Submitted by crinadmin on
Summary: 'Our Lives' is a Scotland wide
consultation exercise which had
gathered the views of young people in
relation to children's rights.
The project has been commissioned by
The Scottish Office, was carried out by
Save the Children Scotland and was
jointly funded by both parties.
INTRODUCTION
'Our Lives' is a Scotland wide consultation exercise which had
gathered the views of young people in relation to children's rights.
The project has been commissioned by The Scottish Office, was carried
out by Save the Children Scotland and was jointly funded by both
parties.
The UK Government became a signatory to the UN Convention on the
Rights of the Child in 1991 and produced its first report on
children's rights in the UK in 1994.
The UN Committee criticised the UK report in 1994 because it failed
to take into account the views of children and young people and hence
disregarded Article 12, one of the main principles of the Convention.
The 'Our Lives' Consultation process reflects the growing acceptance
in Scotland of the importance of the views of young people and their
right to be listened to in matters which affect them.
Between September 1998 and November 1998 Save the Children consulted
43 groups of children and young people (326 in total) between the
ages of 12 and 18, from 20 local authorities.
The young people came from schools and youth groups from urban and
rural Scotland and represented a wide spectrum of interest groups.
The groups of young people were invited to discuss one of five themes
- education, family life, health, protection from harm and
participation - and their views were sought on how successful the
implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child has
been so far in Scotland.
Findings were gathered from audio recordings of structured and
facilitated discussions and group exercises.
To complete the consultation process some of the participants were
invited to a young people's conference on 29 January 1999, where they
were given the opportunity to discuss the outcomes of the
consultation with the Scottish Office Minister for Children's Issues.
This report, which has been produced independently by Save the
Children, presents the voices of the young people in Scotland
speaking out on important issues in their lives. It is hoped that
their voices will be heard by all those who work for and with
children and young people in Scotland.