken’

• ‘Meeting previous representatives… meeting

specialists in the field’

• ‘Before and after meetings with policy makers’

The range of responses to this question suggests that organisations are skilled at identifying what support is required and providing that deemed most appropriate. It is striking that none of the respondents said that they ask children and young people what support they require, although this may well be the case in practice.

It was not boring and got everyone involved and their voices were heard. (Young person, England)

One of the responses to this question raises an important point about the timeframe in which organisations have to respond, advertise and select and prepare children and young people for international or European decision-making opportunities:

The support would depend on the kind of opportunity

and whether we have a direct role in supporting

children’s involvement. It also depends on the timeframe

available. For example, there have been instances

where we have had two or three weeks notice to

“find” young people to participate in an international

opportunity. This restricts the amount of detailed

preparation that is possible… (National NGO, England)

Expecting organisations to respond speedily to requests may mean that the young people selected are not representative, or do not feel adequately prepared. It may also be more of a challenge to engage more vulnerable or marginalised children in these kinds of opportunities as more background work may be required to identify children, gain support for them to attend (i.e. from parents, carers, social workers) and to get the necessary paperwork/logistics in place (passports, visas, flights and accommodation etc).

NGOs were also asked what means they use to encourage children to participate in opportunities and activities (see Table 4 overleaf).


Table 4: How does your organisation encourage children to participate in these opportunities?

Arranging group events 56.3%

Celebration events 43.8%

Letters of thanks 37.5%

Certificates 25%

References 18.8%

Payment for involvement 18.8%

Vouchers 12.5%

Accreditation 12.5%

Employing children as paid staff 7.1%

None of these 7.1%

Other 7.1%

One respondent said that they would acknowledge what the children and young people had achieved locally and another said that they encourage participation through support for teachers and local children’s rights NGOs.

How organisations monitor and evaluate the experiences of children and young people who have participated in decision-making processes and impact of involvement

The survey asked respondents ‘does your organisation

monitor or evaluate children’s participation in European

and international decision-making’. Only a third (33.3%) of the NGOs that answered this question said ‘yes’. Forty percent of the organisations that answered this question said ‘no’, with a further 27% saying that they were unsure if they monitor or evaluate children’s involvement. Those that do monitor or evaluate children’s participation, were asked to give more information about the data that they collect.

Table 5: What do you monitor or evaluate?

Collecting feedback from children about their experiences

90%

Internal project evaluation 70%

Demographic information about the children involved

40%

The impact of children’s participation on the outcomes

30%

The impact of children’s participation on children

30%

Recording levels of engagement of children 20%

The impact of children’s participation on your organisation

20%

External project evaluation 10%

Other 10%

Two respondents that selected ‘other’ said that the nature and extent of monitoring and evaluation will depend on the opportunity:

…the nature of monitoring and evaluation varies with the project (e.g. working with a group of children selected for a specific event) and the nature of the opportunity (ie …event or longer term process) (International NGO based in UK)

The level of monitoring and evaluation will depend on the specific process. However, we always endeavour to gain information about how young people found the process, their views on how their involvement could be improved and the impact that their participation has had on the final outcome/decisions made (National NGO, England)

Respondents were then asked to consider how much influence they think children have on European and international decision-making processes. None of the respondents agreed with the statements that children have ‘a great deal of influence’. Only one respondent agreed that children and young people have ‘some influence’. A small proportion of respondents agreed that children have ‘a great deal of influence in particular areas’ (14.3%). The majority of respondents said that children and young people have ‘some influence in particular

areas’ (50%) or ‘very little influence’ (21.4%).


Section 3

The enthusiasm that the event brought to me is still in me. The fact that we have been heard in the European Parliament is one of the greatest achievements. I was very impressed by the interest that was given to us. (Girl, 16 years, Romania)

NGOs that had carried out evaluations with children were asked about the impact that children and young people themselves thought they had.

Table 6: If you have carried out evaluations with children, how much influence do they feel they have had on European and international decision-making?

Some influence in particular areas 27.3%

Very little influence 27.3%

I’m not sure 27.3%

Some influence 9.1%

A great deal of influence 9.1%

A great of influence in particular areas 0%

The varied responses to this question raises a number of issues in relation to children and young people feeling that they are able to influence decisions that affect them at an international level. Children and young people's sense that they have had an impact or influence may depend on the type of opportunity or support available. There may also be an issue as to whether the impact and extent of influence can be identified, tracked and then fed back to the young people. It is possible that children and young people have an impact on decision-making but this is not well recorded.

Survey respondents were asked if their organisation informs children about the impact that their participation has had. Of the NGOs that answered this question,

75% said that they did. They were then asked to explain their answers, which elicited the following comments:

• CRC reporting project still running, but children will

receive follow-up information. (National NGO, Austria)

• Through discussions and group work. (National youth council or youth-led organisation, Ireland)

• Rather than “show” children the impact their

participation has had, we discuss this issue with

them and try to enable them to assess this for

themselves. (International NGO, based in UK)

• We are keen to show that their impact on the

decision-making process is not always the

only positive outcome of international youth

representation. It could be that the presence of

children and young people at a forum for the first

time is an achievement in itself. To gain real influence

is a long journey. (National youth council or youth-led organisation, based in UK)

