Children, Young People & Families
"Our aim is to ensure that every young person has the chance to fulfil their potential…"- 'Every Child Matters' Green Paper - September 2003
Following Lord Laming's inquiry, and with the emphasis on ending child poverty, the health, safety and well-being of children, young people and their families is a higher priority than ever before.
A wide range of changes has been proposed to the way in which the whole range of services provided for them are delivered, culminating in the Children's Act 2004.
These developments are widely welcomed, but turning the aims into reality means that there is much work to be done. Multi-agency working is a key success factor, but there are many challenges to making it happen in practice. Our own research and evaluation confirms that partnership working, an increased emphasis on preventative actions and the full participation of children, young people and their families in service development, delivery and evaluation are essential for success, but are not easy to get right.
ECOTEC can help you:
- Develop and measure SMART objectives and their associated indicators;
- Pinpoint the critical issues for the successful implementation of policy;
- Identify and implement effective practice;
- Evaluate policy interventions and identify areas that improvements can be made in the future;
- Work with children and young people to identify their views and opinions.
ECOTEC are committed to improving the conditions within which children and young people live. We work widely with central and local government (including the Youth Justice Board), children's agencies, charities, arts and educational institutions to help ensure that the vision becomes a reality.
We work within a robust policy framework, which includes guidelines on child protection, confidentiality, informed consent and data protection. All our staff working with children and young people hold a current CRB check.
Service Portfolio: 14-19 Education and skills workshops with young people
ECOTEC was commissioned by the DfES's Communication team (now DCSF) to hold regional workshops in seven 14-19 Pathfinder areas during March 2007. The workshops gathered young people's views and ideas on aspects of the 14-19 reforms including: Functional Skills and Diplomas; Raising the Participation Age; 14-19 Prospectus; Collaboration; and Transition post-16.
The workshops were made locally relevant through a review of Pathfinder activities and stakeholder discussions with DfES Strand leaders, 14-19 Pathfinder Co-ordinators, Connexions, and local schools and colleges. They included innovative and creative exercises to help young people express their views on the 14- 19 reform themes, including voting polls, theatre games and marketing campaigns. The workshops were held with young people aged 12-19 from across the ability range, including talented students and those with SEN and disabilities. A final report was produced identifying key trends in young people's views, featuring outputs from the workshop exercises and marketing campaigns designed by participants. The report will help DCSF develop promotional and IAG materials and mechanisms to inform young people about the curriculum changes, which will become a national entitlement from 2013.
The consultation events were mainly used to:
- Raise awareness of Functional Skills and Diplomas with a cross section of young people and determine learning approaches that help students develop skills and applied knowledge;
- Explore how young people make post-14 and post-16 choices to inform DCSF's promotional and IAG approaches for the Diploma and 14-19 Prospectus;
- Identify regional variations in preparing for the implementation of the Diplomas;
- Support DCSF's on-going work to develop and implement the 14-19 reforms.
Read the report here
jenny.williams@ecotec.com
+44 845 630 8633
Other projects in this Portfolio
