Stephen Twigg, the junior schools minister, told delegates at a fringe event that the green paper on youth would also boost the role of school councils as a way of ensuring that young people's voices were heard.
A key strand of the document will be providing more exciting and enjoyable activities for young people. There will be action on bullying, and greater opportunities for volunteering and mentoring projects so that teenagers can give advice to younger children.
"A year ago we published Every Child Matters," he said. "Our purpose is to ensure we can build upon what is being forged for children and forge the same for young people too."
Anne Longfield, chief executive of 4Children, said: "We talk about employment, youth offending and education, but they all live in their own areas and have different ways of communicating with youth people. Professionals need to come together and find a common standpoint."
