About the policy team
Government consultations
Children's rights
4 Nations Policy Network
Cross Party Group

Work with committees

Key data on wellbeing
Manifesto for better childhoods

Making the Gender Equality Duty Real

Scotland's Children's Sector Forum

 
Children in Scotland has long been at the forefront of understanding and influencing the ways in which legislation and government policies impact upon children, young people and their families throughout our nation. Our policy team, in close cooperation with our members, works on a very broad range of proposed laws, public policies and regulations to improve the wellbeing and life chances of all children and young people. Our basic roles include:

monitoring policies and policy implementation;
analysing public policies and their impacts;
responding to government consultations;
developing new policy ideas and strategies;
lobbying at the Scottish, Westminster and European parliaments; and
influencing officials at local, national, UK and European levels.

****LATEST POLICY NEWS****

Participants, not pawns: Guidance on consulting with children and young people on school closures (and other significant changes)

Children in Scotland and Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People have published new guidance on consulting with children and young people on school closures (and other significant changes).

The guidance was created in response to the recently enacted Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 which requires pupils to be consulted on such changes. It provides examples of best practice and considerations to ensure that consultations are worthwhile.

Click here to read the guidance

Foetal alcohol harm 101

In our evidence to the House of Commons Alcohol Inquiry, we noted the seven basics of foetal alcohol harm:
1. It is potentially 100% preventable
2. It is incurable
3. It is unpredictable
4. It can be difficult to diagnose
5. It is under-diagnosed (or misdiagnosed) and under-reported
6. It has wide-ranging, serious consequences for individuals, communities and society
7. Its ill effects can be lessened by proper diagnosis and proper treatment/support
Read the full evidence by clicking here

Reduce demand for alcohol as well as supply

In testimony to the Scottish Parliament's Health Committee, Children in Scotland supported the Alcohol Bill's direction of travel. However, we argued that such measures as increasing the price of alcohol must be accompanied by an equal effort to combat the reasons why young people and adults drink unhealthily.

Read our full comments and recommendations here

About the policy team at CiS
Follow this link to learn about the members of this small, dedicated team.

Government consultations
In collaboration with our Members, we respond to diverse consultations from government at all levels on key issues affecting children, young people and their mothers/fathers/carers. This link will allow you to view current consultations and to read our past consultation responses.

Children's rights
Our policy work is dedicated to preserving and promoting the rights of all children and young people, in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). To find out more about the UNCRC and the Scottish Commissioner for Children and Young People, click here.

4 Nations Policy Network
We share policy information from our partner organisations in Wales, Northern Ireland and England on a regular basis. Follow this link to find out what's happening in terms of children's policy across the UK.

Key indicators of wellbeing
We have compiled a cross-section of key statistics about children and young people living in Scotland. These compare what's true in each of the local authority areas with the same data at the national level. The national level data for Scotland in all these categories can be viewed by clicking here.

Manifesto for better childhoods
With the active involvement of our members, the policy team prepared the CiS Manifesto on Building Better Childhoods in the run-up to the 2007 elections. It remains a useful document to understand where progress is being made by the new Scottish Government, as well as a reminder of where more remains to be done on behalf of children, young people and their mothers/fathers/carers. Click here to read our manifesto.