Children and Young People's Participation

Lead: Dr Jane Coad with Dr Trudy Goodenough, Dr Jenny Ingram and Dr Raghu Lingam

Collaborators: Dr Alison Metcalfe (University of Birmingham); Dr Steve Ball (Birmingham Repertory Theatre); Rosie Houston (Projects Manager; The Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Child Health (CEMACH); Lynn Molloy (ALSPAC); Joy Grech (Birmingham City University); Action for Sick Children (Chair; Pamela Barnes); Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health; Dr. John Powell (University of Warwick) and Professor Fiona Brooks (University of Hertfordshire).

The theme aims to develop participatory projects that seek to engage children and young people in health and social care settings using a range of research methods.

FamilyTalk – Communicating across CYP and their families genetic information

In collaboration with Dr Alison Metcalfe FamilyTalk is national Department of Health project funded until 2010. It seeks to understand how children, young people and their families communicate and make sense about genetic conditions.

Evaluation of an early art based programme based at The Birmingham Repertory Theatre (REP’s Children)

This three-year evaluation project was completed September 2008. The study evaluated the impact of the social and educational role of Birmingham Repertory Theatre, West Midlands with respect to an early years theatre project, delivered to a cohort of children born in Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, West Midlands (which includes City and Sandwell general hospitals) during October, 2004.

Memories of Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), Birmingham Children’s Hospital

This project began in 2007 and will complete in 2009. It seeks to understand children aged between 7 and 12 years memories of PICU. Methods employed include a combination of story telling, visual prompts, draw and write and workshop activities with children who were patients in PICU.

Involving children and young people in decision-making in health care services – a consultation exercise

Following a comprehensive literature review in 2007, Action for Sick Children commissioned Jane Coad and Rosie Houston to undertake a consultation with a selection of 15 acute and primary care NHS trusts in England. The consultation exercise highlighted positive examples and a fundamental shift in NHS Trusts in developing a culture of children and young people’s participation and involvement using innovative and creative methods.

Young people’s sexual health services

Jenny Ingram has been working with Debra Salmon and Judy Orme in the Faculty of Health and Social Care at UWE for several years, evaluating enhanced sexual health services for young people in Bristol and North Somerset. In North Somerset PCT, the ‘No Worries!’ service for young people is specifically designed to provide confidential advice, information, contraception and testing for sexually transmitted infections for those aged 12-18 years.

Wider Participation

Jane Coad leads the theme and is also actively involved on a number of local and national participation service initiatives and research committees including The Royal College of Nursing (RCN); Action for Sick Children; The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health; Making Space 4 Children and Wellchild.

Trudy Gooodenough joined the children and young people’s participation theme in May 2008. Trudy brings her experience of working with children and young people in a wide variety of research and service settings to this theme. Together Jane and Trudy have been building on existing links and undertaking work with a range of potential partners. One is these is ALSPAC with respect to their participation agenda through co-leading training days for staff and contributing to the ongoing support of their Teenage Advisory Panel known as TAP.