From decision-making to culture change: developing our approach to Youth Voice

Our starting point

Back In 2020, we set 3 clear goals for Youth Voice:

• We involve Youth Voice
• We fund Youth Voice
• We influence Youth Voice

Since then, we have involved young people in our work in different ways. From the co-design of Mind our Future funding, to training over 400 funding staff in Youth Voice top tips, and Instagram takeovers and podcasts.

While decision-making is often seen as the heart of funding, real change in an organisation of our size comes from culture. That means creating an environment where young people are respected, influential, and able to shape change across many different areas, not just one committee or funding decision.

Our approach: the Participation Pyramid

To make sure we hear from as many young people as possible, we use the Participation Pyramid. It’s a model I created to help us gather diverse youth perspectives for any funding programme or project being developed.

We start at the base of the pyramid, using what we already hear from young people. This includes insights from surveys such as the recent National Youth Strategy, as well as learning from our funding and research.

Next, we ask an important question: whose voices are missing? At this level of the pyramid, we partner with Youth Voice stakeholders and grant holders who have the expertise and trusted relationships to support those young people well.

At the top of the pyramid are our Youth Voice models - the ways young people are directly involved in shaping what we do.

These models create safe, meaningful opportunities for Youth Voice to influence decisions at every level of our organisation.

They include:

• Youth Voice Advisors who provide recommendations on specific funding decisions and help deliver staff training
• Youth governance roles with young people sitting across our Board and country committees
• Panels where young people are directly involved in making funding decisions
• Youth voices in our communications including stories and conversations shared through channels like our podcast

And yes, it’s a pyramid not a triangle, because involvement is multi-dimensional. Young people contribute in different ways, at different points, and across different areas of our work. This creates a ripple effect of influence across the organisation, rather than change in just one space.

Engaging young people in varied ways leads to richer thinking, stronger decisions, and more inclusive and impactful outcomes.

Evolving every year

Like any truly youth-led approach, our strategy evolves each year based on what we learn from young people. This has meant shifting to a UK-wide model, aligning with our strategy. And, expanding Youth Voice beyond specific programmes to sit across all children and young people funding.

One outcome of this learning is our Youth Voice Advisor model. This model is tailored to meet the needs of each funding area and the interests and strengths of the young people involved. A strong example of this is our UK Portfolio Youth Voice fund and its Youth Voice Advisors who are set to feature in a future episode of our Voices in Action podcast.

Why this work matters

Every young person brings their own version of Youth Voice and that’s what makes this approach so impactful. One size does not fit all. The depth of learning and cultural shifts we’ve seen across the organisation are a direct result of involving a variety of voices. On a personal level, it also means I get to work with incredible young people every day. Learning from them, being challenged, and seeing the impact of their ideas in action makes this the best job in the world.

What's next?

We’ll continue to build on what works for young people and our teams, embedding Youth Voice more deeply across the Fund. This includes supporting even more champions of Youth Voice across our organisation. And, creating greater opportunities for young people to shape change across the Fund and beyond.

Stay tuned for updates and upcoming Voices in Action podcasts, where you’ll hear directly from the young people leading the way.