Decision-making: children and young people's participation

Consider existing evidence

Before you initiate any new engagement with children and young people it is important to consider any existing evidence already available to you regarding children and young people’s views on your topic of interest.

Children and young people have told us that they are tired of being asked the same questions repeatedly. It is important that we are respectful of any previous engagement with children and young people and that we consider what they have already shared with us or others, before seeking new conversations.

Reviewing existing evidence makes sense for lots of reasons:

• it demonstrates the value we place on children and young people’s previous contributions, therefore reducing the risk of the repetitive conversations that result in stakeholder fatigue
• it can help you to confirm a need for any new engagement and provide a justification for budget allocation
• it increases the value of any new engagement by ensuring it builds on existing knowledge
• it is the most effective approach to participatory decision making (you might find what you are looking for and conclude there is no requirement for new direct engagement)

Finding existing evidence

Child rights and wellbeing impact assessments (CRWIA) are used to identify, research, analyse and record the impact of a proposed law or policy on children's human rights and wellbeing.

The Scottish Government applies the CRWIA process to new legislation and policy which impacts children, not just children's services.

This list of published child rights and wellbeing impact assessments provide insight into children and young people’s views on a range of topics.

Another useful source of information might be the Children in Scotland Evidence Bank.