Beyond yes or no: navigating consent and assent in research with children and young people

Conducting ethical research with children and young people presents complex challenges, shaped by gatekeepers, power dynamics, and procedural requirements that can limit children and young people’s ability to participate fully and autonomously on their own terms. Obstacles arise at every stage, from designing consent forms and seeking informed consent from parents/carers and children and young people, to ensuring children, and young people’s right to assent, dissent and/or withdraw altogether is continually respected. This paper reflectively and critically examines these challenges, drawing on our experiences of working with over 600 children and young people aged between 3 and 15 years old, at various stages of a 5-year action research project. Focussing on three key areas of consent, assent, and dissent, it explores how our illustrated ‘assent mat’ provided children and young people with the means to set the terms of their engagement with the research activities. Through our reflections, we highlight that the ‘assent mat’ was the beginning of an ongoing dialogue with children and young people, one which reinforced our responsibility as researchers to ensure children and young people’s participation rights and autonomy are enabled and respected throughout a project.