Research
Involving young people in planning and delivery of health and social care
The Strengthening the Voices of Young People project sought to promote the co-design of services between young people and the key decision makers who influence their lives. It engaged with a wide range of organisations across Scotland to learn from how they include young peoples' voices.
The project was a 12-month joint strategic initiative between the Scottish Health Council and Includem, a specialist Scottish charity which supports vulnerable young people who are often excluded from mainstream services. Includem seconded an experienced member of staff to the Scottish Health Council for the duration of the project.
The aims and objectives of the project included:
- exploring and developing innovative approaches to engaging with children and young people across Scotland, and
- supporting the development of an evidence base for engaging children and young people in health and care, particularly those from excluded communities, and using this to promote good practice.
Based on early conversations with stakeholders, we commissioned scoping research that included a rapid literature review and further stakeholder engagement to:
- map existing structures for involving young people in planning and delivering health and social care services in Scotland
- evidence whether there is a perceived ‘gap’ in engaging young people
- identify the most appropriate structure(s) for engagement
- consider opportunities for adding value and strengthening existing structures for hearing and acting on the voices of young people, and
- assess the appeal and feasibility of a cross-Scotland collaborative approach to young people’s participation in the planning and delivery of health and social care services.
The scoping report forms part of a suite of documents that describe work undertaken as part of the Young Voices Project. We also carried out work in 4 test sites to find out what is important to young people from a range of backgrounds, and how their voices can be strengthened within health and social care: