Press releases
Schools must consider the views of students
November 12 2008
Human rights select committee urges greater protection for children
August 10 2008
Children in England call for UN action on their rights
June 9 2008
900,000 young people denied a vote
June 2008
March 7 2008
CRAE's national co-ordinator to give oral evidence on Bill of Rights
January 14 2008
Government suspends use of two restraint techniques on children in custody
December 19 2007
World Fit for Children +5 – young people at the UN
December 11 2007
Schools must consider the views of students
After decades of campaigning by children's rights advocates, the law was finally changed yesterday (11 November) to place a duty on all maintained schools in England and Wales to consider the views of children and young people. Carolyne Willow, CRAE's national coordinator, says:
This is a historic moment that we have worked for years to achieve. It was simply unacceptable that schools should have no legal obligation to consider children's views. This change in the law should help transform the culture of schools, with children being firmly at the centre of policy and practice. Progressive educationalists will be delighted too; for them there is no question that children should have their views taken into account.
Many Parliamentarians have supported law reform though it was undoubtedly the steadfast efforts of Baroness Joan Walmsley, Liberal Democrat Peer and CRAE Patron, that secured the change.
The move is one of the first major actions to protect children's rights taken by new children's minister Baroness Delyth Morgan of Drefelin. The minister explained:
"… I am sure that the whole House will agree that the voice of pupils and young people is extremely important … The new duty in these amendments sends a clear message about the importance that we place on the involvement of pupils, which the Children’s Rights Alliance for England also eloquently advocates, in matters that affect their education and school life. Through regulations, we intend to require governing bodies to invite views on a core set of policy matters. As a minimum, schools should seek and take account of pupils’ views on policies on the delivery of the curriculum, behaviour, the uniform, school food, health and safety, equalities and sustainability, not simply on what colour to paint the walls."
Notes
- The provisions are introduced as new Section 29A of the Education Act 2002. They require the governing body of a maintained school to invite and consider the views of pupils about prescribed matters. Prescribed matters will be set out in regulations and are broadly ‘the exercise, or proposed exercise, of a function of the governing body of a maintained school relating to the conduct of the school [and] the exercise, or proposed exercise, of such a function in a particular way’.
- The consultation on the regulations will take place in Spring 2009. CRAE will be pushing for the widest scope including, for example, the recruitment of staff and budget allocation. Section 29A of the 2002 Act is expected to come into force soon after the completion of the consultation: the minister assured parliament that ‘we do not intend to drag our heels’.
- The lack of participation rights for school students was raised by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in its concluding observations on the UK issued on 3 October 2008 (as well as in 2002 and 1995).
- As part of Participation Works, CRAE appointed a dedicated post holder in 2007 to lead lobbying on this and other policy developments. Visit www.participationworks.org.uk
- The Children's Rights Alliance for England is a coalition of over 380 member organisations that seeks the full implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in England. Our vision is of a society where the human rights of all children are recognised and realised.
- The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child is examining the UK this year. The UN Committee will publish its concluding observations in early October 2008, and is expected to repeat its 2002 recommendation for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to be incorporated into domestic law.
- Other European countries have made the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child part of their national law. The South African Bill of Rights, adopted in 1996, makes specific provision for the rights of children.
- The Northern Ireland Bill of Rights Forum made recommendations to the NI Human Rights Commission in March 2008 on a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland, proposing the inclusion of detailed rights provision for children.
- The Joint Committee on Human Rights, chaired by Andrew Dismore MP, consists of 12 members appointed from both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The Committee undertakes inquiries on human rights issues and reports its findings and recommendations to the House. Other JCHR members include Lord Dubs, John Austin MP, Lord Fraser of Carmyllie, Douglas Carswell MP, Lord Lester of Herne Hill, Dr Evan Harris MP, Lord Morris of Handsworth, Virendra Sharma MP, The Earl of Onslow, Richard Shepherd MP and Baroness Stern.
