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HEALTH, SOCIAL SERVICES AND PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE

Safeguarding Board for Northern Ireland

Briefing Paper

Children in Northern Ireland

February 2010

Introduction

Children in Northern Ireland (CiNI) is the regional umbrella body for the children’s sector across Northern Ireland. CiNI provides information, policy, training, participation and advocacy services to support our 132 members in their direct work with and for children and young people. Our membership is drawn from across the voluntary, statutory and independent children’s sector. We are increasingly working in partnership with the statutory children’s sector, recognising that the best outcomes for children and young people are achieved through partnership working. As part of our commitment to partnership working we represent the sector on a number of cross-sectoral, multi-agency bodies, most notably the interim regional Area Child Protection Committee and also the regional Children and Young People’s Committee.

CiNI welcomes this opportunity to present both written and oral evidence to the Committee and look forward to engaging with and supporting the Committee as it moves forward with its scrutiny of the Department’s detailed policy proposal for the creation of the Safeguarding Board for Northern Ireland.

CINI warmly welcomes the work which the DHSSPS is undertaking to develop a Safeguarding Board for Northern Ireland. We believe this presents a unique opportunity to develop a more strategic, comprehensive and consistent approach to safeguarding children and young people.

Key Issues

• What are the essential elements that you would like to see to ensure a fully integrated and coordinated response to safeguarding of children?

A fully integrated and coordinated response to safeguarding children must be grounded in a child-rights based framework. It is particularly welcome that the detailed policy proposal does highlight the responsibilities of government as a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). The policy proposal recognises the right of children to family life and the unique relationships between children and their parents. It also observes government’s responsibility in terms of supporting parents and families in their role of caring for children and young people protecting them from violence, abuse and/or neglect by their parents or anyone else who looks after them. Importantly it notes the paramountcy of article 3 of the UNCRC, where in all actions the best interests of the child must be the primary consideration. Article 3 is one of the guiding principles of the UNCRC and states:

1. In all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private social welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration.

2. States Parties undertake to ensure the child such protection and care as is necessary for his or her well-being, taking into account the rights and duties of his or her parents, legal guardians, or other individuals legally responsible for him or her, and, to this end, shall take all appropriate legislative and administrative measures.

3. States Parties shall ensure that the institutions, services and facilities responsible for the care or protection of children shall conform with the standards established by competent authorities, particularly in the areas of safety, health, in the number and suitability of their staff, as well as competent supervision.

Article 3, taken with the other guiding principles of the Convention, provides important standards against which the policy proposals and subsequent legislation should be assessed:

Article 2 Non-Discrimination

1. States Parties shall respect and ensure the rights set forth in the present Convention to each child within their jurisdiction without discrimination of any kind, irrespective of the child's or his or her parent's or legal guardian's race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin, property, disability, birth or other status.

2. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the child is protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment on the basis of the status, activities, expressed opinions, or beliefs of the child's parents, legal guardians, or family members.

Article 6 Right to Life and Maximum Survival and Development

1. States Parties recognize that every child has the inherent right to life.

2. States Parties shall ensure to the maximum extent possible the survival and development of the child.

Article 12 Voice of the Child

1. States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child.

2. For this purpose, the child shall in particular be provided the opportunity to be heard in any judicial and administrative proceedings affecting the child, either directly, or through a representative or an appropriate body, in a manner consistent with the procedural rules of national law.

We have given particular consideration to government’s responsibilities under article 12 below.

We also note that the policy proposal does recognise that some groups of children, including children with a disability and minority ethnic children are potentially more vulnerable to harm, and therefore the principle of non-discrimination is of particular importance in ensuring that the SBNI can respond in a timely and effective manner to the particular needs and circumstances of small and often dispersed populations who can easily be isolated and largely invisible when approaches to safeguarding are being developed. It is therefore extremely welcome that a proposed function of the SBNI is to develop a regional safeguarding forum that provides a platform for a wide group of interested bodies to share their understanding of safeguarding and influence the SBNI and in particular provide a voice for those with a disability, from different ethnic backgrounds, marginalised groups including young people who are homeless and those subject to the justice system and the general population within NI.

