Family
I want children to grow up in loving, stable families, whatever form that takes, with services that empower them.
Family is a core pillar of my work, following the results of The Big Ask. Children told me that having a supportive family has a positive impact on their lives. They care about their families and they value seeing them, with 80% of 9-17-year-olds saying they are happy or okay with their family life, along with 95% of 6-8-year-olds.
Where children do not live with immediate family, they care about having a happy home. They told us if they were unhappy at home and with their family life, they were nine times more likely to be unhappy with their life overall, and 70% of them were unhappy with their mental health.
My vision is for a reset of the relationship between the state and families, to show how we can reform public services to support families not just as ‘service users’ but as loving, supportive units, enabling them to support one another.
A loving family is worth more than money and will give you guidance support and love and advice.
Boy, 11,
The Big Ask.
Latest Reports
The Children’s Plan: The Children’s Commissioner’s School Census
8 September 2025
Read The Children’s Plan: The Children’s Commissioner’s School Census in full. Read the Summary version. For the first time as Children’s Commissioner, I have used my statutory powers to ask all schools, and colleges, a set of questions. A census in response to what children told me they wanted and needed to attend, engage, attain, […]
Report
Growing up in a low-income family: Children’s experiences
8 July 2025
This report should not have to exist. Shining a light on children’s experiences of poverty in 2025, in one of the wealthiest countries in the world, should not be necessary. And yet, the findings in this work highlight real hardship; an almost-Dickensian level of poverty facing some children in England today. After four years as […]
Report
School phone policies in England: Findings from the Children’s Commissioner’s School and College Survey
10 April 2025
Over the last four years, I have spoken to a million young people and thousands of parents about the most pressing issues facing children growing up in England today. One issue that comes up time and again – from children, parents, and professionals alike – is online safety. While digital technology provides young people with […]
Report
My Plan for the year, 2025-26
3 April 2025
I’ve designed a version of my Business Plan aimed specifically for children and young people, sharing the projects and themes that my office will be working on. As Children’s Commissioner for England, it is my job to listen to you and take your voices to decision makers. In my survey, The Big Ambition, only one […]
Report
Business Plan, 2025-26
The year ahead – 2025-26 – will be my penultimate year as Children’s Commissioner for England. It will also mark 20 years since the establishment of this office – a milestone that offers an opportunity to reflect on the progress we have made and a reminder about the many urgent challenges that remain. More than […]
Report
The impact of housing instability on children’s GCSE grades
28 March 2025
Every child should have a loving, secure home, but when it comes to housing, children get a raw deal. Thousands of children are living in temporary accommodation, including many in emergency ‘B&B’ style accommodation for longer than the statutory six-week limit1 – and they are paying the price of this disruption and instability in their […]
Report
Waiting times for assessment and support for autism, ADHD and other neurodevelopmental conditionsÂ
15 October 2024
In 2024, we would never imagine that children in this country are being told they cannot access their education because there is no suitable school for them. We would not expect that some children are non-verbal and wearing nappies well into the primary school years, because they haven’t been able to get the help they […]
Report
The Big Ambition: Ambitions, Findings and Solutions
25 March 2024
As Children’s Commissioner it is my job to promote and protect the rights of children, and to make sure their voices are heard. That’s why in September 2023, I launched The Big Ambition to hear directly from children, young people, and parents across the country. I wanted to hear about what they wanted for the […]
Report
Business plan 2023-24
30 March 2023
Looking to a new business year, I have been reflecting on children and young people’s lives over the last couple of years and thinking about everything they have told me since I have become Children’s Commissioner. When I started in role, the impact of Covid and children’s lives returning to normal was at the forefront […]
Report
My work so far…
Family Review Part One
In September 2022, I published Family and its Protective Effect: Part 1 of the Independent Family Review. This report explores what family looks like, how families define themselves, the protective effect of family, and what families want from services. I launched this report with a speech hosted by Policy Exchange. 
Family Review Part Two
In December 2022, I published Part 2 of my Review, which set out how public services and policymakers can use the findings of Part I to reform their relationship with families, how to empower parents to be the best they can be, and ensuring they are given the right support to achieve that goal.
Building on this work, we have collected a wide variety of family profiles that give us a snapshot of what families in modern Britain look like and how they interact.
The Big Summer Survey
My office carried out The Big Summer Survey as part of my Family Review, which saw more than 15,800 children aged 7 to 17 respond to questions about how they spent their school break and who they spent their time with. We have published a webpage for children providing key resources and ideas for activities to enjoy as a family.
Childcare
Childcare was one of the two biggest issues parents raised in my Family Review, who told me it does not currently work for families. Parents want childcare that is high-quality and loving, so their children can thrive. Children need parents who aren’t dealing with the stress of unaffordable and inflexible childcare. Last autumn I set out my vision for a childcare system that works for everyone, making better use of schools, Family Hubs and children’s centres. I spoke about this vision again recently at a panel event to reinforce the idea that childcare is not a ‘woman’s issue’ – it’s a family one.
