Hear us. York.  

Bringing together children and young people with City Leaders to explore what living with financial barriers really means, and to shape change led by lived experience. 

Hear us. York. is the name chosen by children and young people across the city for the funded project formally known as the Children’s Poverty Truth Commission.  

Young people created the term Hear us because they want adults to do more than listen, they want their voices to be understood, valued, and their challenges acted upon. 

The Commission is a collaborative space where children share their stories and experiances of growing up in York. We are connecting these voices with decision‑makers, businesses, and services to co‑produce fairer, more compassionate solutions to elevate challenges they face in our community.  

What we are trying to change 

We want to challenge assumptions about poverty, financial disadvantage and life living on a low-income. The project shifts how decisions are made from doing for children and young people to doing with them.  

Voices that shape the work 

Children and families lead the conversation.  Their experiences guide every decision from the project’s name and activities to the way we measure impact. 

What we are doing 

• Working with youth provisions across the city to hear directly from children and young people about what they want to see change. 

• Understanding their stories and identifying what adults and services can do to make things better. 

• Recruiting and supporting young people to gather and share these stories through creative media. 

• Facilitating creative storytelling and listening sessions. 

• Co‑producing recommendations with City Leaders. 

• Creating a Voice Report to share the thoughts, feelings, and priorities of young people across York.