Putting Youth Voice First: Sharing our co-production approach at the SEND in STEM event

By bringing together STEM and education practitioners, the SEND in STEM Network works collaboratively to champion the inclusion of neurodivergent and disabled young people.They were keen to hear from organisations outside their immediate sector about how they were creating inclusive youth participation and co-production opportunities – that’s where we came in.

Co-presented with our Youth Advisory Panel member Hope, our session focussed on how Buttle has adopted the Lundy model as the foundation of our co-production work, and its positive impact on engaging neurodiverse young people. We shared our approach to working with our YAP, simple ideas and tips for making online sessions with young people more inclusive and engaging, and the difference that diverse young people’s involvement has already made at Buttle.

The learning was mutual. We joined workshops with other attendees and heard about excellent participation practice in a sector which is very different to ours. Healthy challenge and discussion identified some shared key success factors in youth participation, and we explored shared solutions to ongoing challenges.

The highlight was without doubt the panel discussion with members of the Lightyear Foundation’s Youth Group, who thoughtfully but honestly shared their experiences and insights into co-production as deaf, disabled and neurodivergent young people. Their insights and perspectives chimed with our own YAP member’s experiences, confirming that genuinely listening to young people is at the heart of inclusive co-production and participation.

We’d like to thank the Lightyear Foundation for the opportunity to share our approach and learn alongside other dedicated practitioners.

To find out more about Buttle’s co-production work, contact our co-production manager at coproduction@buttleuk.org.