Too often, ‘youth engagement’ means inviting young people into rooms where decisions have already been made. The Centre can flip that dynamic.
About
A national hub for young people's influence
The Centre for Youth Voice strengthens how young people influence decisions, shape services and create change across the UK, with resources, evidence and networks that make sure young people's ideas lead to action.
- over 400young people trained as peer researchers, peer evaluators, young commissioners and grant-makers over the past decade
- 64young people and practitioners shaped what the Centre should be, through the Project Discovery consultation
- 14,134young people's answers analysed region by region in our Youth Matters briefing
Where the Centre came from
The Centre started as the Centre for Youth Impact, later hosted by YMCA George Williams College, building on its expertise in socio-emotional skill development and its work on the Framework of Outcomes for Young People. Following a period of consultation and development, the Centre moved to its new home with the Regional Youth Work Units, so that it is rooted in regional networks and directly connected to the realities of youth work across the country.
The Centre's development was shaped by wide consultation. The Project Discovery consultation engaged 64 young people and practitioners, highlighting the need for accessible and practical resources to strengthen youth participation; easier access to youth-led and longitudinal research on the impact of participation; inclusive storytelling that reflects both successes and challenges; and fairer, more visible opportunities for young people to connect, influence and lead.
Those findings led to a co-created action plan: a capacity hub of free resources, toolkits and training (now the Resource Library); a national repository of research and evidence (now the CYV Evidence Library); more youth-friendly communications and networking; and stronger youth leadership in governance through young trustees and ambassadors.
For what we mean by youth voice, and the rights, frameworks and evidence behind it, see Youth voice: what we mean and where it comes from.
How it took shape
Three steps to a national centre
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Roots in youth impact
The Centre started as the Centre for Youth Impact, later hosted by YMCA George Williams College, building on its work on the Framework of Outcomes for Young People.
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Project Discovery
64 young people and practitioners set out what a national centre should do: free tools and training, a research repository, better networking and young people in governance. Read the summary.
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A regional home
In 2025 the Centre moved to the Network of Regional Youth Work Units, rooting it in the regional networks and everyday youth work it exists to serve.
What we do
Three areas of work
Insight, Involve and Impact are the shape of everything the Centre publishes, runs and collects.
Insight
Data and evidence on young people's lives and how youth voice works, from the Evidence Library to Youth Matters.
Involve
Practical toolkits for peer research, youth-led funding and decision-making, plus the toolkit training series and Communities of Practice.
Impact
What changes when young people are heard: evaluations, measurement frameworks and case studies by the people who did the work.
The people
Youth Voice Ambassadors
A group of 16 to 24 year olds who shape the Centre's work, write for Voices and speak for it in the sector.
Django England Involved with the Centre in its various forms for over four years; writes about the Centre's direction and impact. 
Hannah Furborough England Came to youth voice through the Duke of Edinburgh's Award; writes about inclusion, health and quieter voices. Qahira Shah England Focused on what the Centre should achieve for young people and decision-makers. 
Eden NI Young carer and activist from Northern Ireland; writes on mental health, online safety and youth-led organisations. 
Huda England Highlights practical resources for young people, starting with participatory action research. 
Maanya Jones England Peer researcher on Re-thinking London's Green Transition with LSE Cities and Islington Council. Behind the Centre
Hosted and funded
Hosted by the Network of Regional Youth Work Units
The Network connects the regional youth work units that support youth work day to day, so the Centre sits inside that infrastructure rather than alongside it.
Funded by The National Lottery Community Fund
The Centre's programme is supported by The National Lottery Community Fund. Everything on this site is free to use.
Get in touch
Questions and ideas. To send us a case study, a resource we've missed or a research report, use the submission form.