Adopting a Child-Rights based approach which embedded the participation of young people throughout, the study collected the views and experiences of 195 individuals across seven research sites, including key stakeholders, community workers, parents and 104 children and young people aged 14-24. The analysis examines the ways in which young people learn about the past and their identity and culture, and the impacts of this learning.Over twenty years after the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement the research demonstrates the impacts of conflict legacy on young people, families and communities across four themes: Divided Space; Health and Well-being; Family Life and Parenting; Paramilitarism and Policing. Child rights implications and recommendations for policy and practice are considered.

The full report can be downloaded at this link.

The Summary report can be downloaded at this link.

The youth report can be downloaded at this link.

transgenerational legacy and young people report launch

Ten years after the publication of the Youth Justice Review, Siobhan McAlister and Nicola Carr (University of Nottingham) have been commissioned to carry to out an independent analysis of progress and developments in Youth Justice in Northern Ireland. Based on document analysis, and interviews with key criminal justice and NGO sector representatives, they are examining progress and barriers in the areas of the minimum age of criminal responsibility; police engagement; early intervention; diversion and delay; bail, remand and the use of custody; and criminal records. 

The research is commissioned by: Children’s Law Centre, Include Youth, NIACRO and VOYPIC.

Click here to access the report.

Dr Mary-Louise Corr, Dr Michelle Templeton, Dr Bronagh Byrne and Dr Siobhan McAlister are working on a research project funded by the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People on the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on the planning and delivery of services to children and young people.

The project identifies the challenges experienced by professionals and practitioners working in statutory and voluntary sectors and examines the ways in which they responded to and aimed to resolve the issues presented. The project will assess the rights implications of these impacts and responses and will be used to inform recommendations for future emergency planning. 

For more information contact Dr Mary-Louise Corr 

1. a longer (8 page) version for older children
2. a shorter (2 page) version, for younger children; and 
3. an easy-read version for children with intellectual disabilities.

The project also produced guidelines to support child-friendly communication in both written documents and in-person meetings attended by children (whether online or not).

1. Guidelines on writing child friendly documents
2. Guidance on child friendly meetings (in development)

Visit the European Commission website for further information.

The research, led by Dr Bronagh Byrne and Dr Gillian O’Hagan, and funded by the School of Social Sciences, Education and Social Work, engages the participatory arts based research method of Photovoice whereby autistic young people aged between 11-15 years of age used photography to document their lives in Northern Ireland during the period of lockdown March - June 2020.   

The project seeks to illuminate the challenges faced by these young people during lockdown with a particular focus on their experiences of education during this time.  A young people’s advisory group worked alongside the QUB team in designing and analysing the research.  As a result of their work, this project makes future recommendations for how autistic young people should be supported during any further pandemic and associated restrictions. The findings make particular reference to the educational and other supports normally engaged for autistic young people and how these services could be adapted and adjusted when planning any future lockdown restrictions.   

To access a copy of the report please see here. For more information contact Dr Bronagh Byrne b.byrne@qub.ac.uk or Dr Gillian O’Hagan gcurran04@qub.ac.uk   

Nine thematic briefings covering findings on: Education, Play, Safety/violence, Poverty, Family life, Participation and information, Representations of children and Children’s experiences of coronavirus have now been released. 

Briefings along with technical annex A (demographics of survey respondents) and technical annex B (headline findings by UN region) have been created and can be viewed on the links below:

Education

Play

Safety and Violence

Poverty

Family Life

Participation and Information

Representation of children

Childrens experiences of Covid-19

Demographics 

UN Regions: Headline Findings

'How do children and young people in the Netherland experience the Covid-19 crisis and what would they recommend to policy makers?' Leiden University

The findings allow children and young people to directly share with decision makers and leaders around the world how the pandemic and related measures taken by governments have impacted on experience of their rights and ways in which governments can implement their rights more effectively going forward.

The coalition is led by Terres des Hommes and the UN Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Violence Against Children, and includes a number of international NGOs and partners.

This project aims to follow-up on the DGD 2018 recommendations and hold online and face-to-face consultations on the draft implementation Guide with,

1) Children who formed part of the DGD 2018 Children’s Advisory Team;

2) the new Child Rights Connect’s permanent Children’s Advisory Team, and

3) UN experts - to include the UNCRC Committee; the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders; the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Violence Against Children; UNICEF representatives and others.

The Toolkit will enable children to better understand the links between the substantive provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders and the UNCRC, and how these links must be translated into national legislation, policy and practice. This will empower children to engage in advocacy around their rights as human rights defenders – in particular civil and political rights – with more solid and legally grounded arguments. By using the Guide, children will be able to provide inputs to draft laws on human rights defenders and influence policies that are relevant to their rights as defenders, such as for example child participation policies. Children will also be able to identify violations of their rights as human rights defenders, claim for their remedy and report them to the UN human rights mechanism to strengthen child rights accountability. The new toolkit will also provide concrete guidance to States and other stakeholders on how to ensure that national laws, policies and practices allow children to fully and safely exercise their rights when acting as human rights defenders.

This research is organised into three work strands:

1) Landscapes of exclusion - examines the ways in which policies and legal frameworks shape interventions designed to prevent exclusions; the financial costs associated with exclusion; and patterns and characteristics of exclusion.

2) Experiences of exclusion - focuses on families’, pupils’ and professionals’ experiences of the risks and consequences of exclusion.

3) Integration - integrate these findings to ensure that the research develops a coherent multi-disciplinary understanding of the political economies of exclusion.

