Youth work is value based and its core principles are that it needs…

to promote critical thinking and creativity, as well as human rights, democratic values and active citizenship.

This bullet point makes clear that it is towards these core societal values that youth work should have its primary loyalty, even when other actors in society might be going in the opposite direction. Having young people as primary stakeholders means that youth work must support and defend their right to argue and act for changes based on these values, even when it puts them in conflict with other actors.

These values are unconditional. They are the fundament on which a secure/safe youth work environment is built, and youth work must always secure that they are upheld within its own realm.

However, being unconditional does not mean that they should not be discussed. On the contrary, it is through discussions, not through setting up rules, that they will be fully understood and kept alive.

Discuss & assess
Here you find the questions you need to ask yourself to know if you need to develop and the assessment function
Set objectives
Here you describe what you want to achieve.
Needs
Here you describe what you need to acquire, develop or change.
Actions to take
Here you describe the actions you plan to take.

Remember! Development is far from always a linear process! It needs to start with discussions, but the first ‘Action to take’ might be to gather more knowledge before setting aims for development and deciding on further actions to take. Dare to be both flexible and to take one step back before taking two steps forward!

References & tips

“This brochure contains inspiring initiatives, practices and tools, including the EU projects, that showcase how youth work and non-formal learning can enhance young people’s creativity and innovation, through their experimental nature, participatory approaches, and peer-learning, and how this can help them to find their place in the labour market – and in life.”
Unleashing young people’s creativity and innovation, European Commission 2015
“Human rights are best respected, protected and appreciated when all of us understand them, stand up for them and apply them in our actions. Human rights education – learning about, through and for human rights – is therefore essential in preventing human rights violations and in making democracy a sustainable way of life.”
COMPASS: Manual for human rights education with young people, Council of Europe