Establishing Youth Voice Within the #iwill Fund

We are pleased to announce our appointment as the Learning and Evaluation partner in understanding the impact of youth voice within the #iwill Fund.

The two year evaluation will use a Collaborative Outcomes Reporting approach, which actively involves key stakeholders including #iwill Fund match funders and young people, to evaluate the outcomes of youth voice practices and initiatives across the #iwill Fund. Learning from the evaluation will be embedded in the development of tools and guidance for delivery organisations to support the incorporation of youth voice activities into their work in the most impactful way, leading to better outcomes for both young people and organisations alike. This work builds on our role in the #iwill Fund Learning Hub, set up to provide insight into youth social action and provide resources and support to #iwill Fund delivery partners. 
 

Dr Jo Hickman-Dunne, Project Manager at the Centre said:

“We’re delighted to be undertaking this evaluation and really looking forward to working collaboratively with the variety of stakeholders across the life of the project. The #iwill Fund represents one of the most significant investments in youth voice across the UK and this work is a vital part of understanding the difference the investment has made for young people, organisations, and communities. We’re particularly excited for young people to play a central role in the evaluation, and contribute to the development of practice guidance to inform the future of this movement.”

The #iwill Fund brings together a group of organisations that all contribute funding to embed meaningful social action into the lives of young people, made possible thanks to £50 million joint investment from The National Lottery Community Fund and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to support young people to access high quality social action.

On International Youth Day 2021, we’re looking for Young Evaluators to join the #iwill Fund evaluation!

Today, 12 August, is International Youth Day (IYD), celebrating and amplifying young people’s voices, actions and initiatives. IYD 2021 focuses on ‘youth engagement for global action’, highlighting the value of young people’s engagement at local, national and international levels. IYD 2021 also encourages us to explore how to enhance young people’s representation and engagement at all levels in political, economic and social life and institutional practices.

IYD seeks to spotlight young people’s engagement:

• at a local/community level;
• at a national level (for example the formulation and implementation of laws and policies; and
• at a global level.

The #iwill Fund is firmly rooted in raising young people’s active engagement. It has, so far, created a combined grant pot of over £73million and estimates that over 500,000 young people will undertake social action opportunities thanks to this funding.

We’re excited that this evaluation aligns strongly with the ethos of IYD 2021, in seeking to understand the impact of youth voice at a range of scales; producing guidance on how to support this more effectively; and directly engaging young people in this process through recruiting a group of young evaluators.

Applications for our Young Evaluators Panel are now open. We are looking for:
 

• A diverse range of young people from across England
• Aged 14-18
• Who have been actively involved in youth social action activities

We’re particularly interested in hearing from young people who like to share their ideas, want to learn how to do research and analyse data, enjoy working as part of a team, and want to influence how youth social action is delivered in the future.

If you know someone who might be interested in being a Young Evaluator, you can access the application pack here.