CiNI would highlight to the Committee for its consideration the commentary from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. In considering progress on UK and NI implementation of the Convention in 2002, the Committee expressed serious concern at the number of children across the UK experiencing violence, abuse or neglect in spite of the protections afforded them within the Convention:

The Committee is deeply concerned that one or two children die every week as a result of violence and neglect in the home. It is also concerned at the prevalence of violence, including sexual violence, throughout the State Party against children with families, in families, in schools, in institutions, in the care system and in detention. It also notes with deep concern the growing levels of child neglect ¹

Six years later the Committee, while welcoming the efforts undertaken to tackle the problem of violence, abuse and neglect against children, reiterated its alarm at the still high prevalence of violence, abuse and neglect against children, including in the home, and at the lack of a comprehensive nationwide strategy … the Committee regrets that there is still no comprehensive system of recording and analysing abuses committed against children and young people, and that the mechanisms of physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration for victims are not sufficiently available across the state party.

The Committee recommend that Government:

1. Establish mechanisms for monitoring the number of cases and the extent of violence, sexual abuse, neglect, maltreatment or exploitation, including within the family, in schools and in institutional or other care;
2. Ensure that professionals working with children (including teachers, social workers, medical professionals, members of the police and the judiciary) receive training on their obligations to report and take appropriate action in suspected cases of domestic violence affecting children;
3. Strengthen support for victims of violence, abuse, neglect and maltreatment in order to ensure that they are not victimised once again during legal proceedings;
4. Provide access to adequate services for recovery, counselling and other forms of reintegration in all parts of the country ².

In the ongoing development of the SBNI and its ultimate establishment and operation, CiNI would advocate that a child-rights framework is essential to ensure that children and young people are afforded the protection of the state, and we would urge the Department to give particular attention to the UN Committee recommendations. We would also highlight to the Committee the 2006 report of the independent expert for the UN Study on Violence against Children ³, which we will refer to throughout this written evidence.

In addition to ensure a fully integrated and co-ordinated response to safeguarding children CiNI believes that it is essential that there is a statutory duty to co-operate to safeguard children (see below). Co-operation must be clearly defined and understood by all partners. It is the crucial ingredient needed to address previous shortcomings identified by Laming and others in relation to poor-coordination and failure to share information.

A broader understanding and awareness of the concept of safeguarding is also essential. Safeguarding can no longer be viewed as a narrow social services responsibility, safeguarding is the responsibility of all public agencies delivering services to children, young people and their families. Early intervention and preventative provision, alongside family support must be recognised as key to enabling and ensuring the safeguarding of children, so that we can reduce and minimise the need for crisis intervention and statutory child protection intervention. CiNI welcomes that one of the proposed functions of the SBNI is to develop a communication strategy to inform members of the public, statutory, voluntary and community groups about the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people raise awareness about how best this can be done and encourage participation on a cross-agency, professional and statutory/voluntary basis.

• Are the functions of the SBNI as outlined at Chapter 3 of the Policy Document adequate?

Overall the proposed functions of the SBNI appear adequate. We have made specific comments in relation to particular proposed functions throughout this evidence paper.

• Given that one of the roles of the SBNI is to secure accountability, how can one panel member hold another to account?

CiNI agrees that the accountability of each member of the SBNI and of the SBNI as an entity is of the utmost importance. It is our firm belief that the necessary accountability can only be secured through a statutory duty on each member to co-operate in the process of safeguarding children and young people. CiNI welcomes the policy proposals on representation on SBNI, and we agree that accountability is an essential component of the successful functioning of the SBNI. We would suggest that this could be strengthened by having a role description for members and a contracting process that addresses performance management, accountability and governance issues. A statutory duty to co-operate would give members the ability to challenge one another in the execution of their safeguarding responsibilities.

• How representative is the proposed membership; are all aspects of child protection covered i.e. what about the courts and the judiciary? Does the essential wide representation come at the cost of unwieldiness? What level of seniority of staff should be represented?

CiNI would support strong links with the judiciary, and would advocate that as occurs in other jurisdictions, members of the judiciary should be regularly invited to influence and advise the SBNI on a variety of issues relating to court matters and the welfare of children. We would also recommend that the SBNI establish a relationship with the Children Order Advisory Committee. This Committee which is currently chaired by The Honourable Mr Justice Weir, Family Division, Court of Judicature, is made up of a broad spectrum of disciplines and professions engaged in working with children in both the courts and in other spheres. COAC issues best practice guidelines on a regular basis and CiNI would suggest this could be one medium by which the two bodies could inform and influence each other.

