To date, more than 2,600 children and young people have had an opportunity to have their say in the development of the three-year whole of government Strategic Plan for Children and Young People.
The Advocate for Children and Young People personally attends and conducts as many consultations as possible throughout NSW. More than 1,000 NSW children and young people have spoken directly to the Advocate as part of the consultation process. Consultations have recently taken place in Dubbo, Coonamble, Raymond Terrace, Scone, Mount Druitt, Merrylands and Yarramundi to name a few locations. We have been able to reach so many children through partnerships formed with NGOs and government agencies.
The aim is to ensure as many children and young people as possible have an opportunity to have their say on the Strategic Plan, particularly those experiencing disadvantage and exclusion. The Advocate has been able to conduct consultations with young people experiencing homelessness, those in the out of home care system, children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and Aboriginal young people.
The Office of the Advocate will continue to create spaces and locations for children and young people to engage in the consultation process and give as many people in NSW as possible the opportunity to have their voice heard on the Strategic Plan.
To continue to hear from children and young people from diverse backgrounds all over NSW, we are using several methods including facilitated consultations in school classrooms, youth centres, at youth events and recreation centres, as well as through online surveys and polling.
All participants are asked the following four questions; and clear trends are emerging in what we are hearing.
- What is working well for children and young people in NSW?
- What is not working well for children and young people in NSW?
- What are the top three things you would like the government to focus on to make the lives of children and young people better in NSW?
- What words describe the qualities of a good society for children and young people?
Resources are provided on the website for your organisation and/or children and young people themselves to run the consultation – see here.
The office of the Advocate will continue to share updates on the consultation process on www.acyp.nsw.gov.au and through newsletters.
This map indicates towns in NSW where participants in the consultation process come from.
