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Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children invite Ombudsman for Children’s young advisors to present Big Ballot findings The views of 75,000 children and young people who took part in the largest ever nationwide consultation of children and young people in Ireland will be presented to members of the Oireachtas in Leinster House today (Thursday) by the Children’s Ombudsman’s young advisors. The meeting will take place on the invitation of Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children and with the assistance of it’s Chair, Deputy Mary O’Rourke, and follows the Ombudsman for Children’s commitment to bring the views of the children and young people who participated to the most senior decision makers in the country. The Ombudsman for Children’s Big Ballot consultation was an education-based, referendum-style event which took place in November 2007. Children and young people – aged four to 18 years - from schools, Youthreach and Senior Traveller Training Centres in each of the 26 counties explored five issues in classroom based lessons before voting on the issues that were most important to them. The issues were: Family and Care; Play and Recreation; Having a Voice; Health, Wealth and Material Wellbeing; and Education. These issues were identified through academic research and were checked-out with 150 young people from all over Ireland before being put to the wider vote. Family and Alternative Care was the overwhelming priority of the children and young people who took part, winning 31.5 per cent of the vote. More information about the Ballot can be found here.