What does "voice of the child mean?
The term ‘voice of the child’ refers to the real involvement of children in expressing their views, opinions, and experiences. It includes both verbal and nonverbal communication and goes beyond simply seeking their views, to actively including them in decision-making processes.
Listening to and capturing the voice of the child is central to effective practice when working with children in all areas of learning. How we understand children’s lived experiences and hear their views about their lives and circumstances directly informs our ability to take effective action to support or safeguard them.
Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023 states;
Assessments should be child-centred and responsive to the voice of the child. This means decisions should be made in the child’s best interests, rooted in child development, age-appropriate, sensitive to the impact of adversity and trauma and informed by evidence. Observation can be an important way to get the perspective of babies, infants, and non-verbal children. In the case of disabled children, practitioners should consider whether any specialist communication support is required and consider how advocacy services can support the child to communicate their views.
Why is listening to a child important?
Listening to and consulting with a child or young person brings significant benefits to all involved. It ensures that their experiences, perspectives and wishes are considered as part of the decision-making process. This practice is not only beneficial but is also protected and required by law. The voice of the child or young person must be actively sought, heard, and responded to, as it is central to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of every child and young person.
In the context of a child’s education, seeking out and acting upon the views of pupils is recognised as best practice. It forms an essential part of the graduated approach, ensuring that children and young people are genuinely involved and their voices have a meaningful impact on the support and interventions they receive.
How to capture the voice of the child
With all children, practitioners should use creative, flexible and inclusive approaches to ensure the voices of children are meaningfully heard and recorded. The use of tools and aids is doubly important when working with children with a disability of learning need, who may experience more barriers with communication. Helpful tools to use include:
- visual aids
- symbols
- spider diagrams
- communication boards
- Makaton
- sensory tools or
- digital technology tailored to the child's communication style and preference.
Wherever possible, practitioners should work at the child's pace, in familiar environments, and alongside trusted adults or advocates. It is essential to interpret both verbal and non-verbal communication, use observations and to revisit conversations over time to ensure understanding. It is helpful to work alongside other professionals involved in the child’s life who may be able to recognise the child’s communication and body language with more ease.
Capturing the child's lived experience in their own words, or through their chosen method of expression, is central to inclusive, child centred practice.
Practice points designed to help all practitioners hear and facilitate the voice of the child in their practice
Pay attention to all the different ways that a child may be communicating
- The voice of the child can include both what is said and unsaid, verbal and non-verbal indicators, and the child’s behaviour.
- Listen to and observe children carefully and offer a non-judgemental approach, especially if a retraction is made.
- Observations are important, how is the child with new people? Do they appear intimidated or quiet or do they seem loud and boisterous. It is important to consider the child’s presentation and what that could mean.
Ask other professionals for their knowledge of the child
- It’s vital all professionals share information to gain a full overview of a child's situation and provide a co-ordinated approach to support. You may find that other professionals who see children regularly, such as teachers, can offer valuable information about how a child communicates, as well as about any changes in their behaviour.
Identify and speak to those closest to the child
- Speak to other children and adults who the child feels comfortable with, to make sure important information is not lost. Explain to the parents and child the benefits of involving family members, friends and neighbours in assessments, but remember that it is always important to ensure that consent is gained to do so from the person with parental responsibility for the child. The only time consent can be overridden is when a child is deemed to be at risk of significant harm and child protection enquiries are being undertaken.
- Take care to ensure the child’s voice is not overshadowed by those of the adults around them.
Challenge barriers to seeing the child alone and hearing their voice
- While it’s important to observe the child’s behaviour with the parent or carer, it’s also important to see them alone (provided they are at an age where they can engage in a meaningful interaction with you). If a parent or carer refuses to allow the child to be seen alone without a valid reason, record this and seek advice this could be through reflective conversations or within supervision.
- It’s also important to see children in different places that meet their needs, including at home and at school, nursery or college.
