EUKN - United Kingdom - The Toolkit, Riverside: A Case Study

The Toolkit, Riverside: A Case Study

Introduction

We set up a Steering Group made up of Riverside staff and tenants. It decided to explore the idea of young people taking part as committee members or with a formal role in youth forum ways.

Problem

The Riverside Group Youth Involvement Project was based on the following beliefs and observations:

We believe that young people are the tenants of tomorrow and need to be engaged today;
We acknowledge the wider national agenda of involving young people in decision making and giving them 'a voice';
Tenant Representatives of The Riverside Group identified that young people had little presence in tenant participation (TP) structures;
It is a common belief that when young people are given the opportunity to take part in community-based activities in a meaningful way, it will have a lasting impact.

Description

The Youth Involvement Project (YIP) was established, which we delivered in two areas within the The Riverside Group, both in Merseyside. The Steering Group chose these areas following a brief consultation exercise. It was clear from the initial exercise that the project was going to generate interest, particularly from resident groups interested in involving local young people.

We reached key milestones during each stage of the YIP. There were also many hidden 'soft' outcomes that are difficult to describe. Being directly involved with the project brought participants into close contact with the young people's small but highly significant achievements.

Approach

The Steering Group wanted to build the foundations for quality work that we could then use to develop a Toolkit. The Toolkit could be added to over time and used in community-based settings, in partnership with other agencies, and by tenant and resident groups. To achieve this, the consultant's approach to Youth Involvement had several fundamental key principles.

These were:

Action Engagement,
Focus on Young People Across Ages,
Youth-Owned Participation,
Links to Services
and the Local Environment and Building Leadership Skills.

Results

The toolkit can be used as a training tool for staff and tenants:

to help carry out new projects in divisions and subsidiaries,
in presentations about tenant participation (TP) to other groups,
at workshops,
conferences and training courses where young people are getting involved in running community events or projects.

The Toolkit can also be used to help:

develop training and supporting documents for tenant groups by TP workers,
young people and parents get involved in running community events or projects.

The Toolkit can also be used in partnership with local communities where anti-social behaviour is a big issue.

Beneficiaries

Tenants, RSL's, communities.

Resources used

Steering group, marketing and organising events, funding to employ consultant.

Contact info

The Riverside Group
Phone: 0151 708 1000
enquiries@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk

Project start date

Links

Visit the The Housing Corporation website

Download the 'The Toolkit, Riverside' Report (PDF, Eng, 578 KB)

Document type

case

Themes

Urban Policy > Housing > Housing management

Keywords

Tenant management