Introduction to youth voice and participation: Transform the way you work with young people | Sound Connections

Lawrence Becko, Jennifer Raven, Wired4Music Young Leader

Cost of session: £20 freelancer rate; £35 organisations with annual turnover of less than £250k; £55 organisations with annual turnover of more than £250k. 

What is youth voice? How can we involve young people in decision-making? What are the benefits of co-production with young people?

This training day will change how you think about youth engagement. We will explain the core principles of Youth Voice and Participation and give you the practical skills to put them into action. You will discover how to give young people a say and empower them to take a lead in your programmes and activities.

Through interactive activities, group work and knowledge-sharing, you will discover why youth voice is important, how it works and how you can successfully use the approaches within your practice or organisation. The day is suited to both practitioners and those working within small or large organisations.

Who is this session for?

This session is ideal for coordinators and managers whose work involves or impacts on children and young people. You might be running creative projects or other activities, or your organisation may have a focus on improving the lives of under 25s. You might be new to youth voice or looking to develop your understanding of this important and exciting approach.

By the end of the session you will:

• Understand the context of youth voice: its origins, concepts and all the key models
• Have practical tools, techniques and skills to start championing youth voice in your organisation
• Know what it takes to embed youth voice within your activities and make real change within your organisation.

We are grateful to our partners at Wigmore Hall for kindly hosting this event.

Tea and coffee will be provided.

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Lawrence Becko

Lawrence is a facilitator, consultant and ILM Level 7 Accredited Coach with a specialism in youth voice, participation and leadership. He has worked in arts and culture for over ten years and has also had a successful career in the commercial music industry. As a strategic consultant he has advised on organisational change for a diverse range of organisations working across music, theatre, dance, poetry, carnival, film and television. He has previously worked for Sound Connections, developing youth voice programmes, training and consultancy. He is currently the lead facilitator of A New Direction’s Connected Lab, a peer learning programme for cultural managers, and advisor to the Kinetika Bloco Leadership Programme for young jazz talent. He mentors and coaches emerging artists and mid-career professionals in the cultural sector and creative industries, and is the Chair of Fairbeats Music, a charity working with young refugees in south London.

Jennifer Raven

Jennifer Raven is Deputy Director of Sound Connections, where she has worked since 2014. One of Jenn’s main roles is leading the Sound Connections consultancy service with a focus on evaluation, research and youth voice. Most recently she has evaluated BSO Change Makers, Live Music Now, the National Open Youth Orchestra and NYMAZ (North Yorkshire Music Action Zone). In October 2019 she is excited to be travelling to Lebanon and Jordan to evaluate Action for Hope’s music programme for refugees – her first international evaluation project!

Before joining Sound Connections, Jenn worked within the music team at schools network Ark. In 2009 she co-founded Fairbeats – a charity with a focus on music-making for young refugees and new migrants – where she is now a Director. Jennifer is also a flute player and a Trustee of the South East London Orchestra where her role focuses on Community Development.