The involvement of young people in decision-making in the Church of Scotland

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1 The involvement of young people in decision-making in the Church of Scotland May 2011 The Church of Scotland Church and Society Council

2 The involvement of young people in decision-making in the Church of Scotland Do you renew your commitment, with God s help, to live before all God s children in a kindly and Christian way, and to share with them the knowledge and love of Christ? We do. We will nurture one another in faith, uphold one another in prayer, encourage one another in service. From the Order for the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, Book of Common Order of the Church of Scotland The 2010 General Assembly resolved to instruct the Church and Society Council, the Mission and Discipleship Council, together with all Presbyteries and other Councils of the Church, to bring to the General Assembly of 2011 a report on the ways in which each is enabling the voices of children and young people to be heard in appropriate and effective ways in their decision-making processes. Many outwith the Church see an institution largely run by and for older people. The average age of Church membership is rising; General Assembly Moderators tend to be appointed on the basis of their long experience in the church, and therefore tend to be older people too. Even the use of the word Elder to signify senior lay office in the local church implies that authority and grey hair go hand in hand. Our Church is, however, an open and vibrant institution, and although the proportion of older people involved is growing, there are still very significant numbers of active and enthusiastic young people. The traditions and custom of the Church in some places has been to exclude young people, though usually not deliberately. This report seeks to shine a light on the issue and to enable us all to live up to our commitment in the baptismal promise quoted at the start of this report to live before all God s children in a kindly and Christian way. The promise can be seen to be both a metaphor we are all God s children 1 as well as a more literal commitment to respect the children and young people in our own communities. Learning from scripture There are several passages in the Old and New Testament that indicate years, or lack of them, are neither a barrier nor a passport to authority. 2 Young people with good ideas often feel timid to speak out in a community where the dominant culture is often exclusively run by people who have been making decisions since before they were born, but many have hearts like new 1 See the First Letter of John; anyone who loves knows God and is a child of God. 2 See, for instance, Joel 2:28-29, echoed in Acts 2:17 1

3 wineskins, waiting to burst with enthusiasm and ideas. 3 Our Church, which professes a bias to the poor and marginalised, should pay attention to minority voices, including that of young people, in its life and work. This is not a new problem, nor is it confined solely to the Church of Scotland. In one of Paul s letters to his younger associate Timothy, he advises him not to let his youthfulness dishearten his mission. 4 Paul suggests that Timothy speak to older people with respect, and treat younger people with equality, as one might speak to a brother or sister. What then can we learn from this passage about how the church in our days properly respects and honours those who are older, but also treat with equality those who are younger? Young people do NOT want special favours or status, but they do want to be heard in the same way everyone else is heard. The whole Church loses out whenever we exclude young people. The stories of Samuel and David also point to examples whereby authority and leadership is vested in those least likely to appeal to traditional forms of power. Samuel, as a young boy, is taught by the old man Eli to hear God s word, and Eli then encourages Samuel to reveal his message, a difficult one, seeing that it was a condemnation against Eli s own house. 5 Later in his life, God chooses Jesse s youngest son David for anointing as King by Samuel, who then amazes everyone by defeating the giant Goliath not with force of arms and armour, but by using the skills God has given him. 6 Who are we talking about? Broadly speaking, children are ages 0-12 and young people are This delineation is useful for our purposes, but it is not designed to be definitive or exclusive. We are not simply concerned with young people already involved in the life of the church, but, particularly following last year s debate on the Third Article Declaratory, we have a commitment to all the young people in Scotland, to a Jock Tamson s bairns (of whatever age). In our concern for the wellbeing and development of young people, and if the church is to be at the heart of every community in the land, we need to have a broad minds and a flexible approach when thinking about involving young people in decision-making in appropriate and effective ways. And, it is now a cliché but it is worth repeating; the young people are not the church of tomorrow they are the church of today. Participation in Decision-Making Participation can mean many things, from having your ideas heard, being consulted on matters of importance, taking part in focus groups, sharing stories, being encouraged to take a leadership role within the life of the 3 Job 32: Timothy 4:11-12 & 5: Samuel 3: Samuel 16:1-13 and 17:1-50 2