- Painful ‘distraction’ techniques were used 768 times in STCs in the period November 2004 to October 2005 and resulted in 51 child injuries, with no children receiving outside medical treatment; and
- These painful techniques were used 121 times between February and August 2006.
- Painful ‘distraction’ techniques were used 768 times in STCs in the period November 2004 to October 2005 and resulted in 51 child injuries, with no children receiving outside medical treatment; and
- These painful techniques were used 121 times between February and August 2006.
Human rights select committee urges greater protection for children
August 10 2008
The Children's Rights Alliance for England welcomes the report published today (August 10) by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR), in which the Committee says there is a 'strong case' for increased human rights protection for children. The Committee states:
We … have called on the Government to incorporate into UK law provisions in human rights treaties where, in our view, the protection offered by our national law is inadequate, for example in relation to certain provisions in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The Committee's report comes ahead of the Government's Green Paper on a British Bill of Rights and Responsibilities, expected in the autumn.
Carolyne Willow, CRAE's National co-ordinator, says:
It is nearly 20 years since the UK agreed to follow the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and it is now time to make this treaty part of our domestic law. There is no doubt that children have moved much higher up the political agenda in the past decade. But our laws do not sufficiently protect children's human rights. The British Bill of Rights must protect children wherever they are – be they at home, school, looked after by the state or in custody.
The JCHR is a strong defender of the human rights of the most vulnerable children in Britain and we are delighted that our evidence to the Committee has been so well received and reflected in its recommendations.
We have been encouraged by recent comments from Ministers that children are 'at the heart' of their plans. We look forward to seeing this reflected in the Green Paper.
The JCHR says that one of the principal purposes of any new Bill of Rights should be to strengthen legal protection of the rights of vulnerable and marginalised people, such as children in custody. The Committee emphasises the importance of consulting children on the proposals, stating:
We heard convincing argument from the Children's Rights Alliance for England that children should be involved in any consultation on a UK Bill of Rights…A number of different processes may need to be run in tandem, with particular methods being used to target specifically harder to reach groups.
In October 2002, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child urged the UK to bring all aspects of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into UK law. It praised the Human Rights Act, which brings into UK law the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), but said the children's treaty gives 'much broader' protection to under 18 year-olds. This view has been echoed by the European Court of Human Rights and members of our own judiciary. Baroness Hale of Richmond told the JCHR that children's rights are the first item on her "shopping list" for a British Bill of Rights:
There is virtually nothing in the ECHR about children. The UK is party to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and there are aspects of that Convention which could, it seems to me, be with profit put into any British Bill of Rights; better to accord with our existing international obligations and with our understanding of children and what they should have.
More details
Katy Swaine, CRAE legal director, office: 020 7278 8222 x30; mobile 07771 642 527; kswaine@crae.org.uk
Notes
Children in England call for UN action on their rights
June 9 2008
A delegation of children from all over England will give evidence this week to an internationally-elected group of children's rights experts at the United Nations in Geneva. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child is scrutinising the extent to which the UK complies with international children's rights standards. Children will be raising concerns about different aspects of their lives and treatment in England. This examination only occurs every five years and children are giving evidence ahead of Government representatives.
Jackson, aged 14 from Leicester, explains: “We are going to talk about children’s rights and what the Government is doing to ensure children have all their rights. I think human rights are important because without them children are open to abuse and unfair treatment.”
The children's visit coincides with a disturbing new report from the Children's Rights Alliance for England (CRAE), also being launched today, which shows how badly the UK Government is doing in its implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Drafted by a team of child policy experts, the CRAE report makes 152 recommendations.
Endorsed by 100+ charities, the CRAE report calls for strengthening of UK child protection laws, including for children in conflict with the law and asylum-seeking children, and a massive injection of resources into ending child poverty and inequality. Despite being the fifth richest country in the world, the UK remains a deeply unequal society with the poorest children literally having their lives cut short and getting the worst deal from education and health services. The report highlights how children are still being taken into care because of poverty, and the most vulnerable children in our country are ending up in custody, where their care and safety is too often substandard.
