Data

General Issues
Planning & Development
Social Welfare
Environment
Specific Topics
Youth Issues
Youth Employment
Mental Health
Location
South Australia
Australia
Scope of Influence
Regional
Links
Overview: Designing a Youth Action Plan for South Australia
The SA Youth Action Plan's Youth Panel Report
OECD Innovative Citizen Participation Project Page
Strong Futures: Youth Action Plan
Videos
Youth Panel highlights
Start Date
End Date
Ongoing
No
Time Limited or Repeated?
A single, defined period of time
Purpose/Goal
Make, influence, or challenge decisions of government and public bodies
Develop the civic capacities of individuals, communities, and/or civil society organizations
Approach
Consultation
Spectrum of Public Participation
Consult
Total Number of Participants
50
Open to All or Limited to Some?
Limited to Only Some Groups or Individuals
Recruitment Method for Limited Subset of Population
Stratified Random Sample
Targeted Demographics
Youth
General Types of Methods
Deliberative and dialogic process
General Types of Tools/Techniques
Facilitate dialogue, discussion, and/or deliberation
Recruit or select participants
Propose and/or develop policies, ideas, and recommendations
Specific Methods, Tools & Techniques
Expert Advisory Panel
Citizens' Reference Panel
Deliberation
Legality
Yes
Facilitators
Yes
Facilitator Training
Professional Facilitators
Face-to-Face, Online, or Both
Both
Types of Interaction Among Participants
Discussion, Dialogue, or Deliberation
Information & Learning Resources
Teach-ins
Expert Presentations
Written Briefing Materials
Decision Methods
General Agreement/Consensus
Communication of Insights & Outcomes
New Media
Traditional Media
Primary Organizer/Manager
democracyCo
Type of Organizer/Manager
Regional Government
Funder
Government, department for human services
Type of Funder
Regional Government
Staff
Yes
Evidence of Impact
Yes
Types of Change
Changes in how institutions operate
Implementers of Change
Elected Public Officials
Lay Public

CASE

South Australia's Youth Action Plan

January 17, 2022 friedel.marquardt
August 3, 2020 Joyce Chen
July 3, 2020 Joyce Chen
July 2, 2020 Jaskiran Gakhal, Participedia Team
July 1, 2020 Joyce Chen
June 28, 2020 Jaskiran Gakhal, Participedia Team
June 28, 2020 Joyce Chen
General Issues
Planning & Development
Social Welfare
Environment
Specific Topics
Youth Issues
Youth Employment
Mental Health
Location
South Australia
Australia
Scope of Influence
Regional
Links
Overview: Designing a Youth Action Plan for South Australia
The SA Youth Action Plan's Youth Panel Report
OECD Innovative Citizen Participation Project Page
Strong Futures: Youth Action Plan
Videos
Youth Panel highlights
Start Date
End Date
Ongoing
No
Time Limited or Repeated?
A single, defined period of time
Purpose/Goal
Make, influence, or challenge decisions of government and public bodies
Develop the civic capacities of individuals, communities, and/or civil society organizations
Approach
Consultation
Spectrum of Public Participation
Consult
Total Number of Participants
50
Open to All or Limited to Some?
Limited to Only Some Groups or Individuals
Recruitment Method for Limited Subset of Population
Stratified Random Sample
Targeted Demographics
Youth
General Types of Methods
Deliberative and dialogic process
General Types of Tools/Techniques
Facilitate dialogue, discussion, and/or deliberation
Recruit or select participants
Propose and/or develop policies, ideas, and recommendations
Specific Methods, Tools & Techniques
Expert Advisory Panel
Citizens' Reference Panel
Deliberation
Legality
Yes
Facilitators
Yes
Facilitator Training
Professional Facilitators
Face-to-Face, Online, or Both
Both
Types of Interaction Among Participants
Discussion, Dialogue, or Deliberation
Information & Learning Resources
Teach-ins
Expert Presentations
Written Briefing Materials
Decision Methods
General Agreement/Consensus
Communication of Insights & Outcomes
New Media
Traditional Media
Primary Organizer/Manager
democracyCo
Type of Organizer/Manager
Regional Government
Funder
Government, department for human services
Type of Funder
Regional Government
Staff
Yes
Evidence of Impact
Yes
Types of Change
Changes in how institutions operate
Implementers of Change
Elected Public Officials
Lay Public

As part of considering and improving the effectiveness of services available to youth, South Australia’s Department of Human Services initiated a Youth Panel to better understand what issues matter to young South Australians and how best to meet those needs.

Problems and Purpose

The SA government sought input from young people about how to address issues that significantly matter to them. The intent was to work together with young people (as well as representatives from government and key non-government organisations) to achieve this, including developing a three-year Youth Action Plan for South Australia. [1]

Based on previous reports, four areas that were noted as being important to young people, and that would be a focus for this initiative, are:

  • Learn and Earn
  • Connect and Grow
  • Wellbeing and the Environment
  • Fairness and Inclusion

Background History and Context

Drawing on previous research and consultation reports around youth issues, the four areas (above) were identified as a foundation for the Youth Panel engagement. Key documents drawn on for this were:

  • Mission Australia's 2018 Youth Survey
  • Commissioner for Children and Young People's 2017 Listening Tour Report
  • UN 2018 Youth Representative Report
  • Reports by the Youth Affairs Council of South Australia (YACSA) and Youth Parliament [1]

Organizing, Supporting, and Funding Entities

democracyCo facilitated the panel.

Participant Recruitment and Selection

Participants aged 12-24 nominated themselves to take part in the panel by completing a form online.

50 panellists were selected.

Methods and Tools Used

Developing the Youth Action Plan involved many initiatives:

  • Online survey
  • Youth Panel Forum
  • In-person consultation
  • Government Task-Group
  • Further public consultation (through YourSAy for young people or those working with young people to provide input on the Plan's implementation) [3]

What Went On: Process, Interaction, and Participation

During the panel, key stakeholders were invited to present and engage in the Youth Panel process. A cross-government Task Group was also created to "provide cross-government oversight during the development of the Youth Action Plan." The Task Group involved representatives of over 20 government agencies who are involved with young people, and would also work alongside representatives from the Youth Panel to "identify deliverables and opportunities to co-design policies and programs" for the plan. [1] & [2]

The forum was held over one weekend on a Saturday and Sunday in August.

Panellists heard from experts and State Youth Advocates and were given briefing materials. The weekend resulted in the youth panel writing a report to the government.

Influence, Outcomes, and Effects

This led to the development and release of the Youth Action Plan.

The SA government committed to prioritising the Youth Panel's recommendations in the Youth Action Plan. As part of being held accountable to the delivery of the plan, the Department of Human Services annually report to the Social Affairs Cabinet Committee. [3]

Analysis and Lessons Learned

See Also

References

[1] YourSAy, Designing a Youth Action Plan for South Australia, accessible at: https://yoursay.sa.gov.au/designing-a-youth-action-plan-for-south-australia

[2] democracyCo, Youth Action Plan, accessible at: https://www.democracyco.com.au/our-projects/youth-action-plan/

[3] Government of South Australia, Strong Futures SA Youth Action Plan, accessible at: https://www.youthactionplan.sa.gov.au/

External Links

Notes

Data was sourced from OECD (2020), Innovative Citizen Participation and New Democratic Institutions: Catching the Deliberative Wave, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/339306da-en.