“They sat and actually listened to what we think about the care system”: the use of participation, consultation, peer research and co-production to raise the voices of young people in and leaving care in England

There has been increased recognition of the importance of hearing the views of children and young people in and from care about the services and decisions that affect their lives. The emphasis on young people's voices aims to give weight to, and raise awareness of, their experiences and outcomes, and the need for policy and practice improvements. This paper discusses the development of methodologies for hearing and acting upon the voices of care-experienced children and young people. It charts the journey towards increased levels of active involvement, from research participation and consultation to peer research and co-production. Using examples from our own empirical studies, the paper outlines key features of these different techniques and the opportunities, challenges and impact they engender. It looks at the recent transition towards greater participation through co-production and peer research in which children and young people are active and equal agents in the production of services to address their needs, and in the design and production of research aiming to evaluate those services. Finally, we provide our reflections and those of some of the young people we have worked with on how to achieve meaningful and authentic engagement with care-experienced children and young people.