4 church, or even sitting on decision-making bodies with votes and holding office. A model of participation has been proposed by Roger Hart 7. His Ladder of Participation can be useful in explaining how children and young people, and others, can be involved in decision-making and leadership:- 1) Manipulation Happens where adults use children or young people to support causes and pretend that the causes are inspired by young people. 2) Decoration Happens when children and young people are used to help or "bolster" a cause in a relatively indirect way, although adults do not pretend that the cause is inspired by young people. 3) Tokenism When children and young people appear to be given a voice, but in fact have little or no choice about what they do or how they participate. 4) Assigned but informed This is where children and young people are assigned a specific role and informed about how and why they are being involved. 5) Consulted and informed Happens when children and young people give advice on projects or programmes designed and run by adults. Children and young people are informed about how their input will be used and the outcomes of the decisions made by adults. 6) Adult-initiated, shared decisions with users Occurs when projects or programs are initiated by adults but the decisionmaking is shared with children and young people. 7) User-initiated and directed This step is when children and young people initiate and direct a project or program. Adults are involved only in a supportive role. 8) User-initiated, shared decisions with adults This happens when projects or programs are initiated by children and young people and decision-making is shared between users and adults. These projects empower service users while at the same time enabling them to access and learn from the life experience and expertise of adults. This model uses the language of users ; in this context we are encouraged to think about who the users are in the life of the church and its various structures. In some situations, such as youth work, the users will be young 7 See Hart s Children's Participation: The Theory And Practice Of Involving Young Citizens In Community Development And Environmental Care produced for UNICEF in

5 people themselves. In other circumstances, users might be the whole congregation, or even the whole membership of the Church of Scotland. We need to start in a realistic place and think about what is appropriate and relevant, and ask in what ways participation in decision-making can be improved. It is also important to remember that we should use this model as a tool for improvement to a level that is appropriate, and not just think that we must all strive for the top rung of the ladder for all the decisions the Church takes. Decision-making in the Church of Scotland The Church makes lots of decisions, on a daily basis. Their prominence, importance and lasting impact can vary. Here are some examples of decision-making; Nomination of the Moderator-Designate Allocation of national Church funds to Councils, agencies and projects Proposing national strategy and policy for the Church of Scotland Having a voice and a vote at the General Assembly Representing the Church of Scotland on the national stage to the public and to partner organisations. Being a member of Presbytery and Kirk Session Involvement in writing Parish Profiles Having a say in what is put on a local church website Proposing whether the local church should become an eco-congregation What hymns and songs to use next Sunday What Lent course to use Deciding what to do at the youth club In some situations young voices are involved in decision-making, however this is not always the case. How is the Church of Scotland enabling voices of children and young people to be heard? National Youth Assembly The National Youth Assembly (NYA) is an annual meeting in September for those between the ages of 16 and 25. The event is planned, serviced and staffed largely by young people themselves. During the weekend, young people discuss topics in small groups then come together to debate and form a Deliverance. The NYA then elects 9 delegates as Representatives to take the Deliverance to the General Assembly of the following year. In this way, the voice of young people is taken from discussions in small groups to the whole Church at the highest level. In addition, from this year the role of the NYA Representatives is not confined to Assembly week but is a year-round commitment. The NYA Moderator leads the team of Representatives in taking forward the Deliverance, seeking to work with Councils, Presbyteries and local 4

6 churches to further the voice of young people. The NYA Representatives are, as a group of young people ready and willing to take responsibility, a key resource for any decision-making body of the Church to call upon. (For example, in 2009 the NYA Reps were invited to give their views at a meeting of the ongoing Special Commission on Same-Sex Relations and the Ministry.) Youth Representatives at the General Assembly Each Presbytery is invited to send a Youth Rep (18-25 years old) to the General Assembly. The group of Reps lives together during Assembly week, participates in preparation sessions each evening, and are supported by staff from the Mission and Discipleship Council. This method can be seen as an area of best practice, as highlighted in the responses in to our survey (further details below). However, while Youth Reps are entitled to attend all Assembly business sessions and can ask questions, propose motions, amendments and addenda, they are not Commissioners and as such do not have a vote or the right to speak in legal cases. While it is a sign of great progress that the Church has young people within the General Assembly at all, not every Presbytery takes advantage of this opportunity and many spaces are left unfilled each year. Survey As part of the research for this report we conducted an online survey of national Councils and Committees of the Church, Presbyteries, young people and other groups to find out how each was enabling the voices of children and young people to be heard in the decision-making process. Each section below begins with a short quote from the survey responses that illustrates a key point that we wish to highlight. A full copy of the results of the survey is reproduced as an appendix to this report. Presbyteries Question: Can you think of any new ways of involving young people in decision-making processes? Answer: No, but perhaps we should try some old ways, like simply asking them! I think the biggest issue in not involving young people is the fact that we don t ask them and often want them on committees. From the young people I know they would certainly have an opinion and would love to share it and be involved in a process of making decisions for the church. We asked Presbyteries for information on how they were involving children and young people. The results suggest that there is a patchwork of engagement across the Church, with some places having sophisticated mechanisms, and other places having nothing at all. Many said that they had never thought about ways to involve young people specifically in decisionmaking. 5

