What does it really take to make Scotland the best place to grow up?

That, writes Morgan Moore, is the question at the heart of the Planet Youth pilot, recently evaluated across Scottish communities. The findings are already pointing to new ways we can work together for upstream prevention.

Across Scotland, communities and services are working hard to support children and young people the best the best they can. But too often, much of the work has to focus on responding to crises, rather than preventing them. 

Planet Youth is an evidence-based prevention model, first developed in Iceland, that helps communities take an upstream approach. Focusing on the protective factors such as the environments that support young people to thrive, rather than on individual behaviours. Over the past two years, Winning Scotland has been supporting a pilot of this approach in six local authorities. 

The pilot aimed to look at whether this approach could work within our Scottish context. So the areas involved took the approach and have spent the last few years working through the model of gathering the right people, listening to young people’s voices, sharing insights with the communities and creating preventative actions. 

An independent evaluation was commissioned to answer the question; can this work in Scotland? And if so, what are the conditions for success? 

The evaluation shows strong potential for Planet Youth in Scotland.  

• Rich local data – The survey gives communities clear, up-to-date insights into the beliefs, behaviours and attitudes of today’s young people. Allowing us to correlate the risk and protective factors in young people’s lives. From family relationships and leisure opportunities to wellbeing and substance use. 

• Partnership in action – The Planet Youth approach brings people together at all stages of the model, supporting and strengthening local partnerships. 

• True Prevention – The process encourages thinking beyond immediate reactions, towards addressing root causes and strengthening the environments where young people grow up. 

At the same time, the evaluation highlighted some real risks which we must not shy away from; from a lack of accountability to short term funding.  

For us, the key learning includes the importance of dedicated coordination, capacity within local systems, and the need to communicate clearly with schools and families about how the approach works. It can only work with a shared understanding of prevention, and the evaluation shows the key lessons and recommendations for the next steps in Scotland. 

Scotland faces real challenges in improving outcomes for children and young people. The Planet Youth pilot reminds us that upstream prevention is possible, and that communities can come together to create the conditions for healthier, happier lives. 

On Monday 6 October, 11am–12pm, we’re hosting a free webinar to share the evaluation findings in more detail, alongside reflections from the Planet Youth global team and the independent evaluators. It’s a chance to ask questions and discuss what this learning means for prevention in Scotland. 

Register here to attend the webinar.

Together, we can explore how to make prevention a reality, and how to make Scotland the best place in the world to grow up. 

Morgan Moore is Planet Youth’s National Delivery Manager