Childhood in 2020
What matters most to children today? What makes them feel good? What do they worry about? These are the questions we asked young people across England over the last few months. Their answers – about what’s good, what’s not so good and what needs to change – help us plan our work for the coming […]
Business plan 2020-21
Children’s guide to coronavirus
There have been big changes in our lives because of coronavirus, so we’ve created a children’s guide to coronavirus to help explain the situation. The guide aims to answer children’s questions about coronavirus, tell children how to stay safe and protect other people and how to help them make the best of their time at […]
Our letter to the Home Secretary regarding the crisis facing migrant families with children in the face of the Covid-19 outbreak
The following is a letter letter from Anne Longfield, the Children’s Commissioner for England, to the Home Secretary and Minister for Future Borders and Immigration regarding the crisis facing migrant families with children in the face of the Covid-19 outbreak. I am writing with regards to the unprecedented crisis facing migrant families with children in […]
Requesting additional safeguards to ensure that children’s rights and best interests are upheld during the coronavirus outbreak
Read an update to this article posted 12 August 2020 The Children’s Commissioner Anne Longfield has written to both the Permanent Secretary for the Department for Education and the Permanent Secretary for the Department of Health and Social Care requesting additional safeguards for particular measures to ensure that children’s rights and best interests are always […]
Guidance for teachers, school leaders, carers, parents and students
The latest official advice from the government
Calling on the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice to ensure the rights of children in custody are upheld during the coronavirus outbreak
Anne Longfield, Children’s Commissioner for England, has written to Robert Buckland, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, with regards to the Ministry of Justice’s response to the outbreak of the Covid-19 virus and the protection of children in youth custody. Find the full letter below; Dear Secretary of State, I am writing with […]
Information and advice for social workers
Information and advice from Social Work England for social workers, students, employers, and course providers.
Anne Longfield’s letters to the Secretary of States for MHCLG, the DfE and DWP regarding the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on children and families.
Anne Longfield’s letters to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Secretary of State for Education and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions regarding the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on children and families. Letter to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Letter to the Secretary of […]
Coronavirus, children and you
Today is the start of a school week like no other
Today is the start of a school week like no other. For millions of children across the country who are starting home schooling or who are still going into a very different version of school, it will feel very strange. For those staying at home, it will be their first experience of a home education. […]
Calling on the Chancellor for emergency support for families during the coronavirus outbreak
As the Government announces ongoing measures to tackle coronavirus, the Children’s Commissioner for England Anne Longfield has written to the Chancellor Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP about his plans to help the vulnerable through the crisis, and to ask for improved measures to get that help where it’s most needed. Download and view the letter […]
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.
Receive our vacancies by email
Sign up to receive our latest vacancies by email We will send you an email each Friday if we publish any new vacancies during that week. If we don’t publish any new vacancies, you won’t get an email. Email address Email preferences As well as receiving our latest vacancies, you can also receive our regular […]
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 […]