When young people help design services, those services become clearer, safer and more effective for the people who rely on them.

That principle was recently demonstrated by a group of care-experienced young people from Kibble, whose insight helped make an anonymous crime-reporting service clearer and more accessible to young people across the UK.

Their work was recognised at the 2026 Crimestoppers Volunteer Awards, where the group received the national Youth Volunteer of the Year award.

It is an excellent example of participation moving beyond consultation. The young people were not simply asked what they thought of an existing service. They were trusted to help improve it.

How did the project begin?

The project began through the Youth Philanthropy Initiative, with young people across Kibble’s education settings selecting Fearless as the organisation they wanted to support.

Fearless is the youth service of the independent charity Crimestoppers. It provides young people with information about crime and a way to report concerns anonymously.

The Kibble group researched the charity, developed a pitch and secured £3,000 in funding for its work.

However, their involvement did not end with the presentation.

The young people went on to work directly with Crimestoppers and Fearless, using their experiences and insights to help improve the Fearless website. They also contributed to the redesign of its anonymous online reporting form, making it clearer, simpler and more relevant to young people who may need to use it.

The project and subsequent award were highlighted in a Children in Scotland article about the group’s achievement.

Why lived experience matters when designing services

Professionals can bring valuable knowledge about safeguarding, policy, technology and service delivery. Young people bring a different form of expertise: an understanding of how a service feels to the person expected to use it.

They can identify language that is confusing, questions that feel intimidating and processes that assume too much prior knowledge. They may also recognise emotional barriers that are less obvious to adults.

This is particularly important when a service concerns crime, safety or reporting a concern.

A young person may already feel frightened, uncertain or worried about the consequences of sharing information. If the service is difficult to understand or does not feel relevant to them, they may leave without completing the process.

Involving young people in the design stage can help organisations identify these barriers before they prevent someone from accessing support.

From participation to co-production

Children and young people are frequently invited to complete surveys, attend consultation sessions or comment on proposals.

These opportunities can be valuable, but they do not automatically amount to co-production.

Co-production involves sharing some of the influence over how a service, resource or solution is developed. Young people should be involved early enough to shape the outcome, not only asked to approve something that has already been decided.

Meaningful co-production should include:

• a clear explanation of what can be changed;
• accessible ways for young people to participate;
• enough time to build trust and explore ideas;
• appropriate support throughout the process;
• evidence that young people’s contributions affected the result;
• feedback explaining what was changed and why; and
• recognition of the young people’s time, knowledge and achievement.

The Kibble and Fearless project demonstrates this clearly. The young people’s involvement led to practical changes to a live national service. It is a clear example of what happens when young people help design services from the very start.

Their ideas were not treated as an additional perspective. They became part of the finished product.

How does this connect with GIRFEC?

The project reflects the GIRFEC commitment to placing children and young people at the centre of decisions affecting them.

It also connects with several SHANARRI wellbeing indicators:

• Safe: The young people helped improve a service through which others can report crime and seek support anonymously.
• Achieving: They developed skills in research, communication, teamwork, presentation and service design.
• Respected: Their experiences and opinions were treated as valuable sources of knowledge.
• Responsible: They helped develop a resource intended to support other young people and strengthen community safety.
• Included: They participated in decisions about a national service designed for their age group.
• Active: They took an active role in identifying an issue and creating a practical response.

This shows why wider achievement should be understood as more than participation in an activity.

The young people contributed to something with real purpose and national reach. Their work changed a service and may make it easier for others to report serious concerns safely.

Moving beyond assumptions about care experience

Care-experienced young people are often discussed primarily in relation to risk, vulnerability or support needs.

Those issues matter, but they do not represent the whole person.

Young people with care experience also bring knowledge, creativity, leadership and insight that can improve the organisations and systems around them. When services focus only on what young people need from adults, they can overlook what adults and organisations can learn from young people.

A strengths-based approach recognises both.

It ensures support is available where required while creating genuine opportunities for young people to lead, influence and contribute.

The Crimestoppers award rightly recognises the achievement of the young people involved. It also demonstrates what becomes possible when adults provide the time, encouragement and access needed to turn young people’s ideas into action.

Questions for organisations

Services working with children and young people should consider:

• At what stage are young people invited into the design process?
• Are they able to influence important decisions or only minor details?
• Are care-experienced young people recognised as contributors and experts?
• Do participation methods reflect different communication needs?
• Can young people see what changed because of their involvement?
• How are their time, work and achievements recognised?
• Do we evaluate whether children find our services accessible, safe and trustworthy?

Why Young People Help Design Services, Not Simply Receive Them

The Kibble and Fearless project is a strong example of participation producing a visible and practical outcome.

By listening to care-experienced young people and treating their insight seriously, Crimestoppers and Fearless were able to improve a service created to support young people across the country.

The project also gave those involved opportunities to develop skills, influence change and see the wider value of their contribution.

Children and young people should not have to adapt themselves to services that were designed without them in mind.

This kind of involvement also gives young people a stronger sense of feeling included, safe and valued. When organisations involve them as genuine partners, services can become clearer, safer and better equipped to respond to the realities of young people’s lives.