Listening to young people like their lives depend on it
Practical, down to earth training to enable adults to skillfully listen to and support the young people in their lives.
I think it is really important to listen to children, no really, I mean it. Even if you think they are whinging they are actually saying really important things. No, honestly, just listen
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Our young people are in crisis
There is a huge gap between the urgent needs of young people and the skill and competency of the adults around them to meet them.
Organisations committed to supporting young people have a valuable opportunity and a clear responsibility to meet this gap.
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what is happening?
Young people are facing huge and damaging levels of stress and distress and the adults around them are struggling to know what to do. It is already hard to be a young person in our society, there is pressure and uncertainty in education, work, relationships, money, and all the expectations of growing into adulthood.
We know that young people are in crisis. (link this out to a depressing stats page) Mental health distress has rocketed, young people were affected badly by the covid pandemic, and services that used to support young people have been cut and dismantled. . The education system is in crisis and schools and colleges are being forced to put more and more pressure on students to pass exams and have less attention to give to wellbeing or care. Young people are at the cutting edge of the climate crisis, bearing the burden of knowing that their futures are being limited by the actions and inactions of corporations and governments around the world. This is the first generation that is guaranteed to have a worse quality of life than their parents, with housing now largely unaffordable and unavailable to the young.
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Anxiety and stress become far more damaging when people feel alone and unsupported. The research* (footnote to research) clearly tells us that most young people feel that the adults around them do not know how to listen to them. Parents and teachers do not have the time or capacity to really give the attention and care that is needed. Listening and caring has been contracted out to counsellors and psychotherapists but mental health services have been cut beyond recognition. Now funded services are overwhelmed with referrals and only the most privileged are able to pay privately for support. We desperately need a community of care around our young people that doesn’t rely on simply outsourcing to potentially disconnected “professionals”.
“We cannot protect young people from the impact of climate crisis but we can protect them from being alone with it”
Jo McAndrews
working in partnership
We want to live in a world where young people can turn towards any of the adults they already know for support and care; where they are surrounded by older people who can listen to them with warmth and understanding. We know that the knowledge and practical tools are available to make this possible. That’s where Lifekind comes in.
Working in partnership with organisations like yours, who truly care about the wellbeing and resilience of our young people we can develop a generation of adults and elders who have the skills, competency and support to meet these very complex and challenging needs. Let’s get this right while we still can.
Aims of the day:
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What we will learn
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Listening to young people like their lives depend on it!
A timely, expert, highly practical advanced training programme for personal and professional development that gets to the heart of what’s needed.
Who is this for?
People who work with children and young people in education, health, social care, mental health support, youth work, therapy and counselling, environmental organisations, leisure and sports
Parents
Foster carers
Grandparents and other family members
Volunteers in projects supporting young people
delivered by the very best trainers
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practical, accessible
No jargon, down to earth, practical doable skills and understanding that is accessible to everyone. .
Underpinned by the latest neuroscience
trauma and attachment informed and expertly delivered with care and understanding.
Quote Source
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why does this matter?
This is important for so many reasons. For those who care about young people it is heart-breaking and outrageous that they are under so much stress and pressure. From a public health perspective, these levels of stress lead to higher levels of self-harm, mental illness, eating disorders and suicide. By every measure (except for the profit margins of private prison services, privatised NHS companies and Pharmaceutical companies) this is a disaster. We are abandoning generations of young people to grow into adults who are traumatised and despairing. People can have strong capacity to meet adversity and challenge with resilience but only if they have support and care.
If we look around us, we can see that adults are not managing things well. Research into the brain shows that the changes that happen at adolescence are essential for human survival.*(Daniel Siegel ‘Brainstorm’) Young people see clearly what is not working and have the qualities necessary for social change towards increased resilience. When a culture stops listening to its young people it cuts off a source of vital wisdom. Many organisations conduct consultancy processes to canvas the views of young people but they are often focussed on tick boxes rather than deep listening. Young people may express their views but are then left on their own to deal with the distress of not feeling truly heard. (do we need a separate section on consultation processes?)
The roots of resilience are in childhood
Children who are surrounded by adults who know how to listen with skill and who are able to care for them at the right level are able to thrive. This foundation lasts beyond childhood and grows resilient, emotionally secure and capable adults. The teenage years give a huge opportunity to get it right while we still can. Although we might not feel able to solve the wider social and global crises, we can each learn to listen more skilfully so that we solve the problem of abandonment and isolation that puts young people at risk.
We need to recognise our responsibility and the opportunity here to step up and be part of a growing network of adults putting the need of young people at the forefront.
As adults we need to step up
When we really listen to the children and young people in our lives we are meeting their basic needs to be seen, heard, understood and cared for.
your faclitator
Jo McAndrews, Lifekind Founder
bio here
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It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
This is a frequently asked question?
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
This is a frequently asked question?
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.