• For example, in our Get Ready for Change project, we

tracked the influence that young people had on the UN

Concluding Observations to the UK Government. The

project made 14 recommendations, all of which were

reflected in the final Concluding Observations. We

made sure that all of the young people in the project

knew about this. We also made sure that a children’s

version of the final project report was written. This

tracked the impact of the children’s involvement in the

reporting process. We also communicated the wider

impact their involvement had - for example leading to

a piece of work on CYP engagement in the reporting

process supported by the NGO Group on the Rights

of the Child…We consulted with young people about

the CoE guidelines on child friendly justice. Their

views and experiences had a significant impact on

the thinking and ultimate drafting of the guidelines and

explanatory memorandum. We sent all participants a

copy of the final report, highlighting where they had an

impact. (National NGO, England)


It was a very beautiful experience. (Young person, Romania)

Barriers to children and young people’s involvement in European and international decision-making

Survey respondents were asked what they considered the most significant barriers to involving children in European and international decision-making processes.

The factors that were identified as being the most significant barriers to the involvement of children and young people in European and international decision-making are practical barriers – such as lack of funding, time, available staff and resources.

Another set of obstacles to strengthening children and young people’s effective engagement in decision-making are related to perceptions of children and young people’s capacity to influence decision making, understanding of, and information about, European and international processes.

NGOs did not believe language, terminology or a lack of understanding of the benefits of participation to be significant barriers. Similarly, very few believed there to be a difficulty arising from lack of interest among children and young people or not enough support from parents, carers or families.

This suggests that there is a great deal more to be done, both in terms of resourcing these opportunities properly and ensuring that lack of funds is not a barrier to participation. Further action also needs to be taken with regard to increasing the accessibility/visibility of opportunities. Work is also required to ensure that decision-makers understand why it is essential that children and young people can participate in the decision-making process.

Respondents were provided with a list of possible ways to improve participation and asked to select the three

most important of these.

Table 7: Steps that inter-governmental organisations might take to improve children’s participation

Resources to support children’s participation (such as guides, toolkits and multi-media activities)

50%

Awareness-raising among decision-makers about the importance of children’s involvement

38.9%

More funding to support international participation

38.9%

Information for children about European and international decision-making processes

38.9%

Action from European and international bodies to increase the impact of children’s participation

33.3%

European and international bodies ask children how to improve and maintain their participation

33.3%

Better promotion of opportunities for international participation

27.8%

Changes to structures of institutions 27.8%

Using new methods to engage children (including multi-media tools)

27.8%

Ensuring institutions feedback to children and NGOs about the impact of children’s participation

27.8%

Focus on issues outside the traditional children / youth arena

22.2%

Commitment from European and international bodies to increase the impact of children’s participation

25%

Conferences and events to promote international participation

16.7%

Information for NGOs about European and international decision-making processes

11.1%


Section 3

Respondents were also invited to suggest other approaches that might improve children’s participation in international and European decision-making:

Keep educators informed of possibilities. (Teachers organisation, Ireland)

Stop the ad hoc nature of some selection of children

and young people. Give plenty of time for preparation.

Ensure that working for change at an international

level is connected to working for change at local and

national levels. Work with and through the national

youth council and specialist organisations. (National youth council or youth-led organisation, UK)

As with previous answers, the responses to this question suggest that there is not one single solution to increasing children and young people’s effective and meaningful participation in European and international decision-making. The respondents identified matters such as funding and resources and the need to educate and challenge the perceptions of decision-makers and the culture of institutions.

Children know best the situation about their rights and can provide concrete information at international level. Children understand best when their rights are violated. (Boy, 14 years, Romania)

Footnotes1 European Union (2010) Children’s rights, as they see them. The European Commis-

sion’s Directorate General for Justice sought the views of girls and boys from all 27 Member States for this Qualitative Eurobarometer study.

2 The relatively small number of responses to the survey may well reflect the limited opportunities for children and young people to engage effectively and meaningfully in European and international decision-making and the time intensive and expensive nature of this work. However, the response is satisfactory given the specific nature of the topic.


Children and young people’s levels of understanding and awareness

The European Guidelines for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child2 aim for capacity building of “duty-bearers” as well as “rights-holders”. The obligation of ensuring that rights-holders (children and young people) have sufficient understanding and awareness of decision-making processes, and the opportunities to participate in them, rests primarily upon the duty-bearers (governments and states).

In its general Comment No. 5, on the general measures of

implementation of the UNCRC, the UN Committee on the

Rights of the Child states that:

Opening government decision-making processes to

children is a positive challenge which the Committee

finds States are increasingly responding to. Given

that few States as yet have reduced the voting age

below 18, there is all the more reason to ensure

respect for the views of unenfranchised children in

Government and parliament. If consultation is to be

meaningful, documents as well as processes need to

be made accessible. ...meaningful consultation with

children requires special child-sensitive materials

and processes; it is not simply about extending to

children access to adult processes.3

Children have good ideas. They can think of things that adults would not. Furthermore, full respect of the best interests of the child, which is among the key principles in child rights protection, requires that children are given opportunities to voice their opinions on matters that affect them.1

Section 4

Section 4: Understanding and awareness of European and international decision-making processes

This section considers the levels of understanding and awareness that children and young people have of European and international decision-making bodies, what sources of information they have access to and what are the best of those sources. It draws on the findings that emerged from the five country consultation events and those from the survey of European NGOs.

How informed are children about European and international decision-making processes?

