Democratic Action for Bath & North East Somerset Youth (DAFBY)

BASIC INFORMATION

Case study date: November 2005

Local authority in which project based: Bath and North East Somerset

Date started: September 2000

Type of organisation: Statutory youth service

Brief description, including aims and objectives:

Democratic Action for B&NES Youth(DAFBY) is the youth democracy service for young people aged 13-19 in Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES). The service, underpinned by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, aims to reach and support young people in having a voice in decision-making processes that affect their lives, so that they become more active citizens. DAFBY currently has around 45 democratically elected members, known as youth councillors, who represent other young people within B&NES Council, the Connexions service and the UK Youth Parliament (UKYP). Members are involved in a range of citizenship activities, provide support to the member of youth parliament (MYP), campaign for young people's rights, work strategically with B&NES Council, participate in the development of the Connexions service and undertake peer education. DAFBY is taking part in the Qualification and Curriculum Authority (QCA) post-16 citizenship pilot programme.

Details of lead agency and other partners:

Youth Service, Connexions, local strategic partnership, Learning and Skills Council, regeneration agencies.

Funding:

Connexions - £15,000 per annum - 3 year funding
Youth Service - £42,000 per annum - core funding

Staffing:

1 x full-time youth worker
1 x 20 hours part-time youth worker
1 x voluntary senior member
1 x 12 hour clerical worker

All the young people involved in the project are considered to be volunteers.

NATURE OF PROVISION

Which groups of young people does the project work with and why?

DAFBY is open to all young people across B&NES but has particularly targeted young people in rural settings. The authority contains the city of Bath, the smaller towns of Keynsham, Midsomer Norton and Radstock, large villages such as Peasedown St John and Paulton and rural areas such as Chew Valley. There are areas of social deprivation in Bath as well as hidden deprivation in the rural areas and former coal mining towns.

Members of the group are mainly white British. The overall age range is 13 to 19, with young people aged 16 to 18 making up about a quarter of the membership. There is an equal gender balance and representation from gay and disabled young people. Members - who come from six local schools, two training providers and two FE colleges - represent young people in education, work and training.

How was the need for the project identified, and by whom?

The project was identified as part of the council's youth and community support for its Lifelong Learning Strategy.

Young people have been involved in developing DAFBY since the election of the first member of the UKYP in 2000. A small group of young people expressed interest in setting up a democracy project to ensure that the voices of all young people in B&NES were being heard. They decided to call the project DAFBY, with the strapline: 'getting a say for young people today'.

How do young people become involved? What, if any, commitment do you ask for?

Young people can become involved in a number of ways - through:

School councils
Election workshop training
Word of mouth
Local youth forums

Any young person can belong to DAFBY. They can find out about the work it does in their area through the website and various promotional materials.

Youth councillors and the member of UKYP are democratically elected - there is no minimum time requirement but young people are asked to be prepared to attend regular meetings and take an active part in consultations.

What are the main approaches used and activities offered?

Elections for DAFBY members - youth councillors - are held at six schools in conjunction with UKYP elections, overseen by youth and community workers. All prospective candidates are offered a training day.

DAFBY is based on the three dimensional model of citizenship education:

Social and moral behaviour
Action in the community
Political literacy

It meets on a weekly basis and identifies a number of lead issues which it prioritises for development. Different members attend each meeting, depending on its focus, and everyone comes together about once a month - the youth and community service funds minibus taxis to bring young people to the centre from across the large rural area.

The main approaches used are group work and peer education. The young people regularly work in focus groups as part of the consultation process, and organise conferences and events on specific themes. Members develop their skills on citizenship issues through structured workshops and training on management, presentation and communication skills.

The group has taken action on a wide range of issues including transport; city centre youth provision, stereotyping of young people, reducing youth crime and working for equality. Specific examples of work undertaken include:

consultations on Youth Matters Green paper, regeneration, and the authority's housing participation strategy;
peer support for the development and training of school councils and local youth forums;
an international youth exchange to Germany on the European Year of Citizenship;
assisting the council on its adoption of Hear by Right participation standards and Act by Right participation skills training, Change for Children (the national framework for children and young people's services) and its participation strategy;
involvement in the recruitment of the Children's Commissioner.

DAFBY also feeds in the views of young people and sit on a number of boards and panels such as the local strategic partnership and the Connexions development board.

How are young people involved in shaping the project/programme?

Young people integrally shape and drive the programme, working with youth workers to develop the participation strategy and the project's annual plan and evaluation.

Involvement in the Hear by Right agenda, developments around Every Child Matters and Change for Children also ensure young people's voices are heard at every level.

How does the project respond to the needs of different young people, particularly the most marginalised?

DAFBY is open to all young people but has particularly targeted young people in rural settings, including providing transport for members to attend meetings. The project positively encourages young people who are particularly marginalised by society and this reflects the young people who attend the project. DAFBY has actively supported youth forums representing marginalised groups such as the Black Youth Forum and the SWOT (South West triangle youth forum). Members have also been trained to consult with disabled young people on service provision and disabled DAFBY members have joined B&NES disabled equality forum. DAFBY have also offered support for the development of a gay, lesbian and bisexual young people's forum.

