Chapter 1 - Background
Chapter 2 - Introduction: This chapter looks the key concepts – rights, responsibilities and entitlements. The chapter also looks at the child in the twenty-first century and the notion of information sharing across the professions. Finally, the whole concept of participation is discussed.
Chapter 3 - The Statutory and Voluntary Agencies and Children’s Rights: This chapter looks at the roles of the charitable/not for profit organisations, often known as NGOs (non-governmental organisations), from a rights and responsibilities perspective. Similarly, it also looks at the role of the European Parliament, national government and local government; mediation, complaints and advocacy; the role of the children’s rights commissioners across the UK as well as ‘so called’ joint working and information sharing. The role of the courts in relation to rights is also considered.
Chapter 4 - An International Perspective of Children’s Rights – The African Continent; Israel and North Africa, The Asian Continent, South America, North America, Europe, The Role of Women, Governments and NGO’s, The Children’s Commissioner or Ombudsman, Participation and Responsibility. This chapter looks at the implementation of the Convention in the UK, across Europe and in other countries in the world. It will look at the differing roles of the children’s commissioners/ombudsmen; at the attitude of different governments and groups to the whole question of children rights and also at the different attitudes to responsibilities. It also looks at the attitude to women.
relation to children, and their parents: This chapter considers the responsibilities that parents have for their children and the need to ensure that the child’s rights are recognized and protected. Equally it recognizes that parents have rights too. It looks at the way early intervention can assist parents; the role of fathers, often overlooked, but who have an important role in a child’s development; gay parents; children who have a disability versus the needs of parents and finally, the issue of parents who have special needs.
Chapter 6 - Education - Rights and Responsibilities: The aim of this chapter is to look at the various aspects of the education system in the UK – pre-school/school; educational issues; the staff; the curriculum; emotional and social issues and communication. The chapter gives examples that help to ensure children’s rights are understood and implemented, and tries to ensure that children understand that they too have rights and responsibilities. The aim also is to highlight where adults have rights in the education equation but indicates where they have responsibilities to children and to the wider community.
Chapter 7 - Children Not living with their Birth Parents – Rights and Responsibilities: This chapter looks at the backgrounds of children unable to live at home, the system, children in care and care leavers. It then looks at the adoption system in the twenty-first century before moving on to look at the children about whom we know very little; the ones unable to live with their parents. The chapter ends with some practical suggestions for improvements.
Chapter 8 - Safe-Guarding Children and their Rights: This chapter looks at what we mean by ‘safeguarding children’, child abuse, child pornography and paedophilia on the internet. It also looks at interventions by local authorities; the legal process and the role of the courts in this respect, as well as discussing the responsibilities of both adults and child in ensuring a child’s safety without impinging on the child’s right to freedom.
Chapter 9 - Respecting Diversity: The first part of the chapter looks at religion and spirituality, including the attitude to, and oppression of, women and as well as people’s attitude to homosexuality. The chapter also deals with sex and sexuality and looks at race, nationality, ethnic origin and culture.
Chapter 10 - The Rights of Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) : This term is used to describe children under the age of 18, who have been separated from their parents and legal or customary carers (Department of Health 1995, BAAF 2001a). In the course of seeking refuge they may be fleeing persecution (UNCR 1951). This chapter looks at the additional and different, rights and needs of UASC.
Chapter 11 - Youth Work – Rights and Responsibilities: This chapter is in two parts, part one looks at the traditional view of youth work and youth clubs. Part two looks at youth and community work.
Chapter 12 - Youth Justice – a Rights Perspective: This chapter looks briefly at the history of youth offending and the criminal justice system and what the alternatives are to incarceration for young people. The chapter also discusses the role of government and the advent of the ‘respect’ agenda which includes the use of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders and Parenting Orders. The role of the judiciary and the youth justice system across the UK is examined as well as the notion of restorative justice.
Chapter 13 - Health and Mental Health Issues in Relation to Rights: Despite the prominent focus on children’s rights today, relatively little attention has been given to children’s rights in the health care arena. This chapter looks at some of the issues and offers suggestions, opinions and debate. This chapter also looks at some of the inequalities of health care and mental health care in the UK and at what can be done to ensure children can live happy and healthy lives.
Chapter 14 - Conclusion and the Way Forward
Appendix I - Summary of the meanings of the articles of
the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
Appendix II - Additional Similarities and Differences in
relation to the role of the Children’s
Commissioner across the UK
Appendix III - Educational Terms
Appendix IV - The Spell Centre
Appendix V - Alternatives to incarceration for young people
within the youth justice system