Submitted by crinadmin on
The main objectives of the report are: to clarify the connection between child rights obligations and children and young people’s well-being; to examine existing approaches to monitoring the rights and well-being of children and young people in Ireland and Northern Ireland; to review the national and international literature on adopting a human rights-based approach to monitoring well-being; and to outline steps to achieve a human rights-based approach to monitoring children and young people’s well-being in Ireland and Northern Ireland. The Connection between Rights and Well-Being The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is the leading international instrument on children’s rights and has been ratified by Ireland and Northern Ireland although it is not incorporated into domestic law in either jurisdiction. However, the Governments are bound under international law to deliver on their obligations arising from the UNCRC. The notion of well-being is increasingly recognised within government policy although it is a contested concept open to various interpretations. A ‘whole child’ approach and a focus on positive outcomes underpin well-being at policy level in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Monitoring the Rights and the Well-Being of Children and Young People
Despite increased understanding of the inter-relationship between rights and well-being, there is no explicit link between rights obligations and well-being in the national children strategies in either jurisdiction. Nevertheless, compatibility between both concepts is evident in current efforts to monitor and improve outcomes for children and young people.
There is no monitoring activity presently in Ireland or Northern Ireland, which explicitly adopts a human rights-based approach to monitoring children and young people’s well-being. Monitoring well-being in recent years has been almost exclusively focused on developing well-being indicators with little attention being focused on a rights-based approach.