RCPCH responds to the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill

Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health; Rowland, Andrew

Abstract

For too long and far too often, the needs of our children and young people have been ignored by national policymakers, so it’s good to see Government publish a Bill that is said to have an aim to create a ‘child-centred Government’.

However, we cannot help but note a lack of detail in the Bill on the long-standing issue that is child poverty; a lack of focus on the importance of children’s rights assessments of all proposed policies, guidance and legislation; and the omission of equal protection for children from assault. These are clear barriers to children’s wellbeing and need to be urgently addressed as they are what children deserve and need and have the potential to be transformative for children, their families, and the country.

The College looks forward to seeing further information on several aspects of the Bill over the coming months. This includes the enabling legislation for the Single Unique Identifier; the make-up, and proposed practical implementation, of multi-agency child protection teams; and detail on the support for looked after children and care-experienced young people.

The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill has the potential to improve the lives of our most vulnerable children and young people. It is a profoundly important piece of legislation and must be treated with a great deal of care and consideration as it passes through parliament. It is clear that amendments will be required to truly write children's best interests into law and make child-centred government a reality. As a society, we have to get this right and parliamentarians must be unfaltering in their legislative scrutiny of this Bill at all stages within the parliamentary process.

Citation

Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, & Rowland, A. (2024). RCPCH responds to the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill. London, UK

• Other Type: Newspaper Article
• Online Publication Date: Dec 18, 2024
• Publication Date: Dec 18, 2024
• Deposit Date: Dec 22, 2024
• Related Public URLs: https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/news-events/news/rcpch-responds-childrens-wellbeing-schools-bill