Here at RCPCH we involve children and young people in achieving our own mission - it links with one of our key values, Involve. It also answers to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child: to have access to the best healthcare possible (Article 24); with children and young people being actively involved in the decisions that affect them (Article 12).
My wish for child health is that children and young people are given the power and tools to make decisions that affect their lives. The only way to know what we want is to ask us.
Children and young people's voice informing our work
RCPCH &Us is our children, young people and families (CYPF) network. It enables us to explore what children and young people think about topics like poverty, hidden sugar in food or mental health... and their creative ideas for our research and quality improvement programmes.
Since 2016, RCPCH &Us has worked with over 3,500 children, young people and families across the UK. Earlier this year, we published State of Child Health &Us, their response to our flagship report that looked at key themes such as communication, PSHE (personal, social and health education) and children's rights. In 2016, we developed a short video based around their response to our Facing the Future standards, exploring what CYP should expect from their health service. Take a look below!
Explore our resources
We have lots of resources help you as members involve CYP in service design, delivery and evaluation. Take a look at recipes for engagement with tried and tested group activities, our understand 101 tool and our guide to writing an engagement plan.
And, explore the tools children and young people have developed, such as top tips for healthcare workers and a pocketbook for talking about mental health, or our new video and template letter for giving feedback.
Features in your member news
You might have read about RCPCH &Us in our latest edition of Focus, our member magazine. We introduced the committee that brings together members and service users to help inform clinical practice.
And we had a takeover for one of last year's runs! A small and dedicated group of young people looked at what over 1,000 CYP had told us, and created a fantastic edition, with a look at transgender health and mental health.
Don't forget - you're lifesavers!
Finally, when we asked CYP what they thought of the NHS and children's doctors, they were full of praise! Their advice? Make sure you have someone looking after you. Take a look at our video...
If you'd like to find out more, why not join our Engagement Collaborative for regular updates. Or, get in touch with the CYP Engagement team on and_us@rcpch.ac.uk.