Carolyne Willow, National co-ordinator of the Children’s Rights Alliance for England, says:
'The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child will be keen to find out how Ministers have responded to its last set of recommendations, and to hear what life is like for children in England today.'
Children will set out their main priorities to the UN Committee, which include tackling negative media messages and lack of respect from adults; giving children more of a say when their parents separate; increasing financial and other support to families so that parents can spend more time and have better relationships with their children; reducing exam and coursework pressure; ensuring children's voices are listened to in schools; widening opportunities for young people to participate in leisure activities; and making play parks suitable for all ages and accessible for disabled children.
Carolyne Willow adds:
'Although this Government has put children at the heart of its programme, it has failed to protect the most vulnerable and has shown very little interest in helping to create a culture of respect for children's rights. International law is there to protect everyone, and that includes children. The Convention on the Rights of the Child should be nailed to the desk of every single Minister and civil servant.'
900,000 Young People Denied a Vote
June 2008
Nearly 900,000 16 and 17 year olds will be denied the opportunity to vote in the elections today, May 1st. Across England 641, 969 16 and 17 year olds are being excluded. In London alone that means nearly 170,000 16 and 17 year olds will be denied the right to elect the new Mayor of London or the members for the London Assembly.
The Votes at 16 Coalition is calling for 16 and 17 year olds to be able to vote in all UK public elections. Launched in 2003, the coalition is made up of over 40 leading youth and democracy organisations including the British Youth Council, Children’s Rights Alliance for England, Electoral Reform Society, The National Youth Agency and UK Youth Parliament.
Ben Rawlings, spokesperson for the Votes at 16 coalition, says:
“With issues like youth violence and youth services forming some of the top concerns in these elections, it is vital that we allow the majority of responsible and law abiding young people to have their say. Many 16 and 17 year olds also have strong and valid views on other areas such as transport and the environment. When there is a very real concern about low turnout, it can’t make sense to deny so many people the vote.”
Carolyne Willow, National Coordinator of the Children’s Rights Alliance for England, adds:
“16 and 17 year-olds can work and pay taxes, raise children, get married or have a civil partnership and even join the army. It is deeply patronising and unjust to continue to lock them out of the democratic process.”
There is growing concern about the low rate of participation in voting by young people yet 16 and 17 year olds are still not able to vote. The votes at 16 coalition believe that there has never been a better time to extend the right to participate in democracy to young people. In February 2008 the Government appointed Professor Jonathan Tonge as the new chair of the Youth Citizenship Commission to lead a consultation on lowering the vote age to 16. This summer Labour MP Julie Morgan will also be presenting a Private Members Bill to the House of Commons calling for the voting age to be 16 in all UK elections.
Government failing to protect children in custody from staff violence, says human rights select committee
March 7 2008
The Children’s Rights Alliance for England (CRAE) welcomes the report published today by the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) on physical restraint in secure training centres (STCs) – privately run prisons holding children as young as 12.
Carolyne Willow, CRAE’s national co-ordinator, said:
‘The JCHR has told Government in the strongest possible terms that it is failing to uphold the human rights of children in custody, and leaving children exposed to intolerable levels of violence. This is a devastating report that Ministers should act on immediately. The harrowing account in the Committee's report of Gareth Myatt's death shows just how desensitised the authorities have become to child abuse in prisons.’
The JCHR’s report fully supports the changes proposed by CRAE and other campaign groups, as well as the families of children who have died in custody, by recommending the repeal of new rules brought in last year to allow restraint to secure ‘good order and discipline’ and the abolition of painful ‘distraction’ techniques. The Committee makes more than 30 other conclusions and recommendations aimed at improving respect for the human rights of children in custody under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and other instruments. It says:
‘We are dissatisfied by the Minister’s explanation of how current policy and practice comply with human rights standards.’
‘Recent events show that the use of force can lead to tragic results. It is therefore of paramount importance that the Rules governing its application leave no room for doubt. The Rules, as amended, do not achieve this.’
