Statement on changes to regulations affecting children’s social care
Statement by the Children’s Commissioner for England On Friday 24th April the ‘Adoption and Children (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020’ came into force, and are not due to expire until 25th September. These regulations make significant temporary changes to the protections given in law to some of the most vulnerable children in the country – those […]
Statement
Local vulnerability profiles
Data providing a way for councils to understand which groups of children are likely to be at risk under lockdown, and how many children in their area fall into those groups
Children’s Commissioner for England creates local area profiles of child vulnerability during Covid-19
Analysis of the extent of child vulnerability around the country, much of which is hidden from sight under lockdown.
We’re all in this together?
The essential public health measures that have been taken to stop the spread of Covid-19 have affected everyone in the country, and many families are struggling with additional financial and social pressures. But there are some children, who before this crisis were already vulnerable or living in precarious situations, who are facing particular hardship. These […]
Lockdown experiences: Children in foster care
We are speaking with children to find out their first hand experiences of the coronavirus lockdown. Below, we have spoken to Libby, 17 and Hannah, 15, about how they’re finding living in lockdown while being in foster care. Here is what they have shared with us: Libby, aged 17, is living with her foster carers. […]
Freedom of information policy
The Children’s Commissioner’s Office is committed to complying with the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and any related legislation, which is, applicable. This policy applies to all the information we hold – that is all information created, received, and maintained by our staff in the course of their work.
Data protection policy
We gather, hold, analyse and use substantial amounts of personal data in discharging its functions and are a data controller for that personal data. It is required to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (‘GDPR’) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (‘DPA’). This document outlines how we seek to ensure compliance with that legislation. […]
Tackling the disadvantage gap during the Covid-19 crisis
This briefing sets out how this can be avoided – how schools can be supported to adapt to the “new normal” and improve access to meaningful educational opportunities for disadvantaged children.
Business plan 2020-21
This is my final year as Children’s Commissioner, a post it has been a pleasure and a privilege to hold. We’ve spent the time relentlessly showing government where children are falling through gaps in the system – it’s undeniable that there is a group of kids who are left out of the nation’s progress. They […]
Corporate governance
Find our annual review and business plans, as well as corporate documents regarding regulation and transparency including our advisory board.
Lockdown experiences: What being in isolation is like for children
We have spoken to Michael, 5 and Indie, 14, while Laura and Nic, both 11, have written about what being in isolation has been like for them. Here is what they have shared with us: Michael aged 5 explains what lockdown means to him. “We have to stay at home because of the virus. It’s […]
Personal data collected for research purposes
Information on how we collect non-identifiable data on children in order to produce up-to-date evidence on the lives, experiences, views and outcomes of children.
Archived Content
Gaming the system
The overwhelming majority of children (93 percent) in the UK play video games. Yet despite its popularity, the culture of ‘gaming’- its rules and its rituals, the varying profiles of players, the risks they face – tends to be spoken of by adults, whether they be policymakers or parents, as if it were an alien […]
The state of child poverty and how we can tackle it
On the United Nations Day for Poverty Eradication we should never fail to be shocked that we are talking about child poverty when are one of the wealthiest countries on earth. Yet as all of us here know, the number of children living in poverty has been steadily increasing in recent years. There are around […]
EU children 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 status is a special immigration category for EU nationals who have made Britain their home. Once you have settled status […]
Children’s Commissioner for England response to CQC report on the state of care
Anne Longfield, the Children’s Commissioner for England, responding to the CQC annual report into the state of care
Almost one in five children left education at 18 last year without basic qualifications
Anne Longfield, the Children’s Commissioner for England, has published research looking at the number of children who leave the education system at 18 without reaching Level 2 attainment (five GCSEs grade A* to C, or equivalent technical qualifications). These are children who will have spent 14 years in compulsory education, often having more than £100,000 of […]
Children’s manifesto calls on political parties to back six pledges to transform life chances for all kids
Anne Longfield, the Children’s Commissioner for England, has published ‘Guess How Much We Love You: A Manifesto for Children’ ahead of any upcoming General Election.
A Manifesto for Children
The manifesto, published ahead of any upcoming General Election, calls on Britain’s political parties to include a six-point plan in their election manifestos to transform the life chances for disadvantaged children and to help all of England’s 12 million children to thrive. The manifesto sets out some of the key issues that children have told […]
Anne Longfield responds to Government Spending Review
Anne Longfield, Children’s Commissioner for England, responding to the Government’s Spending Review
Children’s experiences of online harm and what they want to do about it
In April this year the Government set out their plans for a world-first: a system of regulations that they argue will make the UK ‘the safest place in the world to be online’. The Online Harms White Paper, produced in collaboration between the Home Office and Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), maps out […]
Bleak houses
Tackling the crisis of family homelessness in England