Empower children to make sure their voice is heard
- All children have the right to be heard and taken seriously in matters which affect them.
- Think about how you can listen to children and address any power imbalances in social work, a system that is run, managed and controlled by adults. Empowerment could include making sure children have access to accurate and accessible information, giving children some control over meetings, and encouraging a culture of participation.
- It is good practice to refer to Barnardo’s for an advocate for the child; this should be discussed with the parents and consent obtained prior to referral.
Understand the child’s identity and background and check your own biases and preconceptions
- We all make assumptions and form expectations about people based on factors like class, ethnicity, gender and disability. These assumptions and expectations can influence how we understand children’s expressions and behaviours, preventing us from hearing their voices.
- It’s important to be mindful of your potential personal biases and carve out time to reflect and discuss how these might influence your practice and responsibility to act as an advocate for the child’s voice.
Provide children with the tools they need to communicate effectively
- Think about how to adapt your practice to hear their voice and not exclude children who would otherwise participate. Consider how best to communicate with a child, taking into account disability, age, development and language.
- Ask yourself whether any specialist communication support is needed for children who have disabilities and/or complex communication needs. This will sometimes need wider discussion with other agencies.
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We can create a communication passport for children to support them and practitioners when communication with them. You can do this on mosaic;
Person record> documents>Forms and letters> create>communication passport
Build trusted relationships with children
- Building a trusted relationship with a child is essential to hearing, understanding, and acting upon what a child is communicating. In practice, it is the quality of these relationships that determine if children feel confident in the relationships and therefore willing to share their information. Investment in the relationship is key. We should be listening and therefore the children heard no matter what.
- Time and creativity may be required to build enough trust for a child to share their feelings and for you to properly understand what is being communicated.
Include the child’s voice and your observations in all assessments, arrangements and decisions
- To have an impact it’s important that the child’s voice is accurately recorded in assessments and factored into arrangements and decisions. Make the child aware of the impact their participation has had. And if decisions have been made that do not align with the child’s wishes, take the time to explain this to them.
- When recording assessments, describe the child’s voice, explain how that voice has been determined, and outline what the child sees, hears and experiences on a daily basis. Alongside what the child communicates verbally, also describe the child’s physical appearance and demeanour, behaviour, expressions and interactions.
Capturing the voice of a preverbal child
It is often found that practitioners state that the ‘child is too young’ when asked about the child or to give the child’s views. The following are hints and tips on ways to capture the child’s voice when they are preverbal.
A preverbal child is in a developmental stage where they communicate using non-verbal skills, such as pointing, gesturing, and babbling, rather than functional spoken words. While common in toddlers (ages 2-4), it refers to any child who understands communication but has not yet developed speech, often preparing for verbal communication.
How to capture the voice of a preverbal child?
Capturing the voice of a pre-verbal child involves observing and interpreting non-verbal cues such as body language, facial expressions, sounds, and actions. Key strategies include mirroring their movements, pausing to allow them to communicate, using objects of reference, and creating a trusted environment where they feel safe expressing needs.
Be present to the child
The words that adults use to describe the lives of a baby/ toddler are powerful; they can provide a baby/toddler with opportunities, or they can limit the influence the baby/toddler has on their world of experience.
When working with a preverbal child, ask yourself the following:
- Perspective of the baby/toddler - Consider and reflect on your feelings that your observations have provoked
- Relationships, reciprocity and responsiveness - Do they support you to focus on the baby/toddler perspective? Is this challenging - if so, why?
- Environment - Reflect on what this could tell you about the lived experience of the baby/toddler
- Simulation - What does it feel like to be a baby/toddler living here?
- Empathy and early attachment - If the baby/toddler could tell you, would they look forward to the day ahead and end it feeling content?
- Needs and nurture - Do you have the sense that the parent is attuned and empathetic to the baby/toddler’s feelings and needs?
- Time to value and feel valued - Does the baby/toddler feel safe and loved? Does this baby/toddler have someone in their life who really loves and cares about them?