Guide to children’s and adolescents’ councils in Italy

UNICEF Italy guide to strengthen children’s and adolescents’ councils, offering practical steps, quality standards, and safeguards to ensure their voices influence decisions at the school and local level.

This resource is an adaptation of UNICEF’s global study on youth councils to the Italian local context. Aimed at municipalities, schools, and other institutions, the guide outlines how to establish or strengthen councils as formal participatory bodies where children and youth can represent peers and influence decisions. It structures recommendations around nine basic requirements for ethical and effective participation and provides advice on membership, elections, inclusivity, interaction with decision-makers, training for adults and children, and protection protocols. The guide stresses that councils are not symbolic but must shape policies, services, and community life with feedback and responsibility mechanisms.

Source: UNICEF Italy
Language: Italian

Author: Claire O’Kane

Year of publication: 2022