‘There can be no justification for practices which involve the deliberate infliction of pain, such as the so-called “distraction techniques”, and we therefore recommend their abolition without delay.’
The JCHR also recommends the full disclosure of the ‘Physical Control in Care’ (PCC) manual, in which restraint techniques authorised for use in STCs are described, stating:
‘We are … very concerned by the impossibility of scrutinising for human rights compatibility techniques of physical restraint which remain secret.’
CRAE sought disclosure of the manual 10 months ago through a freedom of information request. We were refused by Ministers and await the outcome of an appeal to the Information Commissioner.
Freedom of information requests by CRAE have revealed the following:
In December 2007, the Government announced the suspension of two restraint techniques – nose ‘distractions’ and the double basket hold - following ‘concerns’ expressed by a new panel of medical experts.
This move followed a visit to the UK by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) later last year, during which they discussed the use of restraint with Ministers. Carolyne Willow, CRAE’s national co-ordinator, first wrote to the Committee in November 2005 seeking its help in bringing to an end the practice of deliberately inflicting pain on children during restraint in breach of article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights and articles 19 and 37 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, amongst other international human rights standards. Representatives from CRAE and the NSPCC met the CPT delegation ahead of its meeting with Ministers.
Thirty children have died in custody in the UK since 1990, the most recent death – of 15 year-old Liam McManus - having occurred late last year. Fourteen year-old Adam Rickwood and 15 year-old Gareth Myatt both died in 2004 following the use of physical restraint by staff, in two of the country's four secure training centres. Adam had been subjected to a nose ‘distraction’ hours before his death. In a statement found in his room after he died, Adam explained:
“…When I calmed down I asked them why they hit me in the nose and jumped on me. They said it was because I wouldn't go in my room so I said what gives them the right to hit a 14-year-old child in the nose and they said it was restraint…”
CRAE's National Co-ordinator to give oral evidence on Bill of Rights
January 14 2008
CRAE's National Co-ordinator will later today give oral evidence to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) as part of its inquiry into a British Bill of Rights. Representatives from Unite the Union and the TUC will also give evidence.
The JCHR’s inquiry coincides with the publication last summer of the ‘Governance of Britain’ Green Paper. This announced the Government’s plans for a national debate on British values and, ultimately, a British Bill of Rights and Duties. CRAE submitted written evidence to the JCHR in autumn 2007, arguing that now is the time to build on the Human Rights Act for children and incorporate the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and its Optional Protocols into UK law, ‘levelling up’ human rights protection in the case of overlap between the UNCRC and the European Convention on Human Rights. In addition, we have suggested that the general principles of the UNCRC, as well as other distinct rights for children, could be expressed within the Bill of Rights in a dedicated children’s section. Katy Swaine, CRAE's Legal Director, says:
'We welcome the Government's commitment to build on existing human rights legislation. Now is the time to embrace and celebrate children's human rights. Indeed, if not children, then who are the Government’s intended beneficiaries of enhanced British rights?'
In 2002 the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended that the UK should incorporate the UNCRC into domestic law, and this has attracted support from both the JCHR and the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Primary Care and Public Health.
Debates about a Northern Ireland Bill of Rights are well advanced and CRAE has taken advice from children's rights activists there. We have also examined the position of other common law countries and European countries such as Norway that have amended their human rights legislation to include the UNCRC.
Government suspends use of two restraint techniques on children in custody
December 19 2007
Ministers have announced the suspension of two restraint methods used on children in custody – the painful nose ‘distraction’ and the ‘double basket’ hold.
This announcement follows a sustained campaign by the Children’s Rights Alliance for England (‘CRAE’) and other NGOs, as well as the families of children who have died in custody, for the abolition of painful ‘distractions’ and other dangerous restraint techniques, and the wholesale reform of custodial settings for children.