OUTCOMES OF WORK

How do young people benefit from their involvement in the project?

Individual young people develop skills, knowledge and expertise leading to improved self esteem and belief in themselves. Group work sessions reveal visible increases in members' confidence and their belief in young people's power to bring about change

Involvement also provides opportunities for accreditation.

How do other young people, organisations or the wider community benefit from the project?

All local young people benefit from the representative voice provided through DAFBY and the resulting outcomes, such as improved outdoor space for young people across the authority. Members' involvement in decision-making processes at local town and parish council level also offers opportunities to improve the local area and resources for young people.

Does the project contribute to community cohesion? If so, how?

The project has regularly worked with town, parish councils, youth groups, police, community safety action groups, other community members and young people to develop better understanding of the needs of young people in the community and improve facilities for youngpeople. Examples include a Youth Action Group set up in Keynsham to facilitate the development of a Time Out centre for young people. Involvement in DAFBY also helps members increase theirunderstanding of the needs and circumstances of others, and develop an enhanced sense of social responsibility

How are young people's progress and achievements measured and recorded?

Each young person compiles a portfolio to record their achievements and some work towards external assessment such as Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme or Millennium Volunteers. The project also offers its own accreditation through Young B&NES Award scheme.

MEASURING EFFECTIVENESS

How is the project evaluated and by whom? Please include both internal and external processes

The project contributes to government benchmarking and the transforming youth work agenda. Evaluation takes place through internal quality assurance systems which include regular reports and an annual report. Line managers, staff and young people have an input through questionnaires and informal consultation.

What are the findings of any evaluations (including Ofsted inspections) to date?

Strengths:

Enthusiastic young people who are effective in and committed to consulting other young people in the area.
A well managed project with clear support from senior management.
An inclusive and friendly atmosphere.
Young people's achievements are well recorded in portfolios.
Young people articulate their opinions effectively and respect the opinions of others.
Well qualified and committed staff.

Areas for development:

Greater focus on developing young people's attitudes in the group, so young people have a more in-depth understanding of current affairs and issues and therefore can develop debating skills on a more improved level.
Ensuring that partnership work with other organisations is fully productive.
Greater involvement of young people in the strategic development of the project

What changes/developments have occurred - or are planned - as a result of evaluation?

Improved access to IT and other technical resources
Greater involvement of schools in the project
Young people have been more involved in the local strategic partnership and change for children agendas

What factors help the work?

The enthusiasm and commitment of young people and adults who believe in the rights of young people to have a full say in decision-making processes.
Support for the project from councillors, council and youth service to make it happen.
Regular weekly meetings, enabling project members to increase their understanding of the issues and develop meaningful approaches to participation and consultation.

What factors hinder the work?

Restricted access to funding as a statutory sector project.
It is not always recognised that young people need considerable skills, support and training to enable them to cope with the levels of consultation and participation expected of them. As a result, young people are sometimes described as 'too articulate', but it is important that they are not 'set up to fail'.
The dispersed membership means high transport demand and costs. This could be seen as unnecessary, but the project would not function as well if young people did not meet on a regular basis.
Schools find it difficult to engage with, and understand, youth work. Much effort has been put in to trying to involve schools, with limited success.

PARTNERSHIP/MULTI-DISCIPLINARY WORKING

What other agencies do you work with (if not specified in section 1?)

Town and parish councils
LSDA
DfES - post 16 citizenship
Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme
Millennium Volunteers

When working in partnership, what is the distinctive contribution of your organisation/project?

Bring together young people from a wide variety of backgrounds who are articulate and confident in expressing opinions.
Knowledge and understanding of participation and government processes

Has this partnership resulted in greater collaboration or increased understanding between partners? If so, how?

Young people's views are better represented in a wide variety of partnerships.

STRATEGIC IMPACT

Do you consider this project to be innovative? If so, how?

In the South West, Bath and North East Somerset Council was one of the first to recognise the need for youth involvement and set aside funding to set up DAFBY and support for the member of youth parliament.

The project has also been involved in trialling methods of assessing informal learning on behalf of QCA.

How do you disseminate the learning from the project?

Citizenship News
Reports to the council
DAFBY members take part in training and dissemination activities, including demonstration videos and presentations, all of which promote the value of participation.

What plans do you have to sustain/develop this work?

There are plans to look at how the council will deliver the "Hear by Right" agenda across the authority and develop strategies for the active participation of young people at all levels.

CONTACT DETAILS

Kate Scully/Andy Browning
Youth democracy office
Peasedown St John youth centre
Bath Road
Peasedown St John
Bath
BA2 8DH

Tel: 01761 300302

Fax: 01761 300302

E-mail: kate_scully@bathnes.gov.uk

Website: http://www.dafby.com/