What UNCRC incorporation means for children and young people

Campaigners hope this marks the continuation of a cultural shift, in which the opinions, concerns and experiences of children and young people are taken seriously, and engagement isn't a token exercise.

It will mean local and national officials, and even the private sector, will need to think specifically about how their policies impact children and young people, and consultations will need to be more robust to take young voices into account.

In some cases, it will mean big changes to how public bodies conduct business.

That's why the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) Chair Ellie Craig said that, although incorporation day is cause for celebration, it also means that it's time to start the real work of educating adults and holding them accountable.

“It has been a really long journey that children and young people have been on for incorporation, but some people will wrongly think that the act being passed is the destination.

“It’s really just the next step. If we want children’s rights to be protected, we need to promote this cultural change.”

Scottish Youth Parliament Chair Ellie Craig has said that incorporation of the UNCRC is only one step in a long journey for children and young people's rights in Scotland. (Image: SYP)

She said it will be crucial for children and young people to be involved in decisions about how the UNCRC is implemented, enforced, and regulated in Scotland.

The UNCRC covers a wide range of rights meant to protect all children and young people (from newborns to the age of 18) throughout their lives.

Specific protected rights include the right to:

• Relax and play (Article 31)
• Freedom of expression (Article 13)
• Be safe from violence (Article 19)
• An education (Article 28)
• Protection of identity (Article 8)
• Sufficient standard of living (Article 27)
• Know their rights (Article 42)
• Health and health services (Article 24)

Although the UNCRC is wide-ranging, Ellie said that one article is crucial: Article 12 states that children and young people have a right to “be listened to and taken seriously.”

Apart from standing at the heart of what the SYP does every year, Ellie said that Article 12 will be key for making sure that the progress

“Engagement goes hand-in-hand with citizenship and young people’s decision-making in democracy. If children and young people are involved in decisions right from the beginning of their lives, and they’re used to that meaningful participation, then it will just be second nature.

“It will become embedded in their lives. Children and young people who are educated about their rights are going to become adults who know their rights and who will then continue to thin about children and young people.

“That culture change needs to happen now, but it can also be the start of generational change as well.”

READ MORE:

Youth Parliament targets young people's health and safety for change campaigns

Holyrood first as MSPs pass UNCRC Bill for the second time following court block

UNCRC: Scotland bill becomes law with Royal Assent

The campaign to incorporate the UNCRC into Scots law is already a testament to the type of generational change that is possible.

Although Ellie, 20, has now aged out of the population that the UNCRC protects, incorporation can be attributed to the work that she and MSYPs who came before her carried out. Interest groups have been focusing on incorporation for more than a decade; in 2016, the SYP included it in their manifesto, and it remained a consistent campaign goal for every successive parliament.

But incorporation's success hasn’t just been about children and young people finding and using their voices. It has also meant real engagement with adult stakeholders.

Juliet Harris, director of Together (Scottish Alliance for Children's Rights), sees areas where Scotland's decision-makers can engage better with children and young people. (Image: Together (Scottish Alliance for Children's Rights))

Together (Scottish Alliance for Children’s Rights) has a membership of more than 550 children’s organisations and professionals. Director Juliet Harris said that the advocates are now responsible for continuing with the momentum generated by incorporation.

“Incorporation offers two opportunities: One is for us to really excel at being children’s human rights defenders and embedding those rights in our work, but the other is to make sure that there is scrutiny, that there is accountability, and that we work with children and young people to hold decision-makers to account and make sure that children and young people are at the hear of every decision that’s made.”

And opportunities to begin that work are easily found, she said. After reading The Herald’s recent coverage of controversial changes to school transportation plans in North Lanarkshire, Ms Harris said a simple question leapt out to her: “Where are the children’s voices in this?”

“There are plenty of laws that are in place that aren’t actually implemented. So getting this down on paper is just the start.”

And Ms Harris was sure to stress that the UNCRC covers everyone under 18.

“Just because you might not be old enough to talk about your rights, you’ve still got those rights, and the UNCRC is just as important to you.”

Nicola Killean, Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland, said the act coming into legal force marks a “historic” shift for children and young people’s human rights.

“It’s the culmination of decades of work and campaigning led by children and young people. A campaign that has spanned the term of every Children’s Commissioner in Scotland since the office was created in 2003. 

“All children will have more protection. That’s important for all children in Scotland, but it’s especially vital for those whose rights are most likely to be ignored or violated – those whose rights are most at risk. That includes disabled children, those living in poverty, young carers, care experienced children, and black and minority ethnic children.”

It also means that the Commissioner’s office has a new tool in its kit for promoting and defending the rights of children and young people, allowing for intervention in legal matters and the ability to bring cases forward when children and young people’s rights are not being respected.

While incorporation presents an opportunity to celebrate the UNCRC’s campaigners, she echoed the SYP’s call for continued education.

“The journey towards incorporation has taken Scotland huge leaps forwards as a country where children’s rights are recognised, respected, and enforced.

“But we can’t afford to let complacency creep in, there is much more to do – this is a time to be ambitious and demand a country where every child and young person can enjoy their rights.” 

A spokesperson for COSLA, the body that represents Scotland’s local authorities, said that it welcomes the incorporation of the UNCRC and that local governments “recognise their place as duty bearers under the Act.”

“Local Government has from the outset been fully supportive of the intentions of UNCRC incorporation, sharing the vision of a Scotland where children’s human rights are embedded in all aspects of society and public services.

“Extensive work is underway across local authorities to take forward this commitment and excellent progress is being made.”