Year: 2026

Growing with Rights: Understanding and supporting the evolving capacities of the child

From birth, children undergo rapid and far-reaching development. Their physical, cognitive, social, emotional and moral capacities expand as they learn to communicate, form relationships, make choices and assume growing responsibility (see Box 1). Though this process continues across the life course, childhood is universally recognized as a critical stage in the development of those capacities. In law, adults are generally presumed to have full competence to act on their own behalf. Children, by contrast, are generally considered to be reliant on adults to safeguard their interests and to support their involvement in decision-making while their competence is developing.
These examples may give you some ideas on how you could engage with children and young people in decision-making.

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Amplifying marginalised voices: a rapid evidence review of participatory methods engaging justice-involved youth

This research explores participative approaches for amplifying the voices of justice- involved youth, a marginalised group in criminological research. Using the SPIDER framework, this rapid evidence review examines engagement methods, such as photovoice and lyric writing. The findings show these techniques empower youth and promote self- expression but are constrained by the dominance of risk- focused approaches that prioritise adult- led decision- making. This raises critical questions about the compatibility of participatory methods with justice systems focused on risk management. The study highlights the need for more inclusive approaches that navigate systemic constraints while embedding meaningful youth participation in justice reform.

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Guidance for Developing Ethical Research Projects Involving Children and Young Adults

The findings from this consultation process and evidence review have been fundamental in shaping the ethical guidance that follows. This guidance is therefore grounded not only in established core principles but also in the lived experiences and voices of children and young people themselves. It goes beyond simply outlining core ethical principles; instead, it proposes a reflective and ethically nuanced framework for consulting with children and young people, including those whose voices are seldom heard. This guidance aims to support researchers in approaching their work with greater ethical sensitivity, reflexivity, and commitment to genuine, inclusive engagement. This guidance should be read in conjunction with the accompanying evidence review, which provides the detailed research and policy context underpinning these recommendations. Together, these documents offer a robust foundation for advancing ethically sound, inclusive, and rights-based research practice involving children and young people.

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Core Principles for Meaningful Youth Participation in Intergovernmental Processes and Across the Work of the UN

Youth participation must be the rule, not the exception. Around the world, young people are organizing, innovating, and leading. They are not waiting for permission — they are shaping the future. Institutions must keep up.

The 2023 Policy Brief on Meaningful Youth Engagement called for a decisive shift: from symbolic inclusion to genuine partnership. Member States answered that call through the Pact for the Future.

The Core Principles for Meaningful Youth Participation take the next step — turning commitment into practice and toward shared decision making that reflects young people in all their diversity.

These Core Principles are grounded in human rights and demand action: removing barriers, protecting civic space, and investing in youth leadership.

Let us make meaningful youth participation standard in the inter-governmental processes of the United Nations and everywhere — restoring trust, renewing democracy, and building a more just, peaceful, and sustainable world for all.

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EU Children’s Participation Platform Findings from the consultation with children on the review of the progress made in the implementation of the European Child Guarantee

This fourth consultation of the EU Children’s Participation Platform focused on reviewing the progress made in the implementation of the European Child Guarantee (ECG). Children taking part in the EU Children’s Participation Platform activities in 2023 and 2024 asked that the Platform focus on child poverty. The consultation provides insights from children and teenagers on how to strengthen access to education, healthcare, housing services and healthy food, and how to support inclusion. The consultation results help the EU to better understand what works in the provision of and access to these key services, the challenges and barriers that children face, and show what changes and actions are needed at both EU and national level to improve access to services and provision to better support children.

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Lundy Model Resources

The “Lundy model” has been adopted by numerous national governments and public bodies as well as international organisations including the World Health Organisation, European Commission, Council of Europe, UNICEF, World Vision. Its key proponent has been the Irish Government, first in the National Strategy on Child and Youth Participation and from 2021 in its National Framework on Child and Youth Participation. Working through its national centre for excellence, Hub Na nOG, Laura worked with it to develop a series of tools based on the Lundy Model that are widely used in Ireland and have been translated, adapted and adopted globally.

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Lundy Model Squared

One of the ironies of the Lundy Model, like the UNCRC itself, is that an approach that advocates for children’s right to be heard did not involve children when it was created. While it was inspired by and based in part, on a study that included the views and experiences of over 1000 children, the conceptual framework for Article 12 of the UNCRC was written by one adult – me. Of course, my focus at that time was on promoting better understanding among adult duty-bearers rather than children. So, it has been deeply gratifying that, over the years, so many children and young people have taken the model and made it their own which in turn – not surprisingly – has strengthened our understanding of child and youth participation. For me, that’s the Lundy Model squared.

Below I set out some examples. But first, I start with a speech that was given by Tash (then 17 and a member of Leicester City Council’s Care-Experienced Council) at the launch of Leicester’s ground-breaking participation strategy. When it was sent to me by Bez Martin, I had goosebumps when reading it since Tash captured what it is all about so succinctly and powerfully.

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