We do believe that the wide representation is essential to ensure that all key stakeholders are involved. We appreciate that this brings with it the risk of unwieldiness, and therefore we would suggest that this is where a sub-group structure is essential so that a wider constituency of relevant expertise can be engaged in the work of the SBNI. We would suggest that sub-groups might consider issues including Case Management Review, Education and Training, Communication and Audit and Public Protection. We would also suggest that provision should be made for the establishment of ad-hoc/themed, time limited groups to look at specific emerging issues.

Seniority of staff is a key issue and we would agree with the policy proposal that members should occupy a senior role within their organisation with a strategic role in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. We also agree that members must be able to represent their organisation and commit it to policy and procedural matters, and hold their organisation to account. CiNI strongly believes that it is vital for members to be mandated by their organisation not only in relation to representation but also with decision making powers.

• How should the chairperson of the local safeguarding panels be appointed and should these be paid posts?

CiNI would strongly recommend that the chairperson of each of the local safeguarding panels should be the Trust Director of Children’s Services. We do not believe that the statutory function should be separated out across two different posts. CiNI would also recommend that consideration be given to the appointment of co-chairs from the voluntary sector or from education to ensure that the full spectrum of safeguarding issues are promoted, this includes early intervention and family support as well as child protection.

CiNI would also recommend that the Committee give its consideration to the role of the Chairperson of the SBNI. We note the proposals within the detailed policy document and welcome that this will be an independent public appointment. We agree that this should be a part-time 3-day per week post designed to attract candidates of the highest calibre and experience.

We would suggest that a key post will be that of the proposed Executive Officer who will be responsible for managing the SBNI and supporting the Chair in the execution of his or her duties. CiNI would also highlight that it is essential that this post holder is able to ensure the decisions of the SBNI are actioned and they will play a key role in the links between the SBNI and the LSPs.

• How clear is the interaction between the DHSSPS, the Health and Social Care Board and the Trusts and the SBNI regarding who will have primacy on issues/policy areas and who does what?

It is CiNI’s view that the interaction and indeed the lines of accountability within these arrangements are not currently clear. We appreciate that health and social services has just come through a major re-structuring programme as a result of the RPA process and therefore new arrangements and new ways of working are still being worked through and embedded into working relationships. However, we believe that it is now urgent that there is clarification of precise roles and responsibilities, with clear demarcation of lines of responsibility. It is essential that the SBNI is unfettered in its independent scrutiny of the HSCB and the Trusts. Importantly the role of the SBNI is quite distinct from the current RQIA, the SBNI must not become an inspection body.

We agree with the policy proposal that the Chairperson of the SBNI should be accountable and report directly to the Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety. Therefore the Committee for Health, Social Services and Public Safety will have an important scrutiny role in relation to the functioning of the SBNI.

• Should there be a legal duty on relevant agencies to co-operate as well as safeguard?

CiNI would suggest that the legal duty on relevant agencies must be to co-operate to safeguard, that is, these should not be viewed as two separate legal requirements, rather these are inter-dependent; there is a need for optimal co-operation between all key agencies in order to deliver safeguarding to its highest standard.

However, in relation to the duty to co-operate we would highlight that there is a wider issue which the Committee must give specific consideration to, and therefore we would draw the Committee’s attention to section 12 of the detailed policy proposal on Children’s Services Planning and the SBNI.

CiNI notes that the policy proposal recognises that it will be important that the SBNI establishes firm connections with the children’s planning process and a close relationship. The policy proposal also recognises that it will be necessary and appropriate for the SBNI to participate directly in the children’s services planning process to ensure the issue of safeguarding children and young people within Northern Ireland is highlighted and acted upon accordingly.

Therefore one of the specific functions of the SBNI (section 3) is to:

iv. Participate in the planning arrangements to commission children’s services to ensure that this takes safeguarding into account and promotes the welfare of children.