There is a feeling that the organisations are there but young people don’t know about them. (Young person, Ireland)

Each of the five country consultations asked participants about their knowledge of decision-making bodies – each using the same core list. The number of relevant bodies and the complexity of their roles make the process of gaining familiarity daunting. The project’s well-received children’s guide, How children and young people can

have a say in European and international decision-

making, provides a helpful resource, but nevertheless contains outlines of over 20 European and international institutions as well as a number of human/children’s rights treaties and communications (complaints) mechanisms.

I think first of all information matters, finding out, so I can get involved, but it is important also to have support from others, teachers, parents. (Boy, 14 years, Romania)

It is therefore not surprising that levels of knowledge about European and international bodies or institutions was limited. It also varied somewhat from country to country. However, a large majority of children and young people had heard of the EU and European Parliament. A majority also knew of the EC and, to a much lesser extent, the Council of Europe. With regard to United Nations’ bodies, including the Committee on the Rights of the Child, there was a considerable, and significant, difference between the five countries carrying out the consultation with a large majority expressing familiarity in some, and a large minority, or almost none, in others. Thus, most were familiar with the UNCRC, but not with the related decision-making bodies. In all countries, UN Special Sessions or Days of General Discussion were largely unknown. Other international bodies, such as the G8 and G20, were, with the exception of participants in one country event, almost unheard of.

[The EU] is so alienated from young people’s lives that we don’t know what to participate in. (Young person, Ireland)

Even though children and young people had heard of a number of European and international decision-making institutions, their awareness of actual decision-making processes and mechanisms was markedly different, with those expressing familiarity being largely limited to those who had personal experience of participation. It is quite possible, or even likely, that the proportion of attendees with such personal experience was higher than in the wider population of children and young people in each country. This low level of awareness indicates a considerable weakness in the communications and provision of accessible information from duty-bearers to rights-holders.


How do children find out about European and international decision-making processes?

The main current source of information, common to all country consultations, was through school or college. Much of this was through the school curriculum – through those lessons dealing with topics related to citizenship, social and personal development. The participants did not tend to stress that schools were doing well at providing information of this sort, however, and many said that their schools provided none.

I think teachers should inform us about these decision-making processes. But because this thing doesn’t happen, a lot of us don’t know how we can get involved. (Girl, 14 years, Romania)

In addition, extra-curricula activities contributed to accessing some information about European and international decision-making institutions and processes – including debating and voluntary service activities. Some, less significant, mention was made of the media (mainly television and newspapers), booklets or leaflets in the post and libraries. A smaller number of children and young people said that they gained information from others, by word of mouth, which was effective when it occurred.

It is notable that there was little mention of the Internet as a current source of this type of information and opportunity. Perhaps significantly, the Internet featured more strongly when children and young people made recommendations on the best ways to disseminate information and opportunities, as described below. This might indicate that the potential of the Internet is yet to be realised in this context.

The role of youth organisations and NGOs was only mentioned to a significant degree, as a source of information, by a few in one country and the examples given indicated that the participants of that event were children and young people with personal knowledge of those organisations, and were perhaps not representative of the general youth population. This is a significant finding from the events and indicates that more needs to be done by NGOs and other youth organisations to engage a wider spectrum of children and young people. As noted below in the context of barriers to participation, there is a perceived elite of children and young people who become involved in decision-making processes: ‘the same people are involved in everything’. One group noted that many youth organisations have regular newsletters that include various participative opportunities but that these often only go out to members, those already engaged in activities. They similarly concluded that most children and young people do not know about decision-making opportunities, but ‘those who do, do everything’.

We didn’t realise that we could have a say. (Young person, England)

Section 4

Participants at the country events were not asked directly about the European Youth in Action programme4 (2007-2013) which, inter-alia, aims to develop participation-related information dissemination. However, a recent interim evaluation of the programme5 found that over a third of its young respondents had heard of it or its related activities. Although the evaluation found that to be a positive response, it also reports that participants of Youth in Action consider that ‘it is not visible or well-publicised enough’, and ‘there is still room for improvement’.

What do children think are the best ways to find out about European and international decision-making processes?

[It] needs more marketing – needs to be cooler! (Young person, England)

Children and young people’s suggestions on the ways to find out about these processes were divided into those conducted when acting independently and those that were more dependent on adult-led activities as a collective, with friends or groups. With regard to the former, the Internet was heavily subscribed to as a potential source of information and doors to opportunities – including direct participative opportunities. Information available on the Internet needs to be ‘short, catchy, fun and

memorable’. It could be in the form of videos, podcasts or advertisements. Children and young people across the countries mentioned their common ‘home pages’, social networking sites, including specifically Twitter, YouTube and, perhaps most of all (at the time of asking), Facebook. Further credence is given to these suggestions by the similar findings of the (unrelated to this project) previously mentioned survey of 2010, Children’s rights, as they

see them. The respondents in that survey stressed the importance of ‘using today’s technology, the same media

that they use every day, to communicate with them’.6

We are often on the Internet, sites like Facebook, we communicate a lot, you can see everything and we know what’s happening. (Boy, France)7

Some thought that it would be useful to go direct to the websites of the European and international decision-makers so long as these were ‘child-friendly websites’.

Finding out about decision-making opportunities and information through adult-led routes was thought to be best achieved through school and through youth organisations – which could also be linked by ‘outreach

work that is interactive and not dull’.8 Information (and actual opportunities) should be inclusive, as one young person questioned: ‘what about disabled children and

young people – [do they find out] in the same way as

everybody else?’.9 A useful idea emerged of publicising and making more of previous examples and case studies of how children and young people had, indeed, changed things in Europe and internationally.

