Youth Voice Beyond Tokenism: Participation, Power and Co-production

Tuesday 17 November, 10:00–16:00 (with a one-hour lunch break) | Online via Zoom | £149 per person

A practical and reflective one-day course for people who already involve young people in their work and want to strengthen the quality, honesty and depth of that participation.

Many organisations invite young people to share their views, join panels, take part in consultations or contribute to programmes. But youth voice can quickly become tokenistic if young people are asked for input without being given clear information, real choices or meaningful influence.

This course helps participants look more closely at the power dynamics that sit within youth voice work. It explores how adult roles, organisational systems, funding requirements, safeguarding responsibilities, professional language and decision-making structures can all affect what young people are genuinely able to influence.

Participants will examine the differences between consultation, collaboration, co-production, co-construction and youth-led practice. The course will support people to be clearer and more honest about the level of influence young people have, and to think carefully about when power can be shared, shifted or handed over safely and meaningfully.

Drawing on participation models including Hart, Treseder, Shier and Lundy, this course offers space to reflect on current practice and identify practical ways to move beyond adult-led decision-making disguised as participation.

Participants will have opportunities throughout the day to apply the learning to their own setting and begin developing a more power-aware approach to youth voice.

This course will cover:

• what tokenism can look like in youth voice work
• the difference between consultation, collaboration, co-production, co-construction and youth-led practice
• how power sits within adult–young person relationships
• how organisational structures can limit or enable young people’s influence
• how funding, safeguarding and accountability shape participation
• how participation models can help analyse current practice
• how to be clearer with young people about what is open to influence
• practical ways to share, shift or hand over power safely and meaningfully
• how to strengthen the quality and ethics of youth voice work

Ideal for:

This course is ideal for people and organisations who already involve young people and want to go deeper into participation, shared decision-making and power, including:

• participation leads
• youth voice leads
• programme managers
• senior practitioners
• facilitators working in co-production or co-design
• organisations running youth boards, youth panels or advisory groups
• teams reviewing whether their youth voice work is genuinely meaningful
• managers responsible for inclusive practice
• cultural organisations wanting to move beyond consultation
• organisations concerned about tokenism
• teams developing co-created programmes with young people

It is particularly useful for anyone asking:

Are we genuinely sharing power with young people, or are we still making most of the decisions ourselves?

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

• explain the difference between consultation, collaboration, co-production, co-construction and youth-led practice
• recognise tokenism and adult-led decision-making disguised as participation
• use participation models to analyse where power sits within youth voice activity
• identify how adult roles, assumptions and organisational structures affect young people’s influence
• consider practical ways to share, shift or hand over power safely and meaningfully
• begin developing a more power-aware approach to participation in your own setting

Taking this course as part of the wider Youth Voice suite

This course can be taken as a standalone CPD day if you already have some youth voice activity in place and want to review whether it is meaningful, ethical and genuinely participatory.

It can also be combined with the other courses in the Youth Voice suite. You may wish to take Managing Meaningful Youth Voice Projects first if you are newer to youth voice or need a practical framework for planning projects with young people. You may wish to follow this course with Supporting Youth Voice in Strategy and Decision-Making if you want to connect youth voice to strategy, policy, local decision-making, youth boards or wider organisational change.

Taken together, the three courses support a progression from planning meaningful youth voice activity, to sharing power more intentionally, to helping young people influence decisions that affect their lives.

Course Cost: £149 per person

When: Tuesday 17 November, 10.00am-4.00pm - Online via Zoom

Career Development Support:

We understand that funding training opportunities can be challenging, especially during defining moments in your life or career.

At Artswork, we believe in investing in the future of our sector, and we want to support those who are passionate about safeguarding and cultural development. That’s why we offer our Career Development Support pricing.

We have reserved three places on each course at a 25% discount for individuals who could use a little extra financial support. If you feel this applies to you, please contact us at [email protected] to explain your situation and receive the next steps.

All of our training courses are delivered using Zoom.

If you require further information or would like to discuss your needs in advance of the session, please contact us at [email protected]

Can this training be delivered specifically for our organisation?

Yes! All of our training courses can be delivered either online or in person at a time and date that works best for your team. We’re happy to adapt the content to ensure it aligns with your organisation’s needs and priorities.

If you’d like to learn more or discuss your requirements, please get in touch with us at [email protected]

*Read our course terms and conditions here.Important Notice:

Please note that any discounts must be applied at the checkout. They cannot be redeemed retrospectively once the transaction is complete.