CiNI would highlight that this function would be discharged through the SBNI contributing to the now Northern Ireland wide Children and Young People’s Plan.

It is important that the Committee, and indeed the wider public, appreciate the need for a connection between the safeguarding process and the existing statutory regional process of integrated planning of services for all children in Northern Ireland.

Indeed we would highlight that the imperative for this firm connection and close relationship is recognised internationally. The UN General Assembly’s Independent Expert on the Study into Violence against Children recommended that:

All states develop a multi-faceted and systematic framework to respond to violence against children which is integrated into national planning processes ⁴.

Children’s Services Planning has been operating in Northern Ireland since 1998 as a result of statutory guidance issued by an inter-departmental group (DHSSPS, DE, and the NIO) ⁵. It is a multi-agency process for the planning of children’s services similar to that operating in England. The process in NI is firmly linked into and supports the delivery of the outcomes framework of the cross-government 10 Year Strategy for Children and Young People ⁶. It is this outcomes framework that is also the ultimate driver for the SBNI which, while focusing on delivering on the outcome ‘Living in Safety and with Stability’, must also be concerned with the safety aspects of the other five outcome areas. Children’s Services Planning is concerned with planning of services for the holistic delivery of the entire outcomes framework for all children and young people. However, its work has been hampered for a number of reasons, chief among these being the lack of a statutory duty on agencies to co-operate in the planning process. The process while led by the former HSCBs and now the new regional HSCB, relied on the goodwill of partner agencies, therefore there has been no way in which to secure accountability of the process, either in terms of participation in the planning process or the ultimate delivery of the plan itself.

Given that it is proposed that there will be a firm connection and indeed close relationship between the safeguarding process and inter-agency planning process, we would suggest that there should in fact be one single legislative framework reinforcing this important relationship and recognising that safeguarding is an essential consideration in the planning of all services for children and young people. CiNI would advocate that the Committee consider the scope for a legislative duty to co-operate to plan and commission services for all children and young people, with a specific requirement on key agencies to co-operate to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

CiNI would urge the Committee to seek and take evidence from the Children’s Services Planners on this issue and indeed the wider issue of the creation of the SBNI.

• Any opinions that your organisations may have on serious case reviews and the single database?

In relation to Serious Case Reviews CiNI believes that steps should be taken to widen out the representation on these panels to include those from public health and also education, in line with the wider approach to safeguarding as everyone’s responsibility. We would suggest that there is a need to ensure appropriate training of Chairs and members. This must include training on children’s rights principles and provisions underpinning and informing safeguarding practice. It must also include training in relation to investigative skills, interview skills, and report writing including the writing of recommendations. Training must also include a focus on ensuring the development of a knowledge base around key areas that consistently emerge from Serious Case Reviews. This includes training on issues such as mental health, substance misuse and domestic violence.

CINI does believe that the reports from serious case reviews contain too many recommendations; and in this long list the fundamentals of what needs to be addressed can be lost. We believe that reports must be outcome and learning focused. We would suggest that a pro-forma would be helpful to guide compilation of the report and would be helpful in ensuring that the report relates to purpose and is linked to learning outcomes.

There has been some debate as to whether serious case review reports should be made publicly available; however we would urge great caution on this matter, while clearly general learning points would be useful to publish, we would suggest that if these reports were to become public documents those involved might edit their input for fear of the public repercussions. Clearly of most concern would be the issue of protecting the anonymity of victims.

CiNI would strongly advocate that the SBNI should oversee case management reviews, with a view to identifying key trends and themes that require attention.

We also note that a proposed function of the SBNI is to address the development of a single database to record key information on all children whose names are placed on the Child Protection Register maintained by HSC Trusts.

We would highlight that the recording and monitoring of information that can lead to prevention/detection of violence, abuse or neglect and allow for more timely and effective support, and where necessary intervention, is a crucial issue which the Committee must give its attention to. It is an issue which continues to receive significant attention from international observers. In 2008 the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended to Government that it:

Establish mechanisms for monitoring the number of cases and the extent of violence, sexual abuse, neglect, maltreatment or exploitation, including within the family, in schools and in institutional or other care ⁷

The Report of the UN General Assembly’ s Independent Expert on Violence against Children recommended the development and implementation of systematic national data collection and research:

States improve data collection and information systems in order to identify vulnerable sub-groups, inform policy and programming at all levels and track progress toward the goal of preventing violence against children. States should use national indicators based on internationally agreed standards and ensure data is compiled, analysed and disseminated to monitor progress over time … states should also create and maintain data on children without parental care and children in the criminal justice system. Data should be disaggregated by sex, age, urban/rural, household and family characteristics, education and ethnicity. States should also develop a national research agenda on violence against children across settings where violence occurs, including through interview studies with children and parents, with particular attention to vulnerable groups of girls and boys ⁸.

