A New 'Youth Voice' Toolkit for Music Education Hubs
Did you know that alongside all of our music-making, MAC Makes Music also supports five Music Education Hubs to work more inclusively with children and young people across the West Midlands? One way we can achieve this is by embedding the ideas and ambitions of young people in to our programmes so that the musical opportunities offered to them are exciting and relevant to their needs and interests.
However, asking the right questions to young people, and in the right way isn’t always easy. There are lots of things to consider, like:
- Are we hearing all voices or perhaps only the loudest voices?
- How do we encourage more young people to have their say?
- Can we really turn young people’s ideas in to reality?
In 2021 we commissioned Sound Connections to help five West Midlands Music Education Hubs to develop their ‘Youth Voice’ strategies. After a period of consultation with each hub, Sound Connections produced a handy toolkit in response to their needs.
The toolkit covers various topics including:
- Why hubs should embrace youth voice
- How to integrate youth voice in to your strategy
- How to integrate youth voice in to your delivery
- How to assess where you’re at and where to go next
We are thrilled to be able to share this resource more widely to help other Music Education Hubs develop their Youth Voice practice.
You can download the free toolkit here. Let us know how you get on!