Youth organisations were a strong favourite with regard to the best ways to find information about decision-making processes, despite the fact that such organisations did not feature strongly in responses to the earlier question of how children and young people find out at the current time. This belief in the potential of such organisations tied in with two of the common threads, or themes, that ran through this part of the consultations. Firstly, children and young people want to find out and engage in processes together with others, their friends or in groups. There is a strong tendency away from engaging in processes alone. Secondly, the impact of information and opportunities is enhanced when it is received through “personal interactions”, be that with teachers, youth workers or experienced children and young people. Such approaches are also capable of adding encouragement in a way that other approaches might lack.


If a youth worker suggests or recommends that you do it, so you have a connection with a real person, who you can ask questions to. Not social networking or TV. (Young person, England)

There was some recognition of the value of structures across countries, Europe and globally. For example, it was suggested that there should be country youth councils that communicate with similar councils across other countries to connect children and young people who want to discuss important issues. It is notable that such structures have, or are being, established but are clearly yet to “find” populations of children and young people. The European Forum on the Rights of the Child was found to be relatively unknown, although around half of participants in one country event said that they knew of it.

Footnotes

1 European Union (2010) Children’s rights, as they see them. The European Commis-sion’s Directorate General for Justice sought the views of girls and boys from all 27 Member States for this Qualitative Eurobarometer study http://ec.europa.eu/justice/fundamental-rights/files/rights-of-the-child_en.pdf

2 EU Guidelines for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child, approved December 2007. http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/human_rights/human_rights_in_third_countries/l33604_en.htm

3 United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, General Comment No. 5 (2003) http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/898586b1dc7b4043c1256a450044f331/3bba808e47bf25a8c1256db400308b9e/$FILE/G0345514.pdf

4 Decision No 1719/2006/EC of the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union establishing the ‘Youth in Action’ programme for the period 2007 to 2013 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:2006D1719:20081225:EN:PDF

5 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:52011DC0220:EN:NOT

6 European Union (2010) Children’s rights, as they see them. The European Commission’s Directorate General for Justice sought the views of girls and boys from all 27 Member States for this Qualitative Eurobarometer study

7 From Children’s rights, as they see them – see footnote 1.

8 See footnote 1.

9 See footnote 1.

Section 4

Do children think they should be involved in European and international decision-making?

Around 500 children and young people from the seven countries that were involved in the Speak to

the World consultation events gave an overwhelming message that they want involvement in European and international decision-making; that it is their right to be heard; and that their views and opinions are of value.

Decisions affecting us directly should be properly taken, taking into account our views and needs. (Boy, 16 years, Romania)

That is not to say that each individual wanted to be involved in decision-making processes personally but, they, nevertheless, did believe that those most interested and best qualified should represent children and young people. Thus, to be accurate, the majority

…decisions today affect young people in the future. We are the future!! (Young person, Ireland)


Section 5: Desire to be involved in European and international decision-making processes

of children and young people believed that there is an individual right to have a say, that there should be participation, but that involvement should be through a system of representatives. Some identified a need for suitable mechanisms to enable this.

I feel there are better qualified people to do so, I can speak to them and they can take it further. (Young person, England)

I would not like to take part in decision-making but I think a young person with interest should be involved because they could have good ideas. (Young person, Ireland)

The reasons participants gave for wanting to participate in decision-making tended to fall into two broad sets. Firstly, they believed that this was an expression and recognition of their rights to have a say in matters that affect them and to impact on specific matters affecting their lives. Many, indeed, were able to cite Article 12 of the UNCRC. They wanted not only to respond to issues that were raised by adults and governments, but also to mould the debate to issues that they themselves were uniquely able to identify. They wanted to be involved in processes that aim to bring the problems and needs of childhood and adolescence to attention. There was a strong feeling that children and young people know best what is in their interests.

Secondly, children and young people had an eye on the future and wanted to influence the way the world would develop for when they are the adults. There was a strong body of opinion that it is children and young people who have the greater stake in the future and are highly motivated to make that a better future. This

was not entirely self-motivated and many noted that the future needed to be fit for future generations of children and young people.

Adults are making decisions… which will affect these children’s future. Because some adults will have short term attitudes as they want to make money first and will not have to cope with the poor condition of our world in 50 years time. Children will try to build a world they want to live in.

(Young person, England)

…of course they should [have influence in decision-making] because it is the young people of the world that will in the future be running it. (Young person, England)

The minority who did not subscribe to children and young people’s involvement in European and international decision-making gave various explanations. Only very few were actually against any representation, those being based on a perception of a lack of knowledge and capacity or that the cost of involvement outweighed the benefits. Many of this minority did remain convinced that children and young people should participate in decision-making but only at the local and national levels.

Section 5

In the Austrian consultation event, younger children (some as young as eight years) were consulted separately from older young people. Younger children shared with the older participants an interest and willingness to participate in decision-making processes at the European and international levels, but were often more strongly in favour of local participation. Many younger children had a different thematic interest, focusing on saying what they thought about the specific issues that reflected their own lived realities. Where age was mentioned in the context of who should participate, there tended to be a feeling that those attaining ages of around 15 and 16 had the necessary interest and capacity.