7 The survey suggested that the premise that young people should be heard in decision making is perceived as marginal or unimportant to many Presbyteries and local churches. However, we also found that there was no real opposition or resistance to having young people involved. This could perhaps best be summed up as there being lots of good will and well meaning intentions, but without any real awareness or knowledge about what this issue means. Some of the best practice included young people s councils, coffee and cake meetings and so on. The Presbytery of Europe convened a Youth Presbytery meeting in February 2011, the first of its kind. But there was a sense from some responses that young people should only (or only want to) make decisions about young people issues, and not about wider decisions affecting the life of the church such as finance, Presbytery planning or property matters. Councils, Committees and Agencies We are keen to explore this further and will now give the matter some thought. We approached the national Councils, Committees and other Agencies of the Church of Scotland to discover how they were involving children and young people in their decision-making processes. It was clear that there was no universal model, nor any suggestion of guidelines for best practice. Some Councils had made some efforts, for instance by making sure they had young people as members. Others expressed a strong desire to be open to young people s ideas, but had no way of going about getting them. Some said that they had never really considered the issue, but now that the question had been raised they would start to think about it. And others felt that there was no need to involve children and young people, because the nature of the work was not directly relevant to people under the age of 25. But there was an overwhelming wish that these issues be followed up. There was a real appreciation that there is considerable potential in this area, and that it would be the right thing to do. We asked what people felt barriers to involvement might be. A response was that many meetings take place during the day, when young people could struggle to take part because of school, college, university or job commitments. However, this perhaps raised wider questions about the accessibility of Council and Committee meetings, and how it would be hard for a lay person in full time employment to be able to commit at this level. There are different models of engagement. Some departments invite the Moderator of the NYA to discuss issues. However, we also heard of difficulties some Councils had experienced when trying to recruit young people for short term project groups. The NYA Reps are a key group of young people willing to be involved in this way. Their model of working involves sharing responsibilities which helps the NYA Moderator manage their workload. 6

8 Other Organisations We use our own Communications and other Resources to feed ideas down. We have also put in place some stipulation with regards to listening to young people so that this has to be done and is fed back to us here. We invited other similar organisations partner churches in the UK and around the world to share with us some of their experiences of young people s involvement. The Salvation Army UK have a well developed structure of national and regional level forums. This could be a model for us. The Church of North India has a Youth Fellowship, which has a young person as a representative on the Diocesan Executive Committee. Young people are also included as representatives on other committees. A key lesson from our partners is that although committee posts can be important, they are not essential good communication processes could be key, especially using the internet. Technology is an integral part of many young people s lives. There could be real scope for some creative development in the area of new media to help facilitate the sharing of ideas and the representation of young people s views. Young Scot (a national youth information charity for people aged in Scotland) is a great example of best practice, and includes advice on a whole range of issues affecting young people. The Scottish Youth Parliament (a representative assembly of young people in Scotland) exists to help ensure young people are listened to by decision-makers. There may be potential for sharing ideas and expertise with the Church about the best ways to do this. Young People In the past (when I was in primary school) our church ran a children s forum where they got your views on different things in the church (and fed you pizza). I feel no link to Presbytery or know of any way to have my voice heard there. I feel that Presbytery seems very distant to everyone in our church, especially the young people. From attending NYA and GA, I believe that the collective voice of young people is greatly valued and listened to. We asked members of the NYA for their views. This sample is not fully representative of young people in the Church of Scotland, as they already have some involvement at a national level with the church. However, this also meant that they had some perspectives on how the local and national levels of the church were managing. 7

