Milner and O'Byrne (2009) argue that " In recent times, a core principle of social work policy and practice is to work in a child-centred way by listening to and taking the child’s voice into account as much as possible".
It appears that Anderson (1835) "But he isn't wearing any clothes at all" was way ahead of the curve when he provided an example of he voice of the child, in matters of State, over 150 years ago.
It never ceases to surprise, how many timeless insights into childhood we appear to have forgotten.
Anderson,Hans,Christian. ( 1835) The Emperor's New Clothes Fairy tales told for children. Published Reitzel December 1835 Copenhagen. http://self.gutenberg.org/articles/the_emperor's_new_clothes (accessed on line December 2015)
Milner, J. and O’Byrne, P. (2009) Assessment in Social Work, 3rd edn, London, Palgrave Macmillan. http://www.tusla.ie/uploads/content/Age_Appropriate_Communication_with_Children.pdf (accessed on line December 2015)