Making the voices of children and young people heard
Children and young people in Tuusula have the opportunity to share their own perspectives on life in Tuusula. Their voices are heard in many different ways, whether in nurseries, schools or youth services – not to mention leisure activities.
You can keep up to date with how children and young people’s voices are being heard by, for example, reading our news on the ‘Child-friendly municipality’ topic and following our social media channels, such as those for schools, nurseries and youth services.
Outcomes of the consultations
The ‘Child-Friendly Municipality’ initiative in Tuusula began in 2023 with an initial survey. As part of the survey, children and young people were asked what works well in Tuusula and what makes their lives good. The topic was explored further by asking what is particularly important to children and young people and what we could improve.
Children’s rights through the eyes of young people
In four videos, members of the Tuusula Youth Council discuss the realisation of children’s rights. The videos were produced as part of the initial assessment for Tuusula’s ‘Child-Friendly Municipality’ initiative in autumn 2023.
During the 2025–2026 school year, the extracurricular and club activities organised by Tuusula’s schools will offer secondary school pupils the opportunity to take part in media workshops in Jokela and Riihikallio. As part of the activity, participants will also be able to contribute content to Tuusula’s Child-Friendly Municipality initiative. We want young people’s voices to be heard on what life is like here in Tuusula – what’s fun to do and how Tuusula could be made an even better place to live.
Participatory budgeting for children and young people
Tuusula’s participatory budgeting scheme (Osbu), which will run from 2025 to 2027, gives children and young people under the age of 18 living in Tuusula a voice and the power to make decisions. Through PB, children and young people will be able to influence and come up with ideas for initiatives or projects that enhance well-being and quality of life in Tuusula.
Find out more about the stages of the children and young people’s round on the Participatory Budgeting for Children and Young People page.
Thoughts on leisure time through Skidialogues
The regional Skididialogi discussion sessions, which began in autumn 2025 in collaboration with adults working with schoolchildren and young people, are gathering participants’ views and experiences of leisure time across Tuusula. The Child-Friendly Municipality initiative has specifically identified a need to increase the opportunities for 12–15-year-olds in Tuusula to participate in the planning and organisation of leisure activities and free time.
The first discussion session took place in October 2025 at Kellokoski School, with the next one scheduled for February 2026 in Jokela. Read about the outcomes of the discussions in the news articles below!
Children’s Rights Week
Every year, we take part in Children’s Rights Week in Tuusula as part of our work towards becoming a child-friendly municipality.
Under our ‘Understanding Children’s Rights’ objective, all departments within Tuusula Municipality are involved in organising the annual Children’s Rights Week This initiative encourages our departments to help raise awareness of this important issue and to ensure that the voices of children and young people are heard in a variety of ways – both in the planning and implementation of the week. We also invite other stakeholders to join us.
Explore different ways of listening
In spring 2024, Helsingin Sanomat published an article in its ‘Finland for Families with Children’ special supplement, which explained how children and young people are making their voices heard in Tuusula.
We have compiled a selection of examples from autumn 2025 illustrating the opportunities for children and young people to participate and have a say in relation to each of the objectives of our Child-Friendly Municipality initiative. Take a look at the summary!
This content has been translated using AI