A biennial survey of young people is being launched during Youth Week (4 to 9 November).
The 53-question survey is being conducted by the Children’s Services Partnership and will be aimed at the 6,800 young people in the 11 to 18 age bracket.
It will seek their views on a range of issues, including their schooling, aspects of career advice they consider important to them and their future plans.
The survey also seeks to ascertain how many young people speak a language other than English at home, how many are disabled and how they feel they are treated if they are, and whether they care for a relative.
There are questions on diet, smoking and drinking and on hobbies and physical activities and what prevents young people engaging with these. How safe respondents feel in their community is also addressed.
Young people are asked whether they have been bullied, where this took place and what form it took and who, if anyone, they confided in.
The responses will be used by the partnership – which consists of the Departments of Health, Social Care, Education and Children, Community Culture and Leisure and Economic Development , the third sector and the Isle of Man Constabulary – to identify young people’s concerns and plan services.
Secondary students will receive a postcard inviting them to take part in the online survey via www.youth.im and it will be advertised at youth centres, libraries and at the Isle of Man College of Further and Higher Education.
Ken Callister, Principal Youth Officer at the DEC, said:
‘The Isle of Man Government’s policy for children contains a clear commitment to listen to the views of young people and involve them in decisions that affect them. The object of the survey is to discover what life is like growing up in the Isle of Man in 2013 and to collect both positive and negative feedback over services, to enable us and third sector organisations to deliver them more effectively.’
Ken said one area identified for exploration was emotional health and well-being, as young people were reporting that they felt there was sufficient information being supplied to them about the dangers of drugs and alcohol but not enough in this area.
The survey will end on 18 December and 15 lucky participants whose phone numbers will be drawn at random will win an iPad mini, a Galaxy tablet or a £25 voucher.
