Children in Scotland

Manifestos for change in child policy

Ahead of the election on 3 May, Children in Scotland magazine looked at what voluntary sector children’s organisations are asking politicians to prioritise in the next parliament  

Action for Sick Children (Scotland) 

The Bridges Project 

Bridges Project provides a range of services to disadvantaged young people in East Lothian and Midlothian. The organization would like the new government to prioritise: the extension of supported youth training places to genuinely meet the ongoing needs of the young people in the NEET group with special consideration to those from rural and semi-rural areas; extending the successful measures already in place (Curriculum for Excellence, Additional Support for Learning etc) which enable clearer communication between and among those partners in and out of the formal school system; and further investment in social rented housing and measures which open up the private rented sector further to those with a housing need, including an extension to eligible housing benefit. www.bridgesproject.org.uk 

Children 1st 

Children 1st is calling for action on the following key areas: Drawing on the strength of the wider family: Politicians should be encouraged to support policies that recognise that the wider family should be involved in every major decision about a child’s life. Family Group Conferencing is an approach to involving the wider family that has been shown to work and should be mainstreamed in every area of Scotland. Recognising that child protection is everyone’s responsibility: Protecting children is not just the job of social workers, or the function of vetting and barring checks. Implementing children’s rights: The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) should be fully implemented in Scotland. 

One Parent Families Scotland 

One Parent Families Scotland is calling for lone parents to have a continued choice about whether to work and better access to specialist information and family support services for themselves and their children, especially parents whose children have additional needs who are most likely to be isolated and in poverty. It would also like to see further investment in sustaining affordable childcare, especially out of hours care provided by Sitter Services. www.opfs.org.uk 

Save the Children in Scotland 

Save the Children is calling on Scotland’s political parties to end severe child poverty and wants the government to target action towards those children living in severe poverty through: 

- A cross-party commitment to the eradication of severe and persistent child poverty by 2015 and child poverty by 2020 

- Commitment to a Scottish Action Plan prioritising the needs of the households experiencing the most severe and persistent levels of poverty 

- The Scottish and UK governments to work together to realise the shared target of halving child poverty by 2010 

- A commitment to poverty proof policies 

www.savethechildren.org.uk/scotland 

YouthLink Scotland  

YouthLink, the national youth work agency for Scotland, has published a manifesto for Scotland’s Young People, which includes calls for: - Funding for youth work: Sustainability through funding of core activities over the long term to allow the sector to build capacity and retain experienced staff and volunteers  

- Empowering youth work: Recognition of the central and professional role played by the youth work sector in improving the skills, development and lives of Scotland’s young people 

- Empowering young people: Recognition of the many achievements of young people and the contribution they make to their communities as an antidote to the negative image of young people portrayed in recent times 

- The future of Youth Work in Scotland: The implementation of a long- term, robust and properly resourced national youth work strategy with cross-party consensus.  

www.youthlink.co.uk 

Children in Scotland  

Children in Scotland’s manifesto has eight main action points: 

- Ensuring universal access to high quality, affordable services for young children  

- Implementing a comprehensive support system for parenting 

- Eliminating poverty for households with young or vulnerable children 

- Launching a national play, leisure and children’s spaces strategy 

- Making child health a national priority 

- Increasing healthy eating throughout Scotland 

- Aiding and easing the transition to adulthood 

- Improving co-ordination among the Scottish, UK and European parliaments 

You can read Children in Scotland’s manifesto, Better lives for Scotland’s children and young people online. Follow the link on our home page: www.childreninscotland.org.uk  

Children in Scotland is the national agency for organisations and professionals working with and for children, young people and their families. Our goal is to help Scotland become an even better nation in which to be a child and to raise children. We influence legislation and public policy, conduct research, publish a monthly magazine, provide training, organise conferences and work in a variety of other ways to improve the well-being of all children and young people. Children in Scotland manages Enquire, the Scottish advice service for additional support for learning. 

Children in Scotland represents over 400 member organisations, including the major voluntary, statutory and private children’s agencies and professional groups, as well as many other smaller community-based programmes and institutions. It is linked with similar national agencies in other parts of the UK and the European Union. 

Children in Scotland magazine has the latest news, policy and practice on children’s issues. It is free to our members but is also available on subscription for just £38 for one year.. 

Contact us for more details: 0131 228 8484 or subscribe online www.childreninscotland.org.uk/cis.