… let a child be a child under 16 – get their opinions but that’s it. (Young person, Ireland)

Despite that perspective about younger children, the case for their full involvement remains valid and strong, not least because participation rights apply to children of all ages and regardless of capacity. Furthermore, there were many younger children (of less than the age of 14 or 15) expressing lucid opinions about the value of their contribution on the European and international stages. The difference between the younger and the older age groups, where there was a difference, was mainly that younger children had a greater focus on single issues in their own lives.

Yes, I expressed my opinions in the debates on children’s involvement in decision-making at national, European and international levels. Here, I really felt that my views were heard, supported and appreciated. (Boy, 13 years, Romania)

Children remain invisible in debates about how countries are governed. By ignoring children, the governance community is missing a trick.1

An important finding from the five country consultations was a worrying conviction that, even if they are involved, the views of children and young people will not be given weight, will not be heard or will have limited impact. The proportion expressing this sort of view was not well recorded, coming more from their individual comments in discussion or, for example, on posting boards. But there is no doubt that it was a commonly held perception with, interestingly, some apparent differences between countries.

Young people simply aren’t respected by the government institutions. (Young person, Ireland)


A lot of it seems to be like a token thing, do you know what I mean? (Young person, England)

Those with more optimism and belief that they could make a difference also made that known and were enthusiastic about participating in European and international decision-making processes and having an impact.

The benefits of involving children in decision-making would be stopping conflicts and violence, a touch of originality and good ideas. (Young person, Romania)

Apart from the impact that participation could have on the lives of children and young people, present and future, many saw the added value of developing their own skills and capacities as well as gaining life-enhancing experiences through, for example, cultural exchange. Whilst this might

reflect a degree of self-interest, it was also noted by some that this was the route to improving the quality of children and young people’s contribution to high level decision-making processes over the longer term. Other, less experienced children and young people made suggestions that the experienced participants, those who had previously been engaged at the European and international levels, should pass on their learning to others in their communities.

Are there particular European and international decision-making processes which children would like to participate in?

The events did not produce evidence that could lead to a concluding, prioritised list of different processes or decision-making bodies. However, there was a distinction drawn between participation in specific issues and wider governance. Thus, many wanted involvement by issue and others involvement by institution or body. For some, there was a sense of distance between them and the processes.

Many specific issues were mentioned, including a prominent place for education and spare time activities, different aspects of discrimination, family matters and law, public space and political involvement. The country reports themselves are a source of more detail.

I attended the launch of the campaign against corporal violence in the European Parliament. Our role was to present the experience and findings of children regarding the elimination of violence. (Girl, 16 years, Romania)

Of those European and international decision-making processes that were mentioned more readily, prominent were UNCRC related processes (where it was thought

Section 5

by some that children and young people’s involvement could have a ‘big impact’), EU Youth Parliament and the J8 Summit (albeit unheard of by the actual majority).

What are the benefits of involving children in European and international decision-making?

The views of children and young people on what benefits their involvement brings to decision-making processes are threaded throughout this report. When answering the question specifically, the overall message is that there is a strong belief that, ultimately, better decisions are made. Furthermore, those better decisions are not exclusively better for the children of Europe and the world, but for all generations, present and future.

Indeed, on some matters, children and young people consider themselves to be the experts and know best both the problems and the solutions.

At the European Parliament we have been taken into account more than adults, just because we were more truthfully, directly involved, while adults presented reports in a superficial way. (Girl, 17 years, Romania)

Other important benefits can be identified from the comments of children and young people, including the clear fact that it is only with their involvement that decisions and processes can be afforded full legitimacy.

Children see things differently; it is different from a grown-up view. (Girl, 16 years, Estonia)

Children and young people do perceive their contribution as being capable of challenging entrenched positions, offering a unique perspective – fresh and innovative – and correcting inaccurate assumptions about what is important to (and for) younger citizens. In some countries, participants also commented on their potential to influence the development of a more peaceful, war-free world: a sense of moving towards a ‘global citizenship’.

Footnotes

1 Save the Children (2010) Children and Good Governance.


Have children taken part in European and international decision-making processes?

Across the five countries holding consultation events, with associated partners from two other countries, around 500 children and young people participated and, from those, there were very few who had engaged in decision-making processes at the European or international levels. Large numbers, varying by country, had been involved in local, regional or national processes and some of these had fed into wider European or international processes (including the UNCRC reporting process for their country and home-based events relating to the “Model UN”).

Participants from some countries, notably England and Ireland, appeared to have a greater level of involvement in European and international processes, but this could well be a difference arising from the ways in which those participants were recruited to the events. Even in England and Ireland, those who reported such involvement were very much in the minority. In one country event, none present had experienced involvement in European or international decision-making processes.

Those decision-making processes, or consultations, mentioned were headed by the UNCRC reporting process. Others included the EU Parliament (e.g. presenting consultation details on the EU Strategy for Children’s

Through participation in decision-making processes, children have opportunities to express themselves, to experience the respect for their own views and to learn to respect the views of others. (Girl, 17 years, Romania)

Section 6

Section 6: Experiences of participation

Rights), Euronet Network (e.g. campaign against violence), EU Presidency events, the Organising Bureau of EU School Students, EU Youth Parliament, Model UN, UNESCO, World Youth Congress (in Turkey 2010) and the European Youth Forum.

How did children take part and was that a positive or negative experience?