9 There was considerable affirmation for the role and place of the National Youth Assembly. Indeed, it is important to note that the NYA is not just an end in itself, but from there it can be a platform to greater involvement in the life of the church at other levels. Many young people surveyed felt that they did have some sort of voice at a national level (through the NYA) and at a local level, such as being Elders or serving on committees. However, there was widespread feeling that something at a Presbytery level was missing. This is an important point, as many key decisions about the life of the Church are taken at Presbytery level. Presbyteries may wish to consider their own practice. There was a reflection that our structures only truly enable people who are confident or who have loud voices perhaps a reason why young people tend not to be involved in decision-making. The National Youth Assembly model involves small group discussion, thereby enabling everyone, even those who feel shy, to have a say in the process of coming to a common mind. Are there things that the wider Church Kirk Sessions, Presbytery meetings and even the General Assembly could learn from a more inclusive way of working? Conclusions and Recommendations Our task was to report on the ways in which Councils and Presbyteries are enabling the voices of children and young people to be heard in appropriate and effective ways in their decision-making processes. We have found that there are some exciting projects, both longstanding (such as the National Youth Assembly) and new (Europe s Youth Presbytery). We have also found that in some areas the voices of children and young people are not being heard. We hope this report will provide groups in and associated with the Church of Scotland an opportunity to reflect on how they will respond to the issues raised. This study has identified that the timing of meetings are a barrier and it is suggested that daytime meetings may clash with education and employment and that the General Assembly clashes with many university examinations. One issue which we have not fully addressed, but feel should be acknowledged, is the absence of any appropriate processes to involve those under the age of 16 in decision-making. This is a challenging but nevertheless important issue. We would also like to suggest that, in order that the issue is kept on the agenda of the church, that every Presbytery, Council, Committee and Agency of the Church appoints a Young People s Champion, whose remit will be: To work within the established structures of the church as an influential voice supporting the involvement of young people in decision-making. To promote best practice in involving children and young people in decision-making, including identifying and implementing changes 8

10 In order for best practice to be shared and for future progress reports to be prepared for the General Assembly we suggest that the champions, NYA Reps and other interested people should network through an internet group to share ideas and stories of best practice. We recommend that the Church and Society Council, the Mission and Discipleship Council and the National Youth Assembly prepare a report evaluating progress and suggesting further ways in which the Church can make a difference in this area for the General Assembly every two years. 9

11 APPENDIX CHURCH OF SCOTLAND YOUNG PEOPLE S PARTICIPATION IN DECISION MAKING SURVEY RESULTS page YOUNG PEOPLE 10 PRESBYTERIES 19 COUNCILS, COMMITTEES AND DEPARTMENTS 22 OTHER ORGANISATIONS 26 YOUNG PEOPLE Do you feel that you have a voice in your local church? If so, in what ways has your voice been heard? Y 17 N 5 Depends - 2 Yes, I am a member of the church and have a say in some matters but not all. I also feel that my voice is heard unofficially. I play an acitve role within the youth groups within the Church however i feel my ideas and oppinions are often ignorded or dismissed because of my age and lack of experience compared to others. I feel I do have a voice in my local church. I have always been encouraged by members to participate in meetings and contribute to them. I was asked to be a member of the congregational board and was recently ordained as an elder. I don't feel I am treated any differently because of my age but I also need to make the effort to make that voice heard. I was on the Congregational Board, then I became an Elder and joined the Kirk Session, then we changed our constition to the unitary constitution. I was also on the nominating committee during our vacancy. I am not involved with any committees due to lack of time. However I do believe that if I have an opinion about somthing it would be heard. Yes, I was invited to a future focus meeting about how we wanted the church to move forward and where we wanted the church to be going Yes as I am leader at the Sunday School and my ideas and thoughts are heard both by the main leader and the minister. Not in my local church. No, but at the same time we should perhaps be more vocal in our chirch instead of waiting for others to ask us. Yes, I am frequently asked for my opinion in how things are done. I told the church that we were at a stage where me needed a youth worker in order to develop the church's youth ministry, and they employed one. Yes but only with the last few weeks as there was a youth meeting and we were told if we had anything we wanted to put forward to the church we can attend their meeting or pass it on to someone who will act as a spokes person. 10

12 Kind of. I can have a say in the running of the youth and children's ministry in my church but not the other church things. In the past (when I was in primary school) our church ran a children's forum where they got your views on different things in the church (and fed you pizza). For some reason this seems to have stopped. Although as a youth I do feel that the church will listen to me. There is no direct way for this to happen but the youth in my church all are very active in services and contribute to things such as the music. So, I personally feel that if I had any issues to bring to the attention of session that they would listen to me, and consider what I had to say. Yes, we asked for more activites to involve the younger people in the church and a small breakfast group was created on a sunday morning before the church service Yes, I was on the nominating commitiee when we choose our current minister Yes, I am an Elder in my local church and I am on numerous committees I think people appreciate that they have heard the voices of younger people however they won't consider the views when it comes to making a final decision. Yes, I work for my church as the church officer, so I get asked a lot about helping to organise events. I have also been voted on to our vacancy committee. yeah a do because i asked if i could do i souper sunday and i am being able to arrange it I do. I am on my church's Stewardship committee and regularly contribute to services in my capacity as a Sunday School leader. Individually, probably not. However, where I hold a position of responsibility in a specific organisation e.g. Sunday School, Boys' Brigade, then I do have a voice. In these organisations, regardless of my age, I am treated equally to other leaders - my view is listened to, respected, and ocassionally acted on!!! No, we are often seen as children so never asked to voice opinions and when we try to they are disregarded due to our age No No. I feel the adults in the church like the idea of listening to young people and our views but dont actually listen to what we are saying. Do you feel that you have a voice in your Presbytery? If so, in what ways has your voice been heard? Y 2 N 17 N/A 4 Yes, I am a corresponding member of presbytery as a result of attending the general assembly for the presbytery earlier this year. No. I don't feel I have a voice directly but I am aware of how to contact people who could carry that voice for me. not as much as, but at congregational level I particicipate in survays that presbytery sends to congregations I don't know. I have never had anything to 'voice' about. No Not really. I would like to be more involved with Presebytery. Not really. If I felt something at Presbytery level needed to be voiced I'm sure it would be listened too. However, as of yet, I have never needed to raise an issue at Presbytery level. 11

