Children’s Rights Manifesto

In their Manifesto for the 2026 Scottish Parliament election, Children First demands that the next Scottish Government must put children first, protect children and protect childhood by delivering solutions to three pressing issues.

·       A comprehensive offer of Whole Family Support to tackle child poverty and give every family the emotional, practical and financial support they need.

·       A consistent Bairns Hoose to put children’s recovery at the centre of the justