Project preparation and workshop facilitation

- for and with children and young people

This manual has been developed by the Child and Youth Network, Denmark, to meet the need for an operational manual containing conventional methods for project preparation and workshop facilitation in connection with development activities involving children and young people.

The aim of the manual is to improve the quality of project preparation and workshop facilitation by presenting a selection of tools, methods, approaches and techniques that support the project preparation process.

The target group of the manual is organisations and individuals working for and with children and young people in a development context. The primary users are:

• Organisations and individuals from Denmark and the South/East with some experience of project preparation and of working with children and youth in a development context.
• Organisations and individuals in need of inspiration and a range of methods and tools for carrying out project planning and facilitating workshops.
• Young people and volunteers from Denmark and the South/East.

A wide range of situations, processes, approaches and project planning methods is described in sections 1 – 8. We recommend that you establish an overview before embarking on preparing a project.

Section 9 contains a selection of facilitation tools helpful for steering workshops, meetings, seminars and other gatherings where the project planning group, stakeholders and beneficiaries meet to plan and prepare the work together.

Children and young people can be the target group, or beneficiaries, of a project. Children and young people can plan and implement projects and actively participate in the processes that constitute the project cycle. Some methods, tools and techniques can be used with this target group without their needing to be changed others need to be adjusted accordingly.

The manual was written by Anja C. Sakaly in cooperation with Kate Girvan. Contributions were also made by Hanne Fink and by the "Working Group for Participation".

Photos (from left): Anna Kari, Save the Children Denmark and Helle Kjærsgaard / Save the Children Denmark.