13 Not reallyyy. I have never had a need to approach presbytery and have never been invited to get involved. I may not feel comfortable doing so though, judging by the comments and reports I've heard about their meetings. Not sure Not really. In complete contrast to in my church, I feel no link to Presbytery or know of any way to have my voice heard there. I feel that Presbytery seems very distant to everyone in our church, especially the young people. This could be partly due to the fact that our presbytery always meets in the same place which is about an hours drive away and is in the middle of nowhere. They don't do (or if they do I am not aware of) anything that might bring young people together - or anything to hear our voices. Presbytery seems very out of touch with ordinary churches, and from what I hear from older people who have been, seems purely interested in financial and legal business - nothing about us as the church. No No I have no idea who I would go to if I had an opinion to be considered. I would love to see the effects of decisions made at NYA or the GA being put into action for more rural areas and reaching the churches who are struggling with numbers of younger folks. No. i dunno cause never really spoke tomy presbytery Not directly, though I am sure that my minister would raise any concern I may have if I asked. Yes. I am a corresponding youth member, so definitely yes. I am encouraged to represent Presbytery at Christian events and report back how they went. Also, valuing my regular attendance at Business meetings, they asked me to join one of their committees. Sadly I don't have voting rights, but they value my input in discussions. I think some people are intrested in what young people have to say but I am not convinced they always intend to act upon or take up what we have said No Do you feel that you have a voice in the church at national level? If so, in what ways has your voice been heard? Y 21 N 2 Yes, as young people are heard through the NYA. And by allowing young people to participate in debates and propose changes to deliverences during GA. Yes, the opportunity to participate in NYA2010. I feel I do have a voice at a national level. I feel the church do listen to the National Youth Assembly, which I have been attending for many years. I think there are issues with getting more young people to contribute to that voice so the process needs to be made more appealing and accessible. I have attended and spoken at 2 General Assembleys. I am also on the Social Care Council. I do. I have been to General Assembly 3 times and I was pleased at how most pwoplw recieved us. Yes, I have spoken at General Assembly and that was listened to and obviously thought about. Also the fact that this survey is being done shows we have a voice at national level 12

14 Yes. I feel my voice is heard though National Youth Assembly and my ideas and thoughts are risen to the people/ groups in many ways. Yes, the National Youth Assembly allows me to be heard at national level. Yes! I feel that through the Church of Scotland National Youth Assembly many issues have been raised & listened too by the General Assembly. I feel that at NYA there are many things that are heard in how the church works. Yes - I have been along to the NYA where I have been able to take part in debates. Comments I have made in a small group have made it into the final deliverances which will go to the GA. I think so thanks to the NYA Well only through the National Youth Assembly have I felt my voice been heard nationally, without it I don't think I would hear my voice or any other young person's voice. Through NYA I feel that I have a voice in the national church - however it seems to be only a voice and no real power. I would like it if the General Assembly actually trusted the NYA with some real power (possibly some real decisions over ministry to young people - with a budget) which would show us that the church trusted young people and didn't just pretend to listen. We would be in a better place to decide how ministries to young people could work, and across the country young people in the church would recognise their voice if they saw actuall power. Yes, through the national youth assembly Yes, I have attended the General and Youth Assembly and also on one of the Councils. I feel it is a definate step forward to go to the NYA and the GA however before this I had absolutely no idea what was being done for younger people and how to go about getting the church as a whole involved with any projects in my local area. Yes, participated at the National Youth Assembly, and I also know someone who sits on a council and discusses the latest topics. i believe it would be but i dont really know how cause havent read up much about it Having been a delegate at both the Youth and General Assemblies, I do feel that I have a voice in the church nationally. From attending NYA and GA, I believe that the collective voice of young people is greatly valued and listened to. Points that were raised in NYA report at GA09 were acted upon by several Churches, which then reported back to GA10, saying the changes they had made and were still making in line with our opinions. Ish NYA is the only way i see this happening though No Do you know of any examples where a local church has done really well at involving children and/or young people in decision-making no No. I think in my own church which recently was vacant ensured young people were represented well on the nominating committee and they encourage young people to involved in committees. no Other than being involved myself in a future focus meeting I cannot think of any other examples where children were actively listened to 13