The project consultation strongly indicated that those who had engaged in European or international decision-making processes had found out about them, and been supported through them, by in-country organisations/NGOs. The positive experience had been enhanced by the support given by those same organisations including direct staff support, finance, time and access to information to gain a good understanding of the issues concerned. Only very few appeared to have engaged independently and some had taken part in EC-led online surveys, consultations or polls.

The large majority of those who had participated in these processes had found the experience to be positive. The reasons for this were partly to do with personal development but also related to outcomes and impact:

• Gaining a sense of personal achievement

• Increased confidence and skills

• Helping others by reporting to them, sharing knowledge

• Improved debating, speech writing and public speaking skills

• Raising awareness about children and young people’s views

• Influencing decision-makers

• Having an impact on the final decisions and outcomes

• Feeling a sense of having been listened to and taken seriously.

It’s an opportunity for us to gain experience, to have more confidence in our power (Girl, 15 years, Romania)

These findings, when considered against those to do with how children and young people find out about decision-making processes and how information and opportunities can be provided, suggest that other methods are underdeveloped in comparison to the value of NGOs and other youth organisations. Some reported having found some, limited, opportunities through school, the Internet and friends (including specifically Facebook) but the key would appear to be the collective, supported approaches that are available through specialist organisations/NGOs.

Do children think that they have influenced European and international decisions and decision-making processes?

The question of whether children and young people can influence decision-making processes and outcomes does not necessarily chime with their opinion as to whether they have done so. Matching perceptions and opinions with the reality of children and young people’s influence, whether their voice has counted, depends on mechanisms for measuring and monitoring their impact.

Children adapt to changes faster than adults. (Girl, 15 years, Estonia)

The perceptions of impact varied from country to country and, as reported above, the number with experience of European or international decision-making processes was very limited. Those reporting on the European Youth Parliament thought that their contribution was well considered and influential. There was greater doubt expressed about involvement in the Model UN exercise. The largest contingent of experienced children and young people was found in England. For their part, they had very much appreciated being able to begin to measure impact and influence. Although systems of measurement and monitoring in this sense might need to be further developed and sophisticated, and used more widely across Europe, their comments are illuminating, as set out in the England Speak to the World country report available as a


separate annex to this report:

Being able to measure whether they had made a

difference was seen as particularly important. Young

people who had been part of the delegation to the UN

Committee on the Rights of the Child explained that they

made 14 recommendations to the Committee based on

their research with children, all of which were reflected in

the Committee’s final concluding observations to the UK

Government. Participants in one group discussion said

that it was essential to see that things had changed as a

result of children and young people’s involvement.

It is notable that the main example arose from a project specifically aiming to represent children and young people’s evidence, experiences and views to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child as part of the UNCRC reporting process. The project had also been designed to ensure maximum levels of representativeness and to engage minority and disadvantaged groups. The details of the project, Get Ready for Geneva, are to be made available shortly after publication of this report.1

Comments were also gathered indicating what had not gone well with regard to maximising influence and participation:

• The challenge of entrenched adult attitudes

• Perceptions of adults in the process who actually do not believe in, or support, the involvement of children and young people in decision-making

• Inaccessible opportunities for involvement for those with specific needs

• Being nervous about travelling alone to meetings

• A lack of representativeness amongst groups of children and young people who participate

• Challenging and inaccessible language

• “Youth” including much older people in some European contexts, with the views of actual young people not being well represented

• A lack of follow-up.

In addition, the spectre of tokenism remains in place for many children and young people. There is still a need to

take action to ensure that tokenism is eradicated and then to convince Europe’s children and young people that this has been achieved.

Are some children more likely than others to engage in European and international decision-making processes?

Findings from the project’s consultations were that most children and young people thought that a number of factors were indicative of greater likelihood of involvement and some factors pointed to less likelihood. Those former, all seeming to be relevant, included:

• Being already involved in participative groups

• Having a privileged background

• Having a wealthy family

• Having parents who are interested in current affairs

• Living in cities

• Living in more developed countries

• Achieving better results at school

• Knowing foreign languages

• Knowing the right people (including friends)

• Having teachers and schools with an encouraging approach to participation

• Having access to the internet

• Being linked to others in order to participate

• Having plenty of time without excessive home responsibilities and home-work.

The same people are involved in everything. (Young person, England)

Factors linked to less likelihood of involvement included:

• Living in rural and under-developed areas

• Disillusionment with politics and decision-makers

• Perceptions of tokenism; that no-one will listen and nothing will change

• Fear of being cast socially as “uncool”.

Section 6

Some, related to their own areas and experiences, referred to issues amounting to discrimination (e.g. having a foreign name in the country context and minority ethnicity, such as being Roma).

I feel that I have a lot to bring to the process of decision-making, I have had experiences of my rights being abused and I feel that I would be a useful advocate. (Young person, England)

What are the barriers to children engaging in European and international decision-making processes?Some of the many barriers that children and young people identify to their engagement in decision-making in Europe and internationally cross-over with the factors that favour certain groups. Children and young people in all countries represented agreed that the first and foremost barrier was the lack of information and access to opportunities. Other barriers were commonly mentioned, including perceptions of tokenism and feelings that they will not be heard and taken seriously.

A further much cited barrier was poor financial support for participation activities. It was also thought by some that many children and young people are content to be involved in local and national decision-making processes because their scope of interest does not stretch to European or international processes.

