Post-lockdown experiences
How children are adjusting to life after lockdown in a Covid-19 world
Mental health and wellbeing
We hear from children all the time who tell us they are having difficulties accessing mental health services, with referrals only made when a child is at crisis point. They also talk about the lack of information available for them online; a sign of a service not designed around user needs. We are continuing our work to […]
Post-lockdown experiences: Living with autism during Covid-19
Throughout lockdown we have been speaking to Ted (10), Robyn (16) and Lily (14) about how their lives have changed. They each have autism and were home schooled by their mum during lockdown. They coped with this well and now they are back at school. We caught up with them to hear how they’re getting […]
Expenses and hospitality policy
Our expenses and hospitality policy
Unregulated
Children in care living in semi-independent accommodation
Ban the use of unregulated accommodation for under 18s in care
Anne Longfield, Children’s Commissioner for England, is calling for the Government to change the law to stop councils placing under 18s in care in unregulated accommodation. The change would see all children in care who need a residential placement housed in accommodation regulated under the same standards as children’s homes, and would put an end […]
Accessibility
This accessibility statement applies to the Children’s Commissioner for England’s website at www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk This website is run by the Children’s Commissioner’s office. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to: We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible […]
Protecting children’s digital privacy with the Age Appropriate Design Code
Today is the day that the Age Appropriate Design Code comes into force, marking an enormous step forward for children’s digital rights. The Code consists of 15 standards which online platforms will be required to meet in order to protect the data and privacy of under 18s. Platforms failing to do so will more than […]
Back to school after lockdown
The coming weeks will be an exciting time for millions of children in England. It’s almost six months since most children were in school, and many children will be glad to be with their friends again, though perhaps nervous about what it will be like to be back. For some time children have watched the […]
Supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities to return to school
As we approach the start of term, with teachers preparing their classrooms with new social distancing guidelines and families sorting out new shoes and uniforms, many children with special educational needs will be excited to be joining their friends back in the classroom. I visited a school this week that had really carefully thought about […]
Going back to school guide
A guide for children to tell them some of the changes they might see when they go back to school this September as well as providing tips on how to cope if they’re feeling worried or nervous and helpful resources to stay safe.
How lockdown has affected children’s lives at home
Since schools closed to all but a few students in March, millions of children have had to stay at home. While schools started to open in the weeks leading up to the summer holidays, many children did not return to school and will not until September. Given this unprecedented interruption to learning for many children, […]
Archived Content
Pass the parcel: children posted around the care system
“I feel like a parcel getting moved around all the time, getting opened up and sent back and moved on to somewhere else.” Teenage girl, in care over 100 miles from home There are over 30,000 looked after children living ‘out of area’ in England. This is 41% of all children in care and has […]
Thousands of children in care passed around the system like parcels and living miles away from family and friends
Shining a light on the experiences of children in care who are moved ‘out of area’ – away from their home boroughs where family and friends live.
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Marking 30 years of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child with call on political parties to put the spotlight on children during election campaign
Anne Longfield, Children’s Commissioner for England, is calling on the political parties fighting the General Election to put the spotlight on children’s issues, as she joins the Children’s Commissioners for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, in publishing an assessment of the UK’s progress on children’s rights. This month marks the 30th anniversary of the UN […]
UK Children’s Commissioners’ UNCRC mid-term review
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, a landmark agreement by governments around the world on the rights of children. As Children’s Commissioners it is central to our mission to make sure that those rights are made a reality for all children. The United Nations […]
Response to the Home and Foreign Secretaries regarding British children in Syria
Earlier this year Anne Longfield, Children’s Commissioner for England, wrote to the Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary regarding the safety and welfare of British children who have become involved in the conflict in Syria. The following is the Children Commissioner for England’s latest response to Dominic Raab, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Office […]
Nurture with nature: Why environmental engagement is imperative for children
We know that the health of the environment is one of children’s greatest concerns, as outlined in Issue 1 of our Children’s Insights reports. The word ‘environment’ is likely to stir a very different reaction amongst children than it used to. Many children face the incompatible situation of a lifestyle divorced from nature, and mounting […]
EU children in Britain
This page was published in 2019 and may contain out of date information. Know your rights to stay in Britain If you are an EU citizen living in Britain, Brexit will affect your rights. This means you will need to apply for what the Government calls ‘settled status’ in Britain. What is settled status? Settled […]
Children’s insights
This is the first issue in our regular series of insights into the views and experiences of children in England.
Changes to gambling laws needed as our report into online gaming reveals children’s gambling fears
Anne Longfield, the Children’s Commissioner for England, has published a report, “Gaming the system’’ which looks at the experiences of children who play games online. The Children’s Commissioner’s Office commissioned the research company Revealing Reality to speak to groups of children who play online games like FIFA, Fortnite and Roblox about what they love and what […]