Youth policy and participation: An analysis of pedagogical ideals in municipal youth policy in the Netherlands

Over the past two decades, in several Northern and Western European Union countries responsibility for general youth policy has been transferred from the central government to the local level of municipalities. In this transformation process the local authorities, guided by central government's advice, have decided to give the participation of children and young people in policy decision-making an unprecedented policy prominence. In the Netherlands, as in the UK, youth's participation in policy decision-making was linked to the idea of fostering among young people a greater commitment to democracy. Democratic citizenship became the new pedagogical ideal. This evaluation study of youth policy in 25 municipalities shows the discrepancies between democratic ideals and youth's participation in practice. Most local authorities only pay lip service to the idea of engaging young people in the democratic process. Full participation and the creation of a culture of participation remain exceptional.