15 In my local church the children are asked what they like about church/ Sunday school and what they would like to be changed. Their ideas/thoughts are then looked at by Sunday school leaders and the minister and then are acted uopn. No. No. One of our Sunday School teachers is an Elder & does express what she thinks would be in our best interest on occassion. However, no one has ever come to us asking what we want or what our oppinion is. Held a youth meeting, where you disccused big issues, however this hasnt been done in a while. A local church has young people serving as elders, giving them a big say in decisions. - Nothing comes to mind, sadly. In a church where I help with their holiday club (next parish to the one I go to) the small team who run the holiday club includes many of the young volunteers such as myself. It is only a small club of about 40 members but the young people involved are left and trusted to run crucial aspects of the club. Such as I run the technical side of the club and along with another teenager all the music. In fact all the front of house show is taken care of by the young people. As I mentioned above, my local church used to run a childrens forum, which gave children a say, but I seem to remember complaining at the time that everything we said was ignored. This seems to be a theme of NYA as well, and we should fight to get the church to not only listen to us - but also to inact what we are asking for even if sometimes they disagree. Not to my knowledge no We had a local production of Joseph which was our minister's idea, it was only through this that I met a number of people in the community I wouldn't have met otherwise. We had the local primary involved and the secondary hall was decorated for the set. No that there are many different youth groups for all the different ages. also that the summer holiday there are all many different events for children and young people., My church has no issue with making Elders of young people, or having them on committees. Not sure if that counts as REALLY well? Honestly, I can't think of a specific example!!! Not to mind No No Do you know of any examples where the national church has done really well at involving children and/or young people in decision-making? I believe that the NYA has been approached on quite general topics and could be approacjed more on specific issues. NYA and represestatives at GA. I was really encouraged by the Childrens' Assembly and their input at the General Assembly and think it is great that they are talking about having their voice heard in the church so early on. Yes - The Social Care Council in particular sent out invitations through the youth office to all young people, inviting them to consider joining the council. If the invitation was not sent, I would not now along with another young person be on the council. 14

16 I think the Church of Scotland is very good at making it look like voices, particularly of children, are heard when really they are not. The national church always does well by allowing us as a Youth Assembly to report to the General Assembly and our views are always well received. No Again, the Church of Scotland National Youth Assembly is a brilliant way of involving young people in some of the decisions made by the Church. National Youth Assembly/ COSY coffeehouse. I feel like NYA really does work, and give us a voice. Maybe if there was more evidence about this. But change takes a while, and theres a difference between being heard and action being taken place, but as long as they cosider our opinions seriously and little by little I think we are affecting decisions. Children's Assembly, NYA and GA Youth Reps NYA NYA was really successful and I felt was important in this. But, the NYA has to be given real power over young peoples ministry. The only thing I can think of is NYA. No Allowing the youth to have a say at the GA and seeking young people to join councils I think that the church can be commended for hearing the points of view of younger people in the church however when it comes to actually making the decisions I would like to see more recognition of advice and suggestions that were given. The Youth Assembly is the only one of its kind I know of. NYA and Children's Assembly are two good examples - ensured that children adn young people's opinions on a whole variety of issues is considered. i do not know any examples The inception of youth representation at the General Assembly has done a lot in this regard. NYA How do you think the local church could do better at this? I blieve young people should have more of a say on the running of the youth services in church and and their church as a whole. Perhaps have a youth rep or comittee which feeds to Kirk Session on ideas and views of young people. I think the local church needs to become more open to allowing different voices to be heard. Sometimes the whole structure of committees can be inaccessible for young people and perhaps the ways in which voices are listened to in local churches needs to be more interactive, varied and transparent. I think people need to be less patronising but I don't think there is a way of Church and Society dealing with this. The local church has to be more open to accepting ideas from younger people, it has to be more open to letting us have a go at things and then telling us what worked and what didn't work. By involving the children more and making the church a child friendly church. I feel the children & young people in the church actually need to be asked what they want or what opinions they have on issues within their church. Often they just need the oportunity & a stimulus to get them going. Accepting young people as part of the church and listening to what their ideas for the future of the church are. 15

