Conference purpose

The position of children and young people in society remains confused and confusing. Much of the policy debate focuses on childhood as an investment in the future. At the same time, some children and young people are demonised and perceived as a threat to the present. Faintly, in the background, there is a debate about their status as citizens, and the extent to which their human rights are respected.

This conference will explore some of these issues. We will consider how the emerging debate about wellbeing takes into account the views of children and young people. Most importantly, at the heart of this conference will be the opportunity to hear directly from children and young people themselves, as they describe their experience of attempting to engage in a dialogue about issues that affect them.

Conference participants will be able to look in detail at a number of promising approaches, including Investing in Children, Hear by Right, the UNICEF Rights Respecting Schools Award, and Derwentside's 'Beacon' Spice Project.

Who should attend

For practitioners and managers from across children and young people's services in public, health and voluntary sectors, who want to build a genuine dialogue with service users, this conference will provide a unique opportunity to engage in a discussion with young people about how they understand their human rights, what works/doesn't work for them, and why.