Participation and citizenship
Barnardo’s believes children need to have a voice and a stake in society. Children and young people need opportunities to participate actively in their communities, to prepare them for citizenship and responsible adulthood. We have developed a number of resources that help professionals facilitate genuine participation and have published the results of many of our own participation projects.
Raising awareness and promoting positive mental health and well being among young people: The role of peer support
The report presents the findings of a research study which explored young people's views and experiences of peer support and considered whether peer support approaches have a role to play in terms of promoting positive mental health and well being in schools.
Download the summary for FREE (PDF)Download the full report for FREE (PDF)
Being a witness
This interactive CD-ROM prepares children and young people who are going to court as witnesses. Research tells us that children and young people who receive support to testify provide more credible evidence and have the confidence to cope with the pressures of the adult courtroom far better. This resource is applicable throughout the UK and comes with guidance on how to use it with children. Suitable for children up to 12 years old.
Say it your own way: children's participation in assessment
A printed guide and CD-ROM of practical resources to support professionals in giving children a voice; packed with ideas for trying new and creative methods involving art, play, music and drama. The accompanying guide shows how to keep children at the heart of the assessment process.
Ethics, social research and consulting with children and young people
From planning through choosing questions and methods to reporting and disseminating findings – this book examines the ethical considerations of consulting with children. It updates our 1995 report “Listening to Children” and gives examples of a range of projects. A useful buy for anyone involved in social research with children – whether publishing it, funding it or using the results.
Meeting with respect pack
A resource pack for professionals who want to develop child centred meetings in any area of social work. Children are often marginalised or disengaged by being talked about and not to – Meeting with respect is full of ideas and games to engage children from before the meeting begins to debriefing together afterwards. Sample child-friendly forms included.
Are we listening yet? Working with minority ethnic communities - some models of practice
This report examines models of practice used in Barnardo’s services to ensure the needs of children and families from these communities are met sensitively and adequately.
Download the summary for FREE (PDF)
Buy this publication online
Bullying - A research review
This review identifies risk factors, protective factors, impacts upon children and promising interventions in the field of bullying.
Download the full report for FREE (PDF)
Feedback from young people on the SEU recommendations for young runaways - Report for the Social Exclusion Unit
Keen to make recommendations that would really make a difference to runaways, the SEU commissioned Barnardo’s to carry out a consultation with young people themselves. Find out what they said.
Download the full report for FREE (PDF)
Future citizens CD-ROM
15 activities, 17 printable worksheets, over 90 pages of information, with comprehensive teachers’ notes, to stimulate discussion in key issues for young people including: the future, rights and responsibilities and their place in the community.
Give us a chance: young people's views on social issues
Young people from over the UK call on Government to listen to their views in this report. It outlines the views of 130 young people on social issues from drugs to bullying as well as their thoughts on politics and politicians.
Download the full report for FREE – English (PDF) Download the full report for FREE – Welsh (PDF)
Involving young people in research: Want to know what young people think about bullying?
Barnardo’s Policy and Research unit trained a group of young people to be researchers and carry out interviews with Yorkshire service users about their experiences of bullying. See the findings in poster form and learn more about the whole project in the report.
Download bullying research posters for FREE (PDF) Download the full report for FREE (PDF)
Learning from Barnardo's Voice initiative
The Voice initiative piloted employing young, mostly care experienced, workers to encourage participation and build links with Barnardo’s service users. See how this work was developed and read about its impact.
See the Voice micro-site for more about the initiative Download the summary for FREE (PDF) Download the full report for FREE (PDF)
Obliterating the limits: can arts projects raise pupil achievement and encourage participation in the process of change?
Does using artistic media as a catalyst for community development bring successful outcomes? This report examines the issue.
Download the summary for FREE (PDF) Download the full report for FREE (PDF)
Promoting social inclusion: a practice manual for community workers
Provides practical guidance on how to plan, carry out and evaluate community development interventions to tackle disadvantage. Based on the findings of Barnardo's five-year anti-poverty strategy that was launched in 1995, Promoting social exclusion provides a range of tools for thinking about, implementing and evaluating the community development approach.
Research report phase one of the Generation 2020 project
Generation 2020 is a long term project in Swansea to improve children’s access to services and developing ways for children to participate in local government. This report presents a model for undertaking participatory research with 6-11 year olds; findings regarding children’s access to services and recommendations for service development.
Download the full report for FREE – English (PDF) Download the full report for FREE – Welsh (PDF)
St Helen's school and Vincent Street homezone feasibility study - July 2006
This partnership community project was commissioned by Swansea children's partnership and Communities first to discover children and young people's experiences of outdoor play opportunities within their neighbourhood and to examine the feasibility of developing an outdoor community space by redesigning two local streets and a school yard.
Download the full report for FREE - English (PDF)Download the full report for FREE - Welsh (PDF)
SCIE practice guide 6: Involving children and young people in developing social care
Focusing on how managers and practitioners can initiate and sustain the participation of children and young people in developing services. The guide proposes that organisations adopt a whole systems approach to participation. Includes key messages from practice with case studies and suggests participation resources. Written for the Social Care Institute for Excellence by Barnardo’s Policy and Research Unit.
Download the guide for FREE – from the SCIE website
Taking part toolkit: promoting the real participation of children and young people – summary
For any agency that works with children and young people. The toolkit includes a report, a resource pack, participation standards and an audit tool.
Download the summary for FREE (PDF)
Voices and choices: Young people participating in inspections
An innovative report that presents learning from young people's participation in inspections of children's homes. Carried out by a consortium of voluntary agencies. This report includes young people's views in their own words, and full details of the project methodology; all the young people involved in this pilot had experience of being in care.
Whose government is it anyway?
What do young people think about the issues that really affect them? Find out in this report.
Download the full report for FREE (PDF)