Carolyne Willow, CRAE's National co-ordinator, says:
“At last Ministers seem to have accepted that children in prison are entitled to the same level of human rights protection as children in families and other settings. Staff in secure training centres should never have been allowed to deliberately inflict pain on children during the course of restraint. Ministers and staff in these centres have tried to hide behind euphemisms but hitting children on the nose to get them to comply with instructions is a form of torture which is in clear breach of human rights, not to mention child cruelty and assault laws.”
In a letter to CRAE's National co-ordinator, David Hanson and Beverley Hughes explain the Government’s decision follows ‘concerns’ expressed by a ‘new panel of medical experts’ which it convened following recommendations made by the coroner who conducted the inquest into Gareth Myatt’s death earlier this year. The coroner noted that some forms of restraint, including the ‘double basket’ hold, continued to be used despite the conclusions of medical experts that they were dangerous.
The move also follows a visit to England two weeks ago by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) to discuss the use of restraint with Ministers. Carolyne Willow, CRAE’s National co-ordinator, first wrote to the Committee in November 2005 seeking its help in bringing to an end the practice of deliberately inflicting pain on children during restraint in breach of article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights and articles 19 and 37 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, amongst other international human rights standards. Representatives from CRAE and the NSPCC met the CPT delegation ahead of its meeting with Ministers.
Thirty children have died in custody in the UK since 1990, the most recent death – of 15 year-old Liam McManus - having occurred just three weeks ago. Fourteen year-old Adam Rickwood and 15 year-old Gareth Myatt both died in 2004 following the use of physical restraint by staff, in two of the country's four secure training centres. Adam had been subjected to a nose ‘distraction’ hours before his death. In a statement found in his room after he died, Adam explained:
“…When I calmed down I asked them why they hit me in the nose and jumped on me. They said it was because I wouldn't go in my room so I said what gives them the right to hit a 14-year-old child in the nose and they said it was restraint…”
So-called ‘distraction’ techniques are designed to cause pain and on many occasions have caused injury to children, as well as carrying a risk of serious emotional trauma. They consist of the following:
NOSE: Using the outside of the hand in an upward ‘chop’ motion on the child’s septum.
THUMB: Bending the upper joint of the child’s thumb forwards and down toward the palm of the hand.
RIB: Using an inward and upward motion of the knuckles into the back of the child exerting pressure on the lower rib.
Ministers have refused both CRAE and the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights a full copy of the prison staff training manual on restraint, which contains illustrations of the nose, rib and thumb ‘distraction’ techniques, claiming that this could undermine security.
Freedom of information requests by CRAE have revealed the following:
World Fit for Children +5 – young people at the UN
December 11 2007
Two young volunteers from the Children's Rights Alliance for England’s Get ready for Geneva project, Alex (16) and Iqra (17), are in New York this week as part of the UK Government’s delegation to the UN General Assembly’s World Fit for Children +5 event.
World Fit for Children +5 (WFFC+5) has been organised by the UN General Assembly to determine the progress that has been made by Member States to make the world a better place for children and young people since the UN Special Session on Children in 2002. WFFC+5 will take place over four days in New York, and will include discussions on major issues affecting children and young people around the world, including HIV/AIDS, healthy lives, education, and protecting children.
Speaking from New York, Alex, a children’s rights investigator for the Get ready for Geneva project, said:
“As a child brought up in care, I have learned about children’s rights. I’ve tried to do as much as possible as I want other children to know their rights. I feel it is my duty to do something about it. I’m really looking forward the main UN meeting and hopefully getting the opportunity to speak about the main issues for children’s rights.”
Forty children and young people from around the world have been invited to attend the WFFC+5 sessions. From these, one boy and one girl will be chosen to address the UN General Assembly at its opening and closing sessions. After the first day of meetings, which included briefings, working groups and media training, Iqra said:
“It was great meeting delegates from all around the world and between us we spoke over 20 languages from 53 countries.”
The UN Secretary General has also commissioned a report on progress on the World Fit for Children agenda, to be presented at the General Assembly session this week.
