How does the Youth Budget work?
1. Data collection
The Youth Budget is launched every spring with data collection. In the data collection stage, young people from all over Helsinki get to share their current requests, concerns and ideas. Young people usually participate in data collection during the school day.
2. Workshops
In the autumn, local youth centres will organise workshops where young people will review the responses gained during the data collection stage in their own area together with youth workers and make various plans based on these responses. The plans may take the form of either proposals for practical measures or initiatives.
3. Voting
In October, all 12–17-year-olds get to vote for their favourite plans developed in the workshops. The voting events are usually part of the school day. The voting will take place on the nuortenbudjetti.hel.fi website.
4. Advisory boards
The voting results of each area will be confirmed by the local advisory boards and decisions will be made on how to promote the most popular plans. The advisory boards can decide to implement plans with a cost estimate of less than 3,000 euros from the local youth work unit’s own budget. Financing for more expensive plans can be sought from the Youth Budget fund of 150,000 euros.
If a plan cannot be implemented as a Youth Services activity, the advisory board can decide to make an initiative on the plan in the initiative channel for young people (External link). A decision can also be made to take the idea to the participatory budgeting for the entire Helsinki OmaStadi (external link).
5. Implementation
The proposals selected for implementation by the advisory board will be implemented during the following year.