Children Having a Say

This page has lots of information and further reading around the theme of Children Having a Say. You can use this page to come up with ways to take action.

What is Children Having a Say?

You can download the NICCY policy briefing on Children and Young People having their say here (Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6) , and can also download this in MS Word format here
You can download the NICCY campaign briefing on Children and Young People having their say here (Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6) , and can also download this in MS Word format here
To download the workshop on Having a Say click here (you need to also download the role cards below
Click here to download the role cards for the having your say workshop
To find out how to use the Make It Right Campaign as an action project for the GCSE in Learning for Life and Work click here
For further information on Children Having a Say see further reading section below

Make it Right !

Once you have learned all about Children Having a Say, we want you to take action. There are a number of ways you can do this:

Inform / educate others:

Raise public awareness of issue (e.g. by making a video or writing to your local paper)
Educate a specific group (e.g. do an awareness raising session in your local youth club or deliver a workshop
Try to get others involved in campaigning on the issue

Influence change:

Affect legislation (e.g. send a petition to the government or letter to your local MLA)
Influence public opinion (e.g. publish an article in your local newspaper)

Create something:

Write a story or poem about young people having a say
Create piece of art or drama about what the world would be like if adults didn't have a say and children made all the big decisions

Community Involvement:

Help others (e.g. volunteer on your local youth council or join an organisation that encourages youth participation)
Address a need (e.g. raise money for an organisation that encrouages young people to have a say)

You could do something completely different. There are many ways to help young people have a say, and many organisations who can help you.

Tell us about it

It’s really important that whatever you decide to do, tell us so we can use the information to influence government and make change. You can feedback to us in the following ways:

You can use the online postcard here to tell us what you think Government should do to make it right
You can use these forms (group feedback, individual feedback) to feedback on any action that you have taken
E-mail us copies of your documents or resources you have created to uncrc@niccy.org.
You can post it to us at:

Make it Right Campaign
Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People
Millennium House
17-25 Great Victoria Street
Belfast
BT2 7BA

Please Note - information we receive may be used on the NICCY website and in NICCY publications. Please ensure you have the appropriate consent from parents/carers and young people to send us the information.

Workshop links

For some suggestions and to do a workshop on chidlren having a say use the links below:

Organisations that can help

Further Reading

NICCY: Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People