Youth, community and belonging: YouCount UK National Workshop

The national workshop as part of the YouCount UK case local dissemination took place on 7 September 2023. It was a gathering involving Young Citizen Scientists (YCS), other young people and researchers from the UK team. It also included local and national stakeholders, local authorities, third sector and community members. Our aim was to share the social inclusion findings of the local Preston case and listen to the experiences of young citizen social scientists (YCS) and other young people who participated in the project. Moreover, we aimed to celebrate the YCS’s accomplishments, and the social innovation achieved.

With the support of Strive to Thrive, a local NGO working with young people and families in Preston, we managed to secure a vibrant site to hold our gathering in the heart of Preston. This was at the intersection of the University campus and the city centre at the Mobile Event Tent (MET). The MET provides a welcoming, informal space for activities aimed at the wider public. The was organised as a hybrid event to widen engagement, especially from national stakeholders who joined us online.

Professor Julian Manley, whose expertise informed the development of the Living Labs, stepped in for Professor Julie Ridley (project lead) to introduce the local case and the main findings of the social inclusion research we carried out. Julian emphasised the value of approaching the research from a range of angles: “[We’re] ensuring that different working styles can be accommodated which is really important for diversity and inclusivity. In other words, one approach does not do it. One approach is good for one person; another approach is good for another person. So in order to be authentic, and this project really was about authenticity, to genuinely co-create, we had to find different research methods that would suit different people at different times.”

Suzanne Wilson, a YouCount researcher and Research Fellow from the University’s Westlakes Campus, continued the presentation. Suzanne who evaluated YCSs experience, provided additional insights into the vital role that YCSs played in the YouCount project. Suzanne explained:

The event wrapped up with two local stakeholders sharing their experience from the Living Labs. Marc Dunn, a Community Development Officer from Preston City Council, described the tangible ways the Council has responded to the YCS’s research and the importance of ongoing partnerships in supporting the community and young people. Marc added that: “I started with the (YC) project last year in November, and it was my first time in this role engaging with young people, so it was fascinating to find out what was going on.”

Finally, Dave Clayton, representing the third sector and founder of ‘Wot Wod U Do’ organisation, working with youth, mentioned the need to focus on hard-to-reach youth groups. Dave highlighted: “This project is with no doubt a good starting point to build on. We need to continue bringing and mixing people together, and the key is also working on co-production and creating opportunities for young people. When I grew up, the opportunities were not very many so I think we have to create better opportunities and just support young people.”

The UK team, especially the young people, attended the final conference in Brussels which took place on December 2023. The conference brought the ten projects from nine countries together to celebrate the achievements of YCSs and provide opportunities to expand their networks across the vibrant European community, visibly becoming young citizens of the world.