17 Yes, could hold more meetings when the young people/children meet together and discuss ideas. Perhaps make it a frequent event. Every group/committee (where appropriate) should have a child and/or young person as a member We have tried discussing this issue but we don't really have the numbers to do much I think sessions should co-opt a youth member maybe for one year at a time who would have full voting rights so they could represent young people. In churches with a large youth they could even adopt more than one member. Yes, it would be good if we could have a say on ALL things in the church rather than just the youth part. We have views on all the other church things too! Having an open minds By acknowledging the young in their church and in the local area. By recognising that they acknowledge each view that older folks in the church make and ensuring that everyone considers the views of the younger generation. By encouraging a delagate who attends numerous meetings and can feed information and decisions back to other young people in the church. Get a dedicated youth worker who is able to visit schools and dissipate information and provide feedback to session. Getting young people to sit on a relevant committee within their Church - not necessarily with full voting rights, but to make them feel included and valued that they ask the youth would they would like to do and what they are intrested in I think that the Children's & Youth Assemblies need to be better advertised at a local level. Had I not been blindly shoved in the General Assembly's direction in 2008, I doubt anyone from my church would be attending either today, because no one knew about them. An article in Life & Work isn't going to do much, because the fact is that most young folks don't bother reading it. There are still many presbyteries with zero representation at the Youth Assembly (I realise that NYA is less Presbytery-centric than GA, but still) and this has to be addressed locally, because the likelihood is that the young folks in those areas just aren't being made aware of the opportunities available to them. listen to what young people have to say and take it on board invite opinions from teens and even children as well as opinions from the rest of the congregation How do you think the national church could do better at this? I believe that the NYA has done this, and could be approached regarding specific issues. More publicity of NYA, I had never heard of it until this year. I think the Youth Assembly is a great place to allow young peoples' voices to be heard and so many young people voice opinions there. It would be encouraging to have more of the church councils visit the assembly and engage with it and would allow the young people who attend to ask questions about the workings of the church. I think recognisable people, eg the Moderator, should take time to look through resources such as Child Friendly Church before General Assmebly. The national church could do better by having more youth delegates present at the General Assembly and also at a Presbytery level The Church of Scotland National Youth Assembly does an excellent job as it is. Continuing what they have started and developing it. They're already doing well not sure 16

18 At NYA we were only allowed to strongly recommend or urge. I think the General Assembly should allow the NYA to order councils of the church over matters that do not contradict the view of the GA. For example if the NYA wants the Mission and Discipleship council to develop resources - as we I think said for something- I feel that we should be able to order them to do it without the backing of the GA. Fair enough, if we contradict a deliverance of the GA then it would not be appropriate but when we possible it would show young people real power. I think they should have young people present at board, kirk or even prespreterian meetings. (Sorry about spelling). I know we young folk need loads of time for exams etc but I do think we should have a rota of the young people in our churches to go to these meetings and have their say on the various issues. Having open minds and trying to abolish the stigma attached to young people By making people aware that there is an opportunity for young people to have a say. Through recognition and praise of the good work that the younger people in the church have acheived so older generations will be more aware of the effect we have in the church. Advertise oppertunities for young people to get involved more openly, at the moment the only thing advertised is the Youth Assembly, but I have heard that there are other ways to get involved through church councils. I do not think that Church & Society volunteering/internships and available positions on CofS committees are advertised widely enough e.g. on Facebook group, s etc. that there couldbe more media about what the church is doping and what it has for young people with in it. A declarative vote for Youth Representatives at the General Assembly -- not simply because it would give us a stronger voice at the Assembly ("This battle has been fought", after all), but because it might make Presbyteries put more thought into who they send in that capacity, and how they decide between candidates have presbytery meetings for only the young people to discuss isues which efect them in the church and how the church could be made more welcoming for young people have more ways teens can get involved Do you have any other comments or suggestions? no Elder members of the church need to try to understand that young people do have a voice and can come up with some ideas which will benefit not only the Church but also the wider community. They should not be dismissed due to "lack of experience". I feel strongly encouraged by the experiences I have had within the church and it has helped me grow in confidence and learn that my opinion is valued. The church has been open to my opinion, and whilst perhaps not the case for everyone, I have never felt like what I had to say wasn't important. I think in order to build upon this it really has to become a two way conversation. Young people need to really want to come and give their opinion and see the outcomes. Finding more interactive ways of finding opinion and showing results would be beneficial. I think there are alot of problems but I really appreciate how far the Church of Scotland has come over the years. I don't think this is an easy task for Church and Society and hope and pray that people are not to hard on the subject! / 17

