All children and young people are entitled to heard on all matters affecting them. This is important always but especially important, yet often ignored, when they are considered ‘vulnerable’.
In this CYCJ webinar, Professor Laura Lundy (Queen’s University Belfast, University College Cork) discussed what this means, and explored how children and young people in the youth justice system can be involved in the decisions that affect them, drawing on both the Lundy model of child participation and children and young people’s perspectives gathered in the UN Global Study on Children Deprived of their Liberty.
Download Professor Lundy’s presentation slides
FURTHER READING
CYCJ’s Participation and Engagement Strategy
Advancing children’s rights in detention
Participation at CYCJ
CYCJ is undertaking the following participation projects:
Youth Justice Voices is a joint collaboration between CYCJ and the Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum (Staf), funded by the National Lottery Community Fund, and The Promise Partnership Good Childhood Fund.
Set up in 2019 to amplify the voices of young people aged 16-25 with experience of the care and justice systems, this youth justice advisory group uses creative ways to enable young people to be heard in the justice system, and explore and share their experiences with policymakers, managers, corporate parents and the Scottish Government. It is led by the Youth Just Us steering group. Plans are currently underway to expand Youth Justice Voices on a national basis.
The project also leads Inside Out, Youth Justice Voice’s youth led steering group for care experienced young people in HMPYOI Polmont.
Youth Just Us is always keen to recruit new members. If you are aged 16-25 with experience of the care and justice systems, please email ruth@staf.scot to find out more.
CYCJ also supports STARR, Scotland’s only curated space for secure care experienced children, young people and adults. It exists to help inform, advise, challenge and change the pathways into, during, and after, secure care. STARR is currently recruiting for children and young people – please share this with your networks.
To help us shape a set of standards for Scotland’s Bairns Hoose (based on the Barnahus Model referenced by Professor Lundy) we are calling for 16 to 25 year olds with experience of child protection or the justice system to be part of a creative project. Find out more.
We are also developing a Collaborative Network of organisations who are working with 12-16 year olds who have experience of the justice system. To help us do this, we are asking children aged 12-16 for their views. Find out more.