Vision for a ChildFair State This is the hub for finding out all about the ChildFair State project, and young people's vision for 'childfair' welfare systems. Children and young people from across England, with many different experiences of welfare services and systems, have researched and designed a new vision for those systems, based on new principles such as social justice, equity and love. Scroll through the document below to see what their peer research found and what changes they believe should be made in health, housing, education and social security, as well as in local neighbourhoods where younger people see accessible, informal support for their wellbeing - so often provided by the voluntary sector - as vital. You can skip to specific chapters and sub-sections using the interactive links in the contents page. Watch the launch event You can view the recording of the event at which the Young Leaders launched their Vision for a ChildFair State here: Printed copies of the ChildFair State Vision The ChildFair State Vision has been beautifully designed by Josie Vallely as a 30-page, full colour A4 book. We have a limited number of printed copies to send to people who can make good use of them. You could: Explore with the children you work with what the 'values and approaches' would look like if they were put into practice in your service / area Take a particular chapter, eg housing, and discuss the issues it describes with young people. Which policy do they think would make the most difference, and how could they help make it a reality? Support children and young people to explore what 'childfair' means to them, either in the local community or across the country - what would they change and what principles do they think a childfair place should be built on? Take the ChildFair State Vision to a meeting of your trustees, governors, council or other decision-makers and ask them to put it on the agenda for discussing potential actions they can take in response We can't promise everyone who asks will get one, but we'll do our best! Click through to request one free copy here or email us if you'd like to discuss paying for a larger order Responses to the ChildFair State Vision Watch Polly Neate, CEO of housing charity Shelter and member of the Sounding Board that supported the Young Leaders, offer her reactions to the Vision for a ChildFair State: - View responses from more people here. Background to the ChildFair State Vision Children England worked with a group of young people for over three years to research and develop their vision for health, housing, education, social security and neighbourhoods. They first met in late 2019 to explore what the welfare state meant to them, and to plan peer research into children and young people's experiences of those services. The pandemic hit the UK shortly afterwards, and their work moved swiftly online. The Young Leaders themselves 26 young people aged 13 - 21 were involved in the research phase of the project. They come from all over England and have a wide range of experiences of growing up, including the care system, health conditions and exclusion from school. Around 15 of them stayed on to develop policy recommendations and complete the 'Vision'. Watch clips of the Young Leaders introducing themselves here Read blogs by the Young Leaders about the changes they feel are necessary in public services Read about the youth-led process we used to support their work The ChildFair State research The Young Leaders ran workshops, interviews and an online survey asking children and young people about their experience of welfare systems. They asked what was working, what needed to change and what their biggest hope for future generations was. Many of the responses are threaded through the ChildFair State Vision. On housing, young people described the mental health impacts of severe precariousness, and the need for more education about tenants' rights and landlords' responsibilities. On neighbourhoods, young people commented on the solidarity that arose during the pandemic, and lamented the lack of community cohesion at other times, as well as the exclusion of younger people from decision-making. On health, young people expressed both a love and respect for the NHS, and anxiety about putting more strain on an already-pressurised system. On education, some children talked about the importance of school as somewhere to get away from pressures at home, while others said school was too focussed on the most academic students and there wasn't enough focus on getting out of the classroom, and learning useful skills for adult life. Read a summary of all the research findings here Proposals for a ChildFair State The Young Leaders' complete proposals for change at local and national level are detailed in the Vision, above. They include actions that can be taken locally, such as schools forging more links with the community to broaden the range of activities students can get involved in, and actions for national government, such as equalising pay and benefits for under 25 year olds. What we think is striking about them is that they all strive to give more agency to children and young people, and many aim for a breaking down of hierarchies and barriers that currently compartmentalise young people's experiences and deem their views less important than professionals'. They also strive to give everyone the space, time and confidence to build trusting relationships, including across the generations, understanding that this will contribute significantly to resilience and wellbeing. The Young Leaders, supported by the Sounding Board of civil society leaders, propose a new set of Values and Approaches which all the branches of the welfare state should use: Values Approaches Citizenship - we all have rights and entitlements Shift: from punishment to dignity, from scarcity to universality Interdependence - between each other and between services Communities in the lead Equity and equality Connectivity between people and decision-makers Lived experiences are mutually valid Holistic approach to individual needs Social justice Listen and take action / enable others to act Love and kindness Prevention is better than cure Neighbourliness and mutual aid Collective responsibility Read about some of the Young Leaders' specific ideas for new policies and new practices at local level. You can also click through to: The origins of the Inquiry - why did we want to re-imagine the welfare state, including the whole of housing, education, social security, health and neighbourhood-level issues? The process - who are our Young Leaders and how did they do their research into other young people's experience and hopes for the welfare state? Manage Cookie Preferences