19 The Church of Scotland National is an AMAZING way of allowing young people to voice their opinions in the Church. I would strongly encourage this to continue. However, it needs to be publicised more towards the young people. I know the information is being given to the churches but often it doesn't make it as far as the young people. I have also heard from the woman in my church that deals with sending kids to the Childrens Assembly that places are VERY limited. I know the number of adults to children has to be quite high but is there any way of increasing the number of children being allowed to go to the Assembly? A suggestion made during this conversation was that perhaps Scotland could be split into about 4 areas & the Assembly could go to each area every 4 years meaning it would cover more of Scotland & be able to allow more children to go. However, it would mean the children would only be able to go every 4years when the Assembly was in their area. Just a few suggestions as starting points. It seems like procedures are in place for children / young people to have a voice but these aren't widely known about and made accessible (eg the open nature of Session and Board meetings and presbytery). - This page has asked what the local church can do and what the national church can do but it has missed out presbytery which it asked questions about before. It would be beneficial if presbyteries held NYA style events over a weekend for young people in an area. This could involve a large number of people and be great for evangelising. Young people often see a small number of others their age in a church and don't realise how many of them across an area or the country. Presbyteries should be encourgaed to bring young christians together. God bless =) x No I would like to see more effort made towards encouraging churches to get more involved with projects in schools/youth groups in rural areas as a means to encourage more young people to attend church on a regular basis. Good to see the Church is using modern technology like Survey monkey to research issues. None at all. 18

20 Replies from: 2 anonymous Abernethy Ayr Caithness Dumfries and Kirkcudbright Dundee England Falkirk Glasgow Gordon Irvine and Kilmarnock Jedburgh Perth Ross PRESBYTERIES At Presbytery Under n/a young people are formally consulted on a regular basis on routine issues young people are consulted periodically about special projects eg Presbytery Plan young people are given a place on our Education Committee or equivalent young people are given places on other Committees young people are invited to speak to Presbytery young people are supported and encouraged to attend Children's Assembly or Youth Assembly young people regularly attend Presbytery meetings Since there is no youth committee in Presbytery it would be difficult to invite some young person or even some young people to attend meetings or be involved in special projects. They would be just token young people and not representing any group or able to express the views of young people. Within local churches Under n/a young people are regularly consulted about their needs within our church young people are consulted periodically about special projects eg mission, social events, future plans, building projects we have place(s) reserved for young person/people on Kirk Session we have place(s) reserved for young person/people on Congregational Board young people serve on our Education Committee or equivalent young people serve on other Committees young people have been considered for Eldership in the past two years

21 young people are involved in developing our church's overall youth work vision / strategy young people are involved in managing and leading day-to-day youth work projects young people are part of our Nominating Committee young people are supported and encouraged to attend Children's Assembly or Youth Assembly What are the barriers to young people participating in decision-making in your Presbytery or local church(es)? we have never thought about involving young people in decision-making 10 we have very few or no young people 6 we meet during the day young people are at school/university/college 2 the meetings are boring 3 young people are too busy with other commitments 3 young people don't see any purpose or value in attending the meetings 1 we do not have time or resources to recruit anyone at present 2 there would be resistance from members to having young people at meetings 1 I think the biggest issue in not involving young people is the fact that we don't ask them and often want them on committees. From the young people I know they would certainly have an opinion and would love to share it and be involved in a process of making decisions for the church. Have you changed the way you do things in response to a growing awareness of young people's needs? If so, how? No (x 6) We have a pool of young people who help resource church groups as a respond to the need to feel part, be involved and be heard Have made churches more user friendly, ensured that they are included appropriately and introduced livelier forms of worship to keep their interest. Again, this is more from a congregational as suppose to Presbytery level. In our congregation we have changed the way of desicion making and young people are part of committees and of worship teams. But at Presbytery level young people don't get encouraged by local congregations or indeed the Presbytery itself. The reason for this is often lack of communication and good intentions getting lost and watered down. Presbytery and congregations will be invited to consider representation of young people in the future. Are you aware of any examples of best practice in terms of involving young people in decision-making that we can all learn from? Yes to a small degree. And that is to have young people on committees and involve them in a desicion making process e.g. the minister listens to the young peole, has made time on a Sunday to go to the group and have a discussion with them. It really isn't difficult or complicated. It just needs conversations between elders and young people, young people and the minister, young people and the wider congregation and so on. No (x 7) The core team of young were given responsibility for setting up a COSY Coffee group and operate it for 6 months 20