Hi, I'm Cheryl Commodore-Harvey. When I joined Just for Kids Law as a Trainee Solicitor and Justice First Fellow, supported by The Legal Education Foundation, I knew I would be working at the forefront of children’s rights. What I did not anticipate was the scale, intensity, and emotional weight of contributing to one of the most significant public inquiries in modern British history, the UK COVID-19 Inquiry.
For the past months, I have been part of the legal team representing children and young people in Module 8, which examines the pandemic’s impact on them: their education, wellbeing, safeguarding, and life chances. The hearings have now come to a close, and while we can all breathe a little easier, the work is far from finished. We remain deeply engaged in supporting counsel and preparing written closing submissions, ensuring that children remain at the centre of the narrative and that their voices lead to meaningful lessons and action for the future.
Working alongside an exceptional team of counsel, Steve Broach KC (King's Counsel), Jennifer Twite and Fatima Jichi, lead solicitor Chris Callender, paralegal Saul Bawdon, Norton Rose Fulbright pro-bono team, charities, and core participants, including CPAG (Child Poverty Action Group), Save the Children UK, and others, has pushed me to develop as both a lawyer and an advocate. Together, we have sought accountability and clarity on decisions that profoundly shaped children’s lives. The pandemic did not affect all children equally: existing inequalities deepened, the most vulnerable suffered in silence, and services designed to protect them struggled to keep pace with unprecedented challenges.
Throughout this work, the courage and resilience of young people have motivated every late night and every page of disclosure reviewed. Their experiences, disrupted education, mental health strain, increased poverty, and reduced access to essential support, deserve a thorough examination supported by strong legal advocacy.
My time on the Inquiry has taught me:
- The importance of amplifying voices that are too often overlooked
- That children’s interests must never be an afterthought in crisis decision-making
- The profound responsibility we have as legal professionals to seek truth and structural change
I am deeply grateful to The Legal Education Foundation for their belief in the power of social welfare law and for enabling me, through the Justice First Fellowship, to build a legal career grounded in service and impact. Their commitment to nurturing the next generation of social justice lawyers has made this opportunity possible.
As I continue my training at Just for Kids Law, I carry forward the lessons of Module 8, that advocacy isn’t simply about legal argument; it is about refusing to let children slip into the background of policy, history, or society.
The Inquiry’s work continues, and so does ours. And with every submission drafted, every voice amplified, and every right upheld, we move one step closer to a fairer future for children in the UK.
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Thanks again to support from 39 Essex Chambers, Garden Court Chambers and Norton Rose Fulbright pro Bono Team.
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