1) The internal and external contextual factors that facilitate the participation of young leaders in the global policy debate;

2) How do young leaders and global stakeholders engage in intergenerational dialogue and how do they deal with power, control and hierarchies while trying to ensure the impact of their work in specific socio-political contexts; and

3) What is the impact that young leaders have made in decision-making and how have influenced global stakeholders whom they have interacted with? What weakens their influence and impact?

The evaluation will provide recommendations on child participation with a particular focus on youth participation at high-level political events.

1. Update criteria for assessing children and young people with disabilities

2. Develop an evaluation handbook

3. Facilitate seminars and workshops for BASR resource staff and teachers.

A variety of research methods were used to collect data on the educational experiences of children and young people in these settings, including: the perceptions of parents on the value of centres in providing education and training; and the perceptions of BASR staff on current understandings of disability, and the provision of specialised services. The methods used were participatory research methods with children and young people; Semi-structured interviews and Focus groups with centre staff; and Focus groups with children and young people.

In total, 56 participants took part in the research: 32 service users (23 children and eight adolescents), 12 members of staff (directors, teachers and trainers), and 12 mothers. The Special Needs Assessment Guide and Special Educational Needs Support Guide are now used in the educational centres supported by BASR, and were endorsed the Palestinian Ministry of Education.

Please visit the GlobalChild Website to access the final report in full and a child friendly version.

Key findings from the report

• One in two young people think their right to RSE is currently not being met
• 34 per cent of young people who completed the survey had never received a RSE lesson in school
• Of the young people who did receive RSE, only 10 percent said the information they received was ‘very useful’
• Despite this, a massive 86 per cent of young people felt school was still the best place to receive RSE
• Three quarters of young people believed RSE should not be influenced by the ethos or religion of the school
• The overwhelming majority want it taught by a qualified RSE teacher as part of a curriculum programme
• The most popular subject young people want to learn about in RSE is ‘personal relationships.’

Key recommendations from the report:

1. Adopt a right-based proactive approach to relationship and sexuality education
2. Work with young people to co-produce an RSE curriculum programme for schools
3. A curriculum programme should be taught by specialised, qualified and trained staff.

The 'Any Use' report sparked calls from relevant organisations for curriculum change that takes on board the findings. Our young people will now be engaging with decision makers and influencers across Belfast to encourage them to implement the recommendations in their research report.

Please click here to see the report.

Media/additional information:

https://www.4ni.co.uk/northern-ireland-news/267547/youths-unsatisfied-with-relationship-sexuality-education

Key findings from the report - Full report

• At least 410,000 children are held every year in jails and prisons, where violence is “endemic.” Many are charged with “status offenses” that are not criminal offenses for adults, including truancy, disobedience, and underage drinking;
• Deprivation of liberty aggravates existing health conditions in children and can cause new conditions to emerge, including anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, and post-traumatic stress.
• Psychiatric disorders for children in detention can increase tenfold during detention, and detention is correlated with early death among children once released.
• Although UN experts have concluded that detention of children for migration-related reasons can never be in the best interests of a child, at least 330,000 children in 77 countries are held in immigration detention each year;
• While between 430,000 and 680,000 children have been placed by judicial authorities in institutions that meet the legal definition of deprivation of liberty, the total number of children in institutions is estimated at 3.5 to 5.5 million;
• Children with disabilities are significantly overrepresented in detention in the context of administration of justice and institutions; and
• The number of children detained in the context of armed conflict and national security has increased sharply, driven by aggressive counterterrorism measures that include detention and prosecution of children for online activity, including posts to Facebook and Twitter.

Key recommendations from the report: UN members are encouraged to,

1. collect reliable and systematic data on children deprived of liberty, and,
2. create national action plans aimed at an overall reduction in the number of children in detention and/or the elimination of detention for children.
3. The General Assembly is also encouraged to formally designate a UN entity to lead follow-up efforts.

Media/additional information:

The full study can be found online here: https://undocs.org/en/A/74/136

Background info: https://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CRC/StudyChildrenDeprivedLiberty/Pages/Index.aspx

Welcomed by:

https://www.icrc.org/en/document/icrc-welcomes-uns-global-study-children-deprived-liberty

Working with children and adults in advisory groups, it will develop participatory activities that will capture the experiences of children with a range of disabilities across four European countries.  It will produce recommendations on best practices for governments, professionals working with children, parents and the corporate sector; as well as child friendly versions of the report accessible to all the groups of children taking part.

For more information visit the Council for Europe website or read the full report Two Clicks Forward, One Click Back 

The global report can be accessed here - “The views, perspectives and recommendations of children across the world“

As a result, the effectiveness of the practice is in doubt. Balancing these competing perspectives has prompted increasing scrutiny from civil society organisations and from legal and governing institutions in some European states. Yet the practices remain under-explored and little understood in many European states.

This Action aims to better understand Police Stops across Europe as practiced, experienced, and as they affect wider society, in order to inform the oversight and effectiveness of the practice.

Find out more about Dr John Toppings work on Police Stops and Police Stop and Search here.

Read about the recent Stop & Search Event at QUB on 4th September 2019

Dr Topping, Dr Dirk Schubotz and Dr Martina McKnight also worked on a survey module in the 2017 Young Life and Times (YLT) survey which explored young people’s understanding, attitudes and experiences of Police stop and search practice in Northern Ireland.
Related publication: Topping, J. and Schubotz, D. (2018). The ‘usual suspects’? Young people’s experiences of police stop and search powers in Northern Ireland. ARK Research Update 120 Belfast: ARK Available online