160 organisations have signed our joint briefing calling on Peers to support amendment 221 to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill at Report Stage.
The amendment, tabled by Baroness Lister of Burtersett, would place Child Rights Impact Assessments (CRIAs) on a statutory footing for legislation and policy decisions affecting children’s wellbeing, social care or education. Support has grown significantly since Committee Stage, where a similar briefing was backed by just over 120 organisations, demonstrating increasing momentum behind the call for stronger protections for children’s rights in policymaking.
The briefing, coordinated by CRAE, working in partnership with UNICEF UK and NSPCC, highlights the Covid-19 Inquiry’s recommendation that CRIAs be made statutory, following evidence that children’s needs and rights were repeatedly overlooked during the pandemic. It argues that the absence of a consistent, transparent mechanism for assessing impacts on children contributed to avoidable harm, and that voluntary approaches have failed to deliver meaningful change.
Amendment 221 represents a practical and achievable first step towards more effectively embedding children’s rights in law and policy-making at the UK level, helping the UK Government catch up with Scotland and Wales, where significant steps have already been taken to embed children's rights in decision-making.
While we would like to see the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child fully and directly incorporated into UK law to transform the way children’s rights are respected, protected and fulfilled, this amendment presents an important and straightforward first step towards this ultimate goal.
The amendment will be debated in the House of Lords today, Tuesday, 3rd February.