Involving young people: Participatory practice in recovery and reintegration

The concluding call to action at the III World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents in Rio de Janeiro in 2008 stated:

"We will support measures and structures to institutionalize meaningful child participation in a sustainable way at all levels, including for child victims of or at risk of sexual exploitation, for example through adequately resourced child and youth advisory committees, community-based programmes and peer-to-peer initiatives"

A number of recent publications have highlighted examples of how children and young people affected by exploitation and trafficking can be meaningfully involved in research, policy and practice. Organisations are developing innovative ways to hear children's voices, their needs, experiences and dreams.

Young people affected by sexual exploitation and abuse are one group that are regularly left out of decision-making as they are regarded as 'too vulnerable' (Brown, 2006). By leaving these young people out we are not only sending the message that their views and opinions do not matter, but we are also missing out on valuable knowledge that could improve the outcomes for these children and others in similar situations in the future.

In recent years a handful of innovative projects have highlighted the benefits of involving children and young people. It has been highlighted that participatory activities not only lead to the production of rich sources of information, but also how such activities can help children and young people gain confidence, self-esteem, leadership skills and move forward leaving their 'victim' status behind (Brown, 2006; Crispin, 2009; Lloyd, 2010).

Although there are a myriad of ethical concerns and child protection elements to be mindful of when working with young people and seeking their views, these should not deflect from the rights of children to voice their opinions. At the same time if children are asked to get involved it should not simply be for the sake of research or a chance to be 'participatory'. Their views must be fed into higher level decision making processes and at least thoroughly considered if not acted upon.

Here are some examples from across the globe to show how children and young people can meaningfully engage and give voice and choice in research, policy and practice in this field.

Research

The Youth Partnership Programme in Asia has developed innovative creative peer-led techniques with the goal of empowering and improving the lives of child survivors of exploitation. One component, the 'Micro Project Scheme' enabled young people to design, develop and implement their own initiatives. This opportunity for young people to make choices, think creatively, develop their own responses to problems and take responsibility for the projects, led to the development of leadership qualities and self-confidence (Crispin, 2009). One such project developed by the youth involved a survey of children working in Kathmandu dance bars, cabin restaurants and massage parlours who were believed to be 'at risk'. It was felt that the respondents would be more likely to share information regarding their experiences and concerns with peers than with adult researchers.

Programming

In the same Youth Partnership Programme, young people in a shelter home in India put forward a proposal to develop a library and recreation room in the shelter to educate themselves and have a space to come together and do fun activities .Girls at the same home also applied for a small amount of funding to develop puppet shows to raise awareness about trafficking and exploitation in the local community. The shows were also an attempt to improve their situation by challenging the misunderstandings and negative perceptions the community had about the girls residing in the shelter (Crispin, 2009).

Publications and resources for practitioners and other young people

'Out of the box' is a booklet produced by young people for young people. The publication, funded by Comic Relief, was developed in the UK by young people involved in specialist support projects. The booklet features stories and poems from the young people who wanted to share their experiences, and encourage other young people to talk about what might be happening to them (Pearce, 2010).

Training and conferences

As part of the National Youth Campaign on Sexual Exploitation in the UK young people affected by exploitation were supported to facilitate a workshop at a conference for practitioners. This allowed the professionals attending to understand from the young people themselves what support they had needed and what had helped them break free. The evaluation of the day showed the impact that the young facilitators had on the practitioners. It was also reported that the young people themselves developed confidence, self-esteem and new skills in facilitating the day - which were beneficial to their continuing recovery (Brown, 2006).

Monitoring and evaluation

In the USA the organisation Girls Educational and Mentoring Service (GEMS) has a well established youth leadership programme for young girls who have been domestically trafficked and involved in sexual exploitation. In order to evaluate the impact of the programme, a research team made up of the young people involved in the service were trained and supported to deliver interviews with other young people to learn about their experiences of participating in the programme (Lloyd, 2010). Not only did this experience teach these young people new skills, but allowed for more open and honest interviews between trusted young people, sidestepping the power and authority dynamics that can cloud traditional interviewing with young people.

Advisory committees

The national Child Trafficking Advice and Information Line (CTAIL) is run by the National Association for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children Project (NSPCC) in the UK. CTAIL is a specialist service for anyone working with children who may have been trafficked. Two young peoples' advisory groups have been established to offer advice and input into CTAIL. One group is for young men who were trafficked into the UK and one group for young women. The advisory groups provide an opportunity for these young people to meet, discuss their experiences, provide information and training to practitioners and input into the development of CTAIL (Pearce, 2010).

To read more about these projects and others see the following resources:

Resources

• Brown, K. (2006) Participation and young people involved in prostitution. Child Abuse Review, vol 15 (5) 294-312
• Crispin, V. (2009) Youth partnership project: Empowering youth to fight trafficking and the commercial sexual exploitation of children: Youth micro projects: ECPAT International
• Lloyd, R. (2010) From victim to survivor, from survivor to leader: The importance of leadership programming and opportunities for commercially sexually exploited and trafficked young women and girls: GEMS
• Young people from Streetreach, Doncaster with some contributions from young people from NSPCC London projects (2009) Out of the box: Young people's stories. Streetreach/ University of Bedfordshire/NSPCC
• Pearce, J. (2010) Children's participation in policy and practice to prevent child sexual abuse - Developing empowering interventions in Protecting children from sexual violence: A comprehensive approach. Council of Europe
• Warrington, C. (2010) From less harm to more good: the role of children and young people's participation in relation to sexual exploitation. Youth and Policy, No. 104, June 2010 pp.62-79