Peer Action Collective Cymru showcased their work at the Senedd today, 28th September, at an event sponsored by Mark Drakeford, MS for Cardiff West.
At the event, attended by over 100 people, Peer Action Collective Cymru shared highlights of their work including the Wales Without Violence Framework, coproduced with the Wales Violence Prevention Unit, and the Youth Charter, coproduced with CASCADE, Cardiff University.
Peer Action Collective are a ground-breaking network of Peer Researchers, Social Action Leads and Changemakers, funded by Youth Endowment Fund, the #iwill Fund and the Co-op group. In Wales, Peer Action Collective Cymru have dedicated their time to working with children and young people on understanding what causes violence, and what could work to end it.
The event was an opportunity for the Peer Action Collective Cymru to share this learning with professionals working with children and young people, to support conversations on coproduction and the importance of supporting young people to have a say in decisions that affect them.
A recent report by the Wales Violence Prevention Unit highlighted how many children and young people do not feel listened to by professionals. In a survey of over 450 children and young people across Wales, 74% agreed that they had the power to make change whilst only 23% said they “always” felt listened to by professionals, with the majority (53%) saying they felt listened to only “sometimes”.
“Through many conversations with children and young people, we have heard a collective hope for a future Wales where all children and young people feel safe and included and are treated fairly.
We have also heard that children and young people want to be involved in developing solutions to violence, and other issues that affect them. Children and young people want, and deserve, a seat at the table where these types of things are being discussed.
Through Peer Action Collective Cymru, we have been fortunate to build partnerships with professionals that enable these opportunities for young people, and we know that there is more to do. I hope that from discussions had today, more organisations will consider how they can embed meaningful coproduction and collaborative practice into their work."
Steph McArdle- Peer Action Collective Cymru Coordinator, Media Academy Cymru