Therefore CiNI would strongly recommend that the single database must not be restricted to those children on the child protection register, it must include all children subject to serious case reviews, recognising that not all these children appear on the child protection register. Professionals need to have access to the learning that this information can produce, particularly where the information from serious case reviews produces recommendations for practice and/or opportunities for learning, and help to identify any current gaps in service. This information can also highlight evidence relating to key themes which consistently emerge during serious case reviews, including mental health, substance misuse and domestic violence.

• Where should the SBNI be based? Is the Public Health Agency appropriate

As proposed in the Department’s detailed policy document CiNI would agree that the SBNI should be located within the PHA. We note and agree with the rationale presented in the document. Hosting of the SBNI within the PHA does support and reflect the SBNI wider remit for all children, including children in need. The SBNI while incorporating child protection, will have a safeguarding remit, with a significant function of focusing on prevention and promoting safe behaviour and practice and thus fits well with the overall ethos of the PHA.

However, we do believe that it is essential that the ultimate independence of the SBNI must be protected, therefore we welcome that it is proposed the Chairperson would report directly to the Minister. We would also recommend that from the Minister there should also be a direct reporting line to the Ministerial Sub-Committee on Children and Young People chaired by the Junior Ministers responsible for children and young people’s issues.

• How can potential gaps or slippage between the current Regional Area Child Protection Committee and the newly formed SBNI be avoided?

The establishment of an interim Regional Area Child Protection Committee is extremely welcome. We believe that in its operation the interim committee can ensure that gaps do not develop and can ensure that slippage is minimised. CiNI welcomes that the interim Committee has secured a wider membership and representation and we believe that the interim committee can enable a smooth transition to the new SBNI.

• Is the funding for the SBNI clearly defined? The Department have indicated that the £750,000 of funding is supplemented with existing funding? Does this kind of arrangement work?

CiNI would highlight that it is essential to the effective and efficient operation of the SBNI that it is adequately resourced to fulfil its role and functions; and clearly we believe that such a body must be protected against any potential future efficiency pressures or indeed re-allocation of spend.

We would highlight that to ensure the SBNI does not become an overt drain on resources, it will be essential for the Department to continue to invest in and take forward developments in the area of early intervention and preventative family support initiatives. CiNI would be entirely opposed to any re-allocation of spend/investment away from these crucial services, which while non-statutory, are well evidenced as delivering value for money, and reducing the need to revert to crisis led statutory child protection services.

• Any other issues that you feel may be of interest to the Committee.

Young Persons Safeguarding Forum

It is extremely welcome that the Department, in recognition of its UNCRC Article 12 obligations, have given serious consideration to how the voice of the child can be heard in all that the SBNI do in relation to safeguarding and promoting the well-being of children and young people.

It is particularly welcome that this has been included as one of the proposed functions of the SBNI requiring it to:

vi. Consider how best to engage with young people, which ensures that the young persons voice is heard in all that the SBNI do.

In 2006 the independent expert for the UN Study on Violence against Children recommended that States actively engage with children and young people and respect their views in all aspects of prevention, response and monitoring of violence against them, taking into account article 12 of the UNCRC ⁹.

We would however highlight that this must include consideration of how best to engage with children, including young children, through age appropriate methods. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in its General Comment No.7 ‘Implementing Child Rights in Early Childhood’ observes that “respect for the young child’s agency – as a participant in family, community and society – is frequently overlooked, or rejected as inappropriate on the grounds of age and immaturity”. Significantly the Committee goes on to emphasise “article 12 applies both to younger and older children … as holders of rights, even the youngest children are entitled to express their views, and these views should be ‘given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child’ … young children make choices and communicate their feelings, ideas and wishes in numerous ways, long before they are able to communicate through the conventions of spoken or written language ¹⁰”.