No real interest in politics outside a national level. National is enough to think about. (Young person, Ireland)

Typically through the consultation events, participants were energetic in seeking solutions and many thought that such barriers could be overcome. In particular, children and young people identified the notion of rapid growth of capacity once the seed of participation has been activated. Thus, growing experience will result in increasing self-confidence and motivation. Much depends upon sharing experiences with others and receiving encouragement from peers and adults.

However, overcoming some barriers depends upon adults and European and international institutions. Children and young people recommended better marketing, increased (or better targeted) funding, simplified language and attention being given to strategies that reach widely (including to those with no access to the Internet).

Schools were also viewed as critical agents for overcoming barriers. For example, schools should have greater commitment to participation principles, should provide information about decision-making structures and should create opportunities in the curriculum (such as through citizenship type lessons). Schools should also encourage youth participation organisations and NGOs to come into schools with outreach programmes and to ensure that this occurs particularly in lower income areas.

I think that the barrier is the lack of support from adults and being afraid of not getting my opinions accepted. (Girl, 15 years, Romania)

Footnotes

1 Details to be available on CRAE’s website http//:www.crae.org.uk


Children and young people were asked if they were

in charge of engaging children in European and

international decision-making, how they would do

this and what the process would look like.

This is a difficult question for younger children and for many young people and adults to answer. It could be perceived as being too daunting for most individuals. However, the fact that valuable ideas emerged from the country consultations does, in itself, show the value of undertaking truly participatory processes.

It was through the methods used at the consultation events – the workshops, use of different models of interaction, the

sharing of experiences and knowledge in a creative, child-friendly atmosphere – that useful results were achieved and the true value of giving children and young people a say was demonstrated. Children and young people said that they wanted those people facilitating opportunities to be creative, and recognise that formal meetings are not always the best way to elicit the views of children and young people.

One set of activities enabled a range of methods of engagement in decision-making to be assessed, with the advantages and disadvantages of each being identified. These can be usefully set out in table form as a resource for those seeking improvements in participative decision-making.

I want the ways that I can express opinions and participate in external consultation to be better promoted. (Boy, 13 years, Romania)

Section 7

Section 7: The best European and international participation processes

A round table with children and authorities who speak as peers. (Boy, 14 years, Romania)

Table 8: Summary of advantages and disadvantages of different methods of engaging children and young people in European and international decision-making

Method Advantages Disadvantages

Online survey to find out the views of children and young people

Quick, cheap, easy to disseminate and publicise, large numbers of children involved, can be translated into different languages, can cover lots of issues.

Some are without Internet access, might not be representative results, can be too many questions – respondents get bored, questions might need explaining.

Small focus groups with children and young people on a specific subject

Qualitative data, personal and more detailed information, different views are shared, sense of being listened to, freedom to speak, can discuss issues and solutions in depth, more inclusive.

Labour intensive and time consuming, shy young people might not want to speak, might not be representative if only a small group of young people are involved.

Europe-wide consultation event for children and young people – views get fed back to European decision making body. Small number of young representatives attend from each European country

Opportunity to travel and meet other young people, get an understanding about other countries, hear lots of other views and experiences.

Cost of travel, every country is different and issues that children and young people want to change would be different, therefore might be harder to achieve change. Difficult to select participants?

Children and young people directly participating in European or international meeting alongside adults. Children and young people speak equally at the meeting

Adult decision-makers hear your views directly, direct influence, real participation, decision-makers can see young people’s passion, sense of importance and power, puts directly into practice children’s right to be heard, adults can ask children questions directly.

Can be expensive. Difficult to select participants? Could be intimidating, might favour articulate and confident young people, formal environment might stifle creativity and passion, scared to make a mistake, need to take time off school, too much jargon used, not accessible for all children and young people, things might not change, young people might not want to share views with adults who might disagree.

In-country consultation event – views get fed back to European or international decision-making body

Chance to share opinions, hear lots of different views, meet new people, can be fun and creative, views are being fed back, learn from other participants, lots of children can attend – different ages and backgrounds, way of learning about an issue in detail, a good way to get heard.

Might be too far to travel, only “one-off” opportunity – what happens next? Less confident young people might not participate, difficult to deal with lots of different ages, some voices might dominate, not everyone has the chance to speak.

Meetings with individual decision-makers

Direct influence, questions can be asked and answered, can have a proper conversation, more personal, good experience.

Can be intimidating, might not speak to the right person, might be scared to say true feelings, might be shy and feel intimidated, difficult to secure meeting, can be tokenistic, might not get results, might not be taken seriously.


Children are up to date with what is going on in the world therefore we should be consulted on issues of the world. (Young person, Ireland)

In line with other findings contained throughout this report, the potential, largely unrealised, of schools and youth organisations was highlighted by children and young people. Bringing their findings together to consider a best model, children and young people from at least four of the country consultations turned again to ideas of student representative bodies, supported or enhanced by links with youth participation organisations/NGOs.

One of the features of best models of student representative bodies, or school councils as many tended to call them, was that they would be genuinely representative in nature. Currently, school councils are not often well respected by children and young people with a feeling that schools and adults do not take their views fully into account. Whole school commitment to participative principles is needed with appropriate changes to curricula and lesson content.

Taken in isolation, the existence of such school bodies, and groups working with youth organisations/NGOs, would not assure a better European or international

participation process. To use again the notion of duty-bearers and rights-holders, strategies should bring the two together fruitfully.

