Date: 6th August 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Civil Rights and Freedoms

A summary of evidence submitted by the British Institute of Human Rights to the UK Parliament Joint Committee on Human Rights inquiry into government responses to COVID-19 has been published.

Date: 6th August 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms

The Human Rights Committee has published General Comment No.37 on Article 21 (right to peaceful assembly) which places obligations on states to protect children’s right to peacefully assemble.

Date: 22nd July 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities

Deputy First Minister John Swinney MSP has responded to numerous asks that more is done to ensure social inequality, racism and Black history are covered in the education curriculum.

Date: 22nd July 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms, General principles, Respect for the views of the child

Save the Children has developed a map which highlights some of the efforts its offices and partners continue to take to advance child participation during the pandemic.

Date: 22nd July 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Civil Rights and Freedoms, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities, Family Environment and Alternative Care

The report presents an overview of children’s rights-related progress by and information on the Council of Europe’s actions and achievements under each of the five thematic areas of the Strategy on the Rights of the Child, namely; equal opportunities for all children, participation of all children, a life free from violence for all children, the rights of the child in the digital environment.

Date: 10th July 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms

In a joint letter coordinated by the British Institute for Human Rights, a group of Scottish organisations have written to the Scottish Parliament’s Equalities and Human Rights Committee to raise concerns over the use of emergency powers granted in UK and Scottish Coronavirus legislation. The letter also highlights concerns over transparency of communications and clarity on how these powers are monitored and reviewed.

Date: 10th July 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Civil Rights and Freedoms, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities

The UN Human Rights Council held its Annual Day on the Rights of the Child on 1st July 2020. For the first time, children human rights defenders spoke in both panels to raise children’s voice and perspectives on the environment.

Date: 25th June 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Civil Rights and Freedoms, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities, Family Environment and Alternative Care

Fundamental Rights Agency’s Fundamental Rights Report 2020 report finds that growing intolerance and attacks on people’s fundamental rights continue to erode the considerable progress of protecting and promoting the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

Date: 25th June 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms

The Scottish Child Law Centre offers free expert legal advice on children’s rights and child law across Scotland. Its new website will make it easier for advice line users to find out about the services offered and how to contact Scottish Child Law Centre.  

Date: 25th June 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms, Policies & procedures

One factor identified by the Human Rights Consortium Scotland which hinders Public Interest Litigation, is the restrictive test on who has legal standing to take a case to court. From this, Chris McCorkindale and Douglas Jack produce a briefing on how Scotland can adopt a more expansive test to enable organisations to engage in these legal proceedings in the interest of those they represent.

Date: 11th June 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Civil Rights and Freedoms, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities

Thirty organisations have contributed their experience, insight, and analysis to form the Consortium’s submission to Scottish Parliament’s Equalities and Human Rights Committee Inquiry: Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Equalities and Human Rights.

Date: 11th June 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms

** PLEASE NOTE: This article discusses a global study completed by Stonewall whereby research into the experiences of only lesbians, bi women and trans people globally is conducted. Therefore, in order to accurately reflect the research completed by Stonewall, the initialism of LBT+ is used. Together recognises that despite the initialism used the world goes beyond lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals and expands to other sexual orientations too. **

Date: 11th June 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities, Civil Rights and Freedoms, Family Environment and Alternative Care

The report includes data about the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on vulnerable children and families in Scotland in the initial weeks of the ‘lockdown’, and the way that services adapted and responded to the crisis.

Date: 11th June 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)

Paragraphs 24 and 25 of the UN Human Rights Committee’s List of Issues relate to children's rights, specifically concerning putting an end to corporal punishment and increasing the age of criminal responsibility.

Date: 28th May 2020
Category: General principles, Civil Rights and Freedoms

Country leaders from New Zealand, Argentina, Finland, and Norway have attempted to address the key concerns raised by their country’s youngest inhabitants in a child friendly way.  Following on from this, young people from Scotland have joined the conversation as to why politics is not just for adults and why their concerns should be listened to.

Date: 28th May 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Civil Rights and Freedoms, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities

Following reports that parents are facing criticism by members of the public and supermarket staff for bring their children to the shops, the Children and Young People’s Commissioner  Scotland wrote to supermarket Chief Executives urging them to provide guidance and training to staff.

Date: 28th May 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Civil Rights and Freedoms, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities

The concerns of a group of people with lived experience of poverty have been captured in the first five weeks of lockdown. The briefing aims to draw the UK and Scottish Government and Parliament’s attention to the experiences of people in poverty during the pandemic and offer suggestions on how to take a human rights-based approach to directing resources over the coming months.

Date: 28th May 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms

The Crown Estate Scotland is responsible for the management of land and property in Scotland by the Monarchy. To children and young people’s insight is taken into account in the 2020-23 Corporate Plan, the views of seven to 25-year-olds on Scotland's land, seabed and coast were gathered.

Date: 28th May 2020
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, Civil Rights and Freedoms, Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities, General measures of implementation

Aoife Nolan, Professor of International Human Rights Law and Co-Director of the Human Rights Law Centre at the University of Nottingham analyses whether children have become the biggest victims of this pandemic as she explores the effect of COVID-19.

Date: 28th May 2020
Category: Civil Rights and Freedoms, General principles

Carers Trust Scotland is asking young carers to share their experience of being a young carer in school, university, college in Scotland, or who are in the process of applying to university or college. Clan Childlaw is seeking the insight from children, young people, family members, carers or professionals supporting children and young people about how COVID-19 is and lockdown is affecting them and what they think the long-term impact of the pandemic will be.