We would therefore request that the proposed function is amended to state:

Consider how best to engage with children and young people, which ensures that the child and young persons voice is heard in all that the SBNI does and that these voices are given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child.

We note that the Department does wish the process to be dynamic and interactive and is aware of existing groups and young people’s fora that can support the process. CiNI would highlight to the Committee the cross-departmental work (led by DENI) to establish a Northern Ireland Network for Youth ¹¹ that will link together all of the existing best practice and expertise that exists across the region in relation to both children and young people’s engagement and participation in legislative, policy and service development. Through the Network it should be possible to ensure representative input into the work of the SBNI, including from those marginalised and traditionally harder to reach individuals and groups.

We would further highlight to the Committee, that if the Department is seriously committed to delivering on its article 12 obligations, this requires the engagement and the involvement of children and young people in this early stage process of developing policy proposals and ultimately legislating for the creation and establishment of the SBNI. We would urge the Committee to ensure that it also seeks and listens to the views of children and young people at the earliest opportunity possible. We would also highlight that in line with the Department’s Section 75 obligation to promote equality of opportunity, the Department, in keeping with its Equality Scheme, must produce a child-accessible version of the policy proposals and ensure timely and age appropriate processes for taking the views of children and young people and responding to these views.

CiNI would highlight that support is available to the Department and indeed to the Committee to engage directly with and seek the views of children and young people. CiNI hosts the Participation Network ¹², an initiative supported by OFMDFM, set up to help the Public Sector to engage effectively with children and young people in development and review of policy and services that impact on their lives . The Participation Network offers training, consultancy support, a signposting service and resources to central and local government. CiNI would urge the Committee to contact the Participation Network to discuss in more detail the support that is available.

In conclusion CiNI would like to reiterate the importance of the broadening of the understanding of what safeguarding means in the Northern Ireland context. We commend the DHSSPS for the proposals which attempt to ensure that early intervention and family support sit alongside child protection in the safeguarding spectrum. From our understanding of arrangements in other jurisdictions working together and partnership arrangements are key to securing successful outcomes for safeguarding children and young people, and we would again reiterate that the statutory duty to co-operate to safeguard is a vital lever in securing the success of this process.

CiNI trusts that our written evidence can usefully inform Committee discussion and deliberation on the development of the SBNI. We look forward to meeting with the Committee at our oral evidence session.

Footnotes

¹ Committee on the Rights of the Child (2002) Consideration of Reports submitted by State Parties under Article 44 of the Convention Concluding Observations United Kingdom of GB and NI CRC/C/15/Add. 188 para 39 http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/(Symbol)/CRC.C.15.Add.188.En?OpenDocument

² Committee on the Rights of the Child (2008) Consideration of Reports submitted by State Parties under Article 44 of the Convention Concluding Observations United Kingdom of GB and NI CRC/C/GBR/CO4 para 50-51 http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/docs/AdvanceVersions/CRC.C.GBR.CO.4.pdf

³ UN General Assembly (2006) Report of the Independent Expert for the United Nations Study on Violence against Children http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N06/491/05/PDF/N0649105.pdf?OpenElement

⁴ UN General Assembly (2006) Report of the Independent Expert for the United Nations Study on Violence against Children p.25

⁵ DHSS, DENI and NIO (1998) Children’s Services Planning Guidance. Belfast: The Stationary Office NI

⁶ Our Children and Young People – Our Pledge: A Ten Year Strategy for Children and Young People in NI.

⁷ Committee on the Rights of the Child (2008) Consideration of Reports submitted by State Parties under Article 44 of the Convention Concluding Observations United Kingdom of GB and NI CRC/C/GBR/CO4 para 51

⁸ UN General Assembly (2006) Report of the Independent Expert for the United Nations Study on Violence against Children p.27

⁹ UN General Assembly (2006) Report of the Independent Expert for the United Nations Study on Violence against Children p.26

¹⁰ CRC/C/GC/7 para 11

¹¹ http://www.ycni.org/ycni_projects/NINFY/ninfy_introduction.html

¹² http://www.participationnetwork.org/