The Children's Commissioner's term is now more than halfway over. Next year will be a crucial year for children's rights, with a general election and a new government (whichever party comes to power) with a new mandate to develop an ambitious vision of what childhood looks like and to put children's rights at the heart of policy-making.
Therefore, the office was opened in September 2023 Big ambitions We will hear directly from children, young people and parents across the country about their hopes, dreams and aspirations.
As a result, the focus of this year's business plan is on driving change to improve children's lives, informed by the more than one million children, young people, parents and carers who have shared their views and experiences with the Office.
This is grouped into our thematic pillars of a better world, children's social welfare, community, education, health, family and work and skills, with additional sections on Help at Hand, our support services and the fantastic participation groups that shape much of our work.
Strive to ensure that all children feel listened to by adults making decisions about their lives
Big ambitions We find that children express their opinions openly, honestly and powerfully. They have a realistic yet ambitious vision of what they want to achieve for themselves and others, and they want to have a say in the decisions that affect their lives. Across the pillars of our Business Plan, we use children's own words to shape our work and convey the message of the change they want to see. From ministries and councils to local authorities and frontline experts, our Business Plan work aims to increase knowledge and understanding of the issues that matter to children, and solutions to make children's lives better.
Each element of our plan gives particular consideration to advocating for the rights and voices of vulnerable children, children in care and children involved with social services. Our Help at Hand team casework will continue to be sensitive to this and strive to provide the highest standards of support and advocacy to ensure every child feels heard.
Giving kids a voice
What sets Children's Commissioners apart is our commitment to accountability – we are held accountable by the children and young people we work with to represent their interests and amplify their voices around the world. Big ambitionsOnly 22% of children and young people surveyed agreed that the people running the country listen to their views – the question with the most negative responses in the survey.
This year we urge party leaders to commit to tackling this issue and engaging with their youngest voters. Work under our 'A Better World' pillar is essential to this, including sharing the action we are taking based on their stories and developing new and innovative ways to encourage more children and young people to share their views and ideas.
Improve the design and delivery of child-related policies and services
Our work over the past three years has shown that too often services work in silos, working towards different goals based on their approach to individuals rather than engaging with children and services as a whole. This means that many families and children are left between the gaps in service provision and struggle to support each other effectively.
Each part of this year's work plan aims to explore the barriers and most important facilitators that can improve the coherence and delivery of services to ensure that wherever children live and whatever their circumstances, integrated systems provide the highest standards of safety and care, and that children's needs are not overlooked or marginalized. Appendix A on page 28 sets out how the plan's objectives work across the pillars and policy areas.
Driving change to keep children safe and thriving
We know that understanding children's needs and journeys is essential to delivering a system focused on keeping them safe and supporting their dreams. Children, particularly those involved in care and social services, have told us they feel frustrated and alienated by bureaucratic processes that require them to repeatedly explain their needs to different services and agencies. This year, across our education, health and child social care pillars, we will drive change to meet this challenge, building the case for enhanced data collection and sharing processes and unique child identifiers. We will convene, engage and influence to drive this change to protect and support children and their families from their early years.
Working internationally
The Children's Commissioner for England also takes on the role of Children's Commissioner for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland for all matters for which the UK Government is responsible for non-devolved policy. This year we will continue to meet regularly with the offices of the Children's Commissioners in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and actively share our findings on issues affecting children across the UK with the seven-member Network of British and Irish Ombudsmen and Children's Commissioners (BINOCC).
Following our statutory obligation to protect and promote the rights and needs of children and young people, all our work is carried out in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
