What do children and young people in the social services understand by participation? Similarities and differences with the vision of professionals

The participation of children and young people during the different times when decisions that directly affect their lives are made is a complex issue. The aims of this study were to determine the perspectives of children and adolescents linked to welfare system on how they understand their participation and compare these with those of professionals. The main aim was to determine what they understand by participation, experiences they identify in relation to it and proposals for improvement. Through a methodological design with a collection of qualitative data from 71 participants, 30 interviews were carried out, 16 with children and adolescents and 14 with professionals from different resources. In addition, six focus groups were held, three with children and young people and three with professionals. The results show that children and adolescents understand participation as an element of support, with little connection to decision-making, giving examples of previous experiences from their daily lives in the organization of activities and more routine aspects. They propose they be listened to more and better understood to improve their participation in the different stages of the intervention process. On the other hand, although stating that participation must be a fundamental element of the practice, the professionals highlighted difficulties in achieving it. They point to the overload of work involved in generating participatory experiences. This research emphasizes the need to make protection compatible with participation, highlighting the benefits that participation brings to socio-educational processes.