Provide sufficient time and create a safe space, tailored to the needs of the individual child, to enable the child to give meaningful feedback.

This is important to children and young people because:

• “Providing adequate time to provide feedback adds to the sense of being listened to.”

• “I like the option not to talk, I prefer play.”

• “Children experience and process things differently. They feel comfortable and safe in different environments in different ways. Understand that there is no ‘one size fits all’.”

• “Services need to have patience for children and young people to open up because it took me years to find the courage to talk about my past and my feelings.”

Actively listen, so that the child feels that their voice, views and experiences are being heard and understood.

This is important to children and young people because:

• “Every voice is important in what is going to happen. Don’t assume you know what is best for the child.”

• “We need to move beyond ‘children should be seen and not heard’ for healing to occur. Our experiences shouldn’t be minimised just because we’re younger.”

• “It is important to find out from the child how they feel and what they need. Listening and hearing leads to validating feelings.”

• “Treat the child like a real person, not just another number. If you haven’t made the child feel heard and understood, they won’t feel comfortable sharing and asking questions.”

• “Stop assuming and start listening. Don’t think you know. You can’t see us as victims in our own right unless you actually listen.”

Be accountable to the child, by clearly communicating how their feedback will be used and actioned, in relation to the child themselves and for ongoing service improvement.

This is important to children and young people because:

• “Follow through from feedback to action.”

• “Do something with what you’ve heard. Don’t always be confined by the ‘Nos’ you may hear without actually asking ‘why can’t we do that?’ Don’t give up at the first barrier. Push the boundaries of what is typically done in the service.”

• “If you’re just getting children to give feedback so it’s in your books, but you don’t do anything with it, then children won’t bother giving further feedback.”

Get to know the child, to establish a rapport built on transparency, understanding, safety and mutual respect.

This is important to children and young people because:

• “Trust is a hard thing to build, it takes a long time but it can be destroyed in an instant. When constantly surrounded by people you don’t trust, it’s exhausting. Just having one person you can trust is life-changing.”

• “It is important to get to know the child first, so they feel like they are being heard when providing feedback. It also shows the child that they are not just the sum of their bad experiences.”

• “Transparency builds trust. Be clear about where and to whom information that the child shares will go.”

• “To build trust, there needs to be an opportunity for the practitioner to get to know the child and for the child to get to know the practitioner. Having your practitioner like a friend.”

Give the child meaningful opportunities to be involved in decision-making, to the extent they wish and consistently with their age and evolving capacities.

This is important to children and young people because:

• “When getting feedback from a child, ask them, ‘would you like us to do something about it? If you do, what would you like done?’”

• “Give back some agency to the child. Explain the decision-making process, paths and choices available and ask, ‘what would you like next steps to be?’ It’s the child’s life too and they need to know and have a say about what’s going to happen next.”

• “Being able to choose something, when everything else is out of control.”

• “Decisions should include what the child wants. You want to feel included and listened to as a separate person.”

Give the child sufficient, accessible information about the nature, purpose and scope of the support being provided and the feedback being collected. Clearly explain any privacy and confidentiality limitations. Be transparent about what you can and cannot do to support the child. Confirm that the child understands the information provided.

This is important to children and young people because:

• “Explain how you can and can’t help. You don’t want to give the child false hope.”

• “Too much information can be overwhelming. Before you meet with a child, pick out what is relevant for the child to know and share it in an accessible way.”

• “Give the child information that they need to know, which doesn’t have to be everything.”

• “Ensure the child understands what you are trying to do to help them, even if it means using different words.”

• “Confirm your own understanding of what the child tells you, so there isn’t a loss of rapport and trust.”

• “Communicate clearly, because the child or young person might think they’re doing all the right things, but not get a result they were hoping for. Then it can feel like, ‘what’s the point?’”