But how do you know if a service is any good? That’s where the Young Inspectors come in.
Young Inspectors have the job of checking out every Families First service and deciding how good they are for other young people. After all, who better to review the services than the people who use them?
They receive training, experience and payment in the form of time credits.
TheSprout is all about empowering young people and amplifying their voices so we’re proud to announce that we’ll publish every Young Inspectors report for you to read and feed back on in the comments section.
I think time credits are a great idea for recognising the contributions and commitment that young people show when being involved in projects. I look forward to earning more and spending more time with my friends doing stuff we love to do. – Chloe
What kind of things do they look at?
The inspections focus on 7 topics:-
1. Information
Click here to read more about the 7 Participation Standards
Information that is easy to understand for everyone
2. It’s Your Choice
You choose what you do and how you do it
3. No Discrimination
Everyone to feel welcome and be able to get involved
4. Respect
Everyone has a chance to have a say, your opinions are respected
5. You Get Something Out Of It
You enjoy and benefit from taking part
6. Feedback
Know what difference you have made and how your ideas have been used
7. Improving How We Work
Services learn and get better at the way they work with you
These are the 7 Participation Standards that make up the National Children and Young People’s Participation Standards for Wales. The Young Inspectors rate services on all 7, award Kite-marks (kinda like medals) to the best ones, and give advice on how to improve the others.
Here’s what some of the Young Inspectors had to say about it:
“I felt nervous carrying out the interviews at first but as my confidence grew it felt nice to hold some power and authority”. – Karan
“I have gained various new skills such as interviewing skills, investigation skills as well as developed a knowledge in children’s rights and participation. So far I have carried out over 2 inspections on two very different services and I am looking forward to supporting the new young inspectors with their upcoming inspection”. – Chloe
“Being an inspector has made it easier to do interviews for jobs, seeing it from the other side”. – Lisa
Interested in becoming a Young Inspector?
Awesome!
You’ll want to get in touch with Lee Richards, the Young People’s Commissioning Officer.
The best ways to reach him are:
You can also leave a comment below with any questions, but please remember comments are posted publicly so you shouldn’t include any personal contact information.