Listen Up - Social Welfare Portal

listenup!Chapter 8 | 65“If young people are sitting on interview panels, theyare briefed about ethics and it is explained to them indetail what kind of person is needed for the role.”Project worker, the Caterpillar Service,Barnardo’s Marlborough Road Partnership, CardiffTaking part in external eventsAll eight organisations encouraged and supportedyoung people to take part in external eventsand consultations, and to network with otherorganisations and professionals.Young people from the partner sites attended,presented and ran workshops at local and nationalevents and conferences aimed at raising awarenessof mental health and emotional wellbeing andtackling stigma. Young people also presented theirpersonal stories and shared their experiences, asCase StudyThe Caterpillar Service at Barnardo’sMarlborough Road Partnership in Cardiff,was involved in several national consultationexercises, including the first stage of thisproject, Youth Crisis I; The National Self-HarmInquiry (Camelot Foundation and the MentalHealth Foundation); and a project with theSamaritans looking at how young peopleused text messages and mobile phones,with regard to exploring the benefits ofusing this form of communication betweenprofessionals and young people.YoungMinds and Mind consulted theorganisation on the content of theinformation they provided to young people,and young people at the service gave theiropinions on the service’s promotionalmaterial, sat on interview panels, and helpeddelivering training to external professionals.well as participating in discussions with a range ofkey stakeholders.“I have gained a big boost in confidence by talking infront of adults in a big room.”Young personThe youth advisory board at Support @ TheJunction, was consulted by external professionalson the best way to talk to young people aboutself-harm, and representatives were invited bythe local NHS trust to present ideas on how toimprove services for young people. A young personfrom Streetwise was asked to speak to Ofsted, theschools inspectorate, to share their experience andtheir opinions of the service. Young people fromExperience in Mind attended external events suchas meetings of the Child and Adolescent MentalHealth Service (CAMHS) at the local NHS trust, andthe trust’s annual general meeting.At all times, young people’s involvement in externalactivities was flexible, and they were able tocontribute at a level they felt comfortable with.Members of staff were always on hand to providesupport for young people preparing for activities,and to debrief them after participation work.“The process of preparing for a presentation takesup to eight weeks of workshops to ensure thatyoung people are confident, polished and fullyrehearsed… young people are briefed not only onthe content of what they would be doing, but alsopracticalities such as the protocol of the day andsuitable clothing.”Project worker, the Caterpillar Service,Barnardo’s Marlborough Road Partnership, CardiffTraining staff in other agenciesMany young people consulted as part of YouthCrisis I wanted to be involved in the training of staff.This reflected young people’s need to be listenedto and respected, particularly in times of potentialcrisis and/or powerlessness. Young people felt that