Best Practice Examples

The Participation Team is keen to share best practice. We want to recognise and celebrate the participation of children and young people and the dedication of practitioners. We also want to develop an area where practitioners can look for ideas. If would like to share your work here please contact graham.reeves@lincolnshire.gov.uk.

New issue-based podcast resource for young people

No Ball Games is a podcast resource exploring a number of group-related issues including the consequences of anti social behaviour and peer pressure. The main character, Paige, wants to be a part of a group but may be going the wrong way about it. She could lose her best friend in the process. There are set intervals between scenes which will allow young people to discuss the issue and look at what Paige should or should not do.

No Ball Games was written, produced and performed by young people from Grantham Youth Centre. They were supported by Shooting FIsh Theatre Company and funded by MediaBox. After working most weekends between October 2010 and Jan 2011, it was aired live via Siren FM Lincoln.

You can access the podcast at http://shootingfish.podomatic.com/. If you want a CD of No Ball Games contact:

Cherry Sheppard, Youth Development Worker, Earlesfield Youth Centre, Trent Road, Grantham, NG31 7XQ

cherry.sheppard@lincolnshire.gov.uk Tel and Fax No 01476 578866

Multi-cultural youth group become movie-makers

South Kesteven District Council and the Local Strategic Partnership commissioned film-makers Electric Egg to produce a DVD highlighting what its like for young people, brought or sent to this country, whose first language isn't English to be dropped into British society and our education system.  Working with Lincolnshire County Council Children's Services at New Beacon Lane Youth Centre and an established multi-cultural group of young people from St Hugh's CE High School, the film-makers trained the participants in interview skills - both in front and behind the camera - how to film their peers and how to ask the questions that best answered what this promised 'better life' is really like. The participants chose the locations; they decided the questions to ask, the content and the final edit.

The result is a 10 minute film called 'Welcome to Grantham' that can be used to educate and inform.  The intention is to share the film with partner agencies in schools, colleges and with other public and third sector bodies helping to promote acceptance, integration and ultimately, community cohesion.

The reason this film was made

In South Kesteven we wanted to know what it was like for children of adult migrants - after all they did not make the decision to move to this country.  Whilst any member of a migrant family has left behind friends, relations - life as they know it - the upheaval is perhaps easier to cope with if you are the person with the choice of whether to move or not. The project was lead by SKDC with partnership support and input from John Wills, formerly of LCC Children's Services and Jo Knight from St Hugh's Mathematics and Computer College, Grantham.

'Welcome to Grantham' does not show the whole story but it really does give us an insight into the journey these young people from Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal and Hungary have taken.

The film is available for anyone to view on www.southkesteven.gov.uk and copies of the film, along with teachers' notes are available to anyone working directly with young people by contacting Carol Drury on 01476 406161 or by e mail at c.drury@southkesteven.gov.uk

Speaking Out

The aim of this youth assembly event was to establish a structure and process which will enable young people to influence services and priorities in Boston and have a voice in their community.

Young people came together from across Boston Borough to meet local decision makers. They put questions to a panel which included representatives from Children's Services, Police, NHS, and Boston Borough Council. Other partner agencies involved included Mayflower Housing Association, Action for Young Carers and South Holland Voluntary Services.

The event highlighted the issues that are important to young people, and gave professionals working in the area the chance to find out exactly what young people think about local issues and jointly discuss possible solutions.

All the young people engaged positively and gained a recorded learning outcome. Of the 27 young people who attended over half put their names forward to be on the Youth Council. This will ensure that young people continue to have a voice in Boston Borough.

Young Carers - See Me Talk To Me

In November 2008 two young carers spent the 11 Million Takeover Day with the Carers Lead for Lincolnshire, Sarah Oliver. They shared their views on how they were perceived and treated by health professionals, in a variety of health settings, when supporting the person they care for. An initial scoping meeting between young carers and health professionals paved the way for the "See Me Talk to Me" project.

The young carers aim to bring about change through a best practice model, and prevent other young carers having poor experiences within health settings.

Young carers see this project as a priority. They named the project "See Me Talk to Me" in order to try and raise their caring profile, and gain proper recognition for their caring responsibilities across the NHS.

LCDP work on Tower Estate, Lincoln

A short movie created by Ola Moran-Ziętek (Community Development Worker with LCDP) about community activities facilitated by her in the Tower Estate, Lincoln, UK.

Intro animations created by Tower Young People.

Thanks to all in Tower!

Original music written & performed by Joe Fahy, who kindly gave his permission for it to be used.

To find out more about LCDP visit: http://www.lcdp.org.uk

Watch the movie here