[You could make decisions] as a forum, in a meeting, with the elected representatives of children and young people in each country going to European and international institutions. (Girl, 16 years, Romania)

The children and young people participating in the Ireland consultation perhaps described best a framework for a strategy for participation that reaches out for the voice of the individual child from European and international decision-making institutions. To quote directly from the Ireland Speak to the World country consultation report:

The young people believe that the participation process would be different if they were in charge as children, in that they would actually be listened to through better student councils and a tiered (local, provincial, national) representation system for all young people in the country – there would be a democratic, youth-run model children’s government that could be consulted both nationally and internationally. There would be more fora for young people to become involved by having more youth workshops and consultations, and by providing funding for [Irish Second-Level Students’ Union] to further develop its student council network. The voting age would be lowered to 16 years and an online voter registration system introduced. Younger people would be enabled and empowered to become involved in the EU and run for election to the European Parliament so that representatives were not as out of touch with young people. They would put in place a facility whereby all policy could be reviewed online prior to implementation so that the public could submit their comments on it.

Section 7

Child delegates would be sent to the EU and UN to speak on certain policy issues. Young people would definitely be involved in decisions that affect them.

Many of the young people have been involved locally with the student council in their schools and said that they would like student councils to be improved so they were taken more seriously and listened to more, to ‘make student councils work better’.1

Children and young people were also asked for those who have been involved, what they would change about how and when they are asked for their views.

Seeking true representation was a key theme, and overcoming the barriers to ensuring that all age groups and isolated or excluded groups are involved. Similarly, recruitment and selection processes should be reviewed, particularly to address the factors identified earlier, regarding the likelihood of being involved. More attention was needed to find, inform and engage disadvantaged or disabled groups, including provision of good quality interpretation services and support for those whose first language is not that of the home country. For those who could not engage or attend in person, responding alone or in a group but from distance, suggestions were made for school-based discussion groups, online surveys and questionnaires, focus groups and the use of social networking websites (including video messages) to gather and submit views and opinions.

Those who do, do everything. (Young person, England)

Once again, with regard to the final issue of how to increase confidence that the child’s voice will be heard and taken into account, the England consultation report sums up the best approach identified by children and young people in the events:

The issue of feedback and follow up was also crucial. Many of the participants said that the best participation processes are those where the participants are well informed about the outcome and results of their involvement. Children and young people should receive information about the impact and influence they had, and where they helped achieve change. Lots of participants wanted short, accessible reports setting out what had happened and highlighting the impact of their involvement. Other suggestions included sending letters to participants after the event and making short videos about what had happened.

I hope our thoughts reach somewhere and that there will be a result. (Young person, Estonia)

Footnotes

1 The Ireland Speak to the World country consultation report is annexed to this report and is also available from CRAE’s website http://www.crae.org.uk/protecting/right-heard/speak-to-the-world.html and the Children’s Rights Alliance in Ireland (www.childrensrights.ie)


The following organisations were partners in this innovative project.

Children’s Rights Alliance for England

94 White Lion Street, London, N1 9PF, UKhttp://www.crae.org.uk/

Children’s Rights Alliance

4 Upper Mount Street, Dublin 2, Irelandhttp://www.childrensrights.ie/

Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights

Freyung 6/2, A-1010 Vienna, Austriahttp://bim.lbg.ac.at/en

Estonian Union for Child Welfare

Endla Street 6 – 18, 10142 Tallinn, Estoniahttp://www.lastekaitseliit.ee/

Salvati Copiii Romania (Save the Children Romania)

3 Intrarea Stefan Furtuna Str, District 1, Bucharesthttp://www.salvaticopiii.ro

Salvati Copiii Romania (Save the Children Romania) Save the Children is the world’s largest independent organisation for children. Salvati Copiii Romania (Save the Children Romania) is part of the International Save the Children Alliance, made up of national organisations working together to improve children’s lives in over 120 countries. Salvati Copiii Romania was responsible for creating the opportunity for children and young people from the Republic of Moldova to take part in the Speak to the World consultation event, with its associate partner from the Republic of Moldava, the Children’s Rights Information Centre (CRIC).

The Estonian Union for Child Welfare

The Estonian Union for Child Welfare (EUCW) is a non-governmental and non-profit umbrella organisation with 39 local child welfare associations. EUCW has been operating for 22 years promoting the rights of the child across Estonian society. EUCW’s main activities are to inform the public about children’s rights, to monitor the state of children’s rights and advocate for those rights and children’s participation in matters that affect them. EUCW has a Youth Council comprised of young people which takes an active role in the organisation’s activities.

The Children’s Rights Alliance

The Children’s Rights Alliance is a coalition of over 90 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working to secure the rights of children in Ireland, by campaigning for the full implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. It aims to improve the lives of all children under 18 years, through securing the necessary changes in Ireland's laws, policies and services.

The Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights

The Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights (BIM), founded in 1992, is the largest independent human rights research institution in Austria, dealing with human rights issues on the national, European and the international level. It is BIM’s main objective to offer a link between academic research and practitioners, through cooperation with civil society, inter-governmental and state actors and the private sector. Protection of children’s rights has become one key area of the Institute’s research and training activities, dealing with a variety of topics including constitutional rights of children, child protection from violence, exploitation and child trafficking, and child participation.

Section 7 Section 7

Section 8: Speak to the World project partners

Notes



speak%20to%20the%20world%20overview%20report

Documents

international pages

participation rights

survey of european pages

awareness of european

european society

european union3

participatory processes

consultation processes