
21st Century Child
Young people are experiencing new challenges every day. Sandwell’s 21st Century Child Programme is a two tier approach, working with both young people and parents/carers.
What is the Child's Voice?
Child’s voice provides young people the opportunity to have their views and opinions heard. Allowing CYP to feel a sense ownership of and influence decision making.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child: Article 13 “The child shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of the child’s choice.”
Young people are experiencing new challenges every day. Sandwell’s 21st Century Child Programme is a two tier approach, working with both young people and parents/carers, alongside school. The programme provides an opportunity for children and young people to raise awareness about the issues facing them and identifying how they want to be supported both in and outside of school.
21st Century Child provides CYP the opportunity to raise their issues with senior leaders and are provided with the platform to make change and influence.

What is the 21st Century Child?
The main aims of the 21st Century Child are to identify:
- What does the 21st Century Child face? -e.g. the impact of social media, online gaming, mental health, relationships and friendships etc
- Who is the 21st Century Child? – who are their friends? Who are they talking to online? Which Apps are they using? Who/where/ do they hang out?
- What does the 21st Century Child know and need to find out?
- What does the 21st Century Child want family and friends to know? Having those awkward conversations – top tips, researching information together
- Top Tips –staying safe, knowing where to get help, where to seek support both in and outside of school
- How does the 21st Century Child want school to support them?
How it differs from Student Council:
Student councils are a really useful place to start with listening to children’s voices and concerns: empowerment, positive participation, skill building etc.
Which other forums could be used for children who might now want to participate in a student council?
Outcomes:
- Children’s confidence increased in understanding a range of topics and know where and when to seek support
- Children increased awareness of safeguarding champions within school
- Children showed an understanding of empathy towards others
- Children demonstrated improved English written skills, including acrostic poem and PowerPoint presentations
- Children demonstrated presentation skills, written and spoken word
- Children understand what makes a healthy friendship and recognize when someone feels excluded and how to include and support them
- Children understand what is kind and unkind behaviour and how this can affect others
Links to PSHE Curriculum:
- H22. To recognise the ways in which we are all unique about how to treat themselves and others with respect; how to be polite and courteous
- H25. about personal identity; what contributes to who we are (e.g. ethnicity, family, gender, faith, culture, hobbies, likes/dislikes)
- R21. about what is kind and unkind behaviour, and how this can affect others
- R22. about how to treat themselves and others with respect; how to be polite and courteous
- R23. to recognise the ways in which they are the same and different to others
- R32. about respecting the differences and similarities between people and recognising what they have in common with others e.g. physically, in personality or background
- R33. To listen and respond respectfully to a wide range of people, including those whose traditions, beliefs and lifestyle are different to their own
- L4. The importance of having compassion towards others; shared responsibilities we all have for caring for other people and living things; how to show care and concern for others
- L6. To recognise the ways they are the same as, and different to, other people
- L10. about prejudice; how to recognise behaviours/actions which discriminate against others; ways of responding to it if witnessed or experienced
Supporting Transition
6 x 21st CC full day events – 1 in a secondary school per town.
6 x Feeder schools attend.
- Whole day workshop.
- Primary schools will have identified a topic they want to discuss/make a difference on in school and they bring this to the day. They have the whole day to come up with a presentation and what difference they want to make. They present this to the group, then to their school and feedback to senior leaders about change.
- Services invited to support event, in person or to send resources to support pupil’s content development, dependent on the topics identified by the Primary Schools.
- Yr7 21st CC champions to present part of their project they developed and support the primary schools.
- Local services invited to host a half hour workshop to raise awareness of services available to them e.g. HAF.
Benefits: Supports transition and builds those relationships between Primary and Secondary school pupils.
Ensures Child’s voice is listened to, both in Primary and Secondary school.
Establishes a core group of pupil’s in secondary school to improve student voice and student council.
Each year over 500 CYP will be worked with.
- Peer mentoring and support
- Support networks both in and outside of school
- Support from Transition leads within Secondary School
- The school day
- Links between Primary and Secondary – utilising Year 7s
How to get involved
- Learning community meetings
- Expression of interest
To find out more contact:
Lydia Dunne- Lydia_dunne@sandwell.gov.uk