What we do

The Forum concentrates its activities on developing ways to hear the voice of children in need and to relay this to central policy authorities. It seeks to influence changes in policy so that the investments create services that better meet the needs and aspirations of young people. The Forum now acts as the consultee on a number of local authority and statutory bodies providing services to special needs children in Highland.

The Forum has just completed work with the Child and Adolescent Mental Health (NHS Highland) service on a project about "What makes a good lifeω" looking at the promotion, prevention and care approaches to mental health. It is also recently completed a project for the Violence Against Women Strategy Delivery Group on a project to develop a participation framework to support children and young people affected by gender-based violence. The Forum has just completed reports on Bereavement and Loss and on the experiences of young people on the edge of the criminal justice system. It has an ongoing project consulting with very young mothers.

The Forum was part of the voluntary sector consortium that reviewed the last Highland Play Strategy. The review will shape the development of Highland's new Play Strategy.

It is currently developing a consultation that will look at how services have developed their inclusion policies and practices since the Forum's report on this topic six years ago and expand the consultation to look at the inclusion of young people with additional needs in clubs and sporting facilities.

The Forum has been closely involved in the policy development of the 'Getting it right for every child' approach in Highland and is part of the voluntary sector implementation group.

The Forum seeks to promote and enhance the participation of children and young people, including those who may be harder to involve, in planning, decision making and service self-evaluation. Towards this end the Forum continues to develop the toolbox extending the wide range of tried and tested tools that people can use to do this.

The Forum seeks to stay at the front of policy development and service evaluation to ensure that the voice of children and young people is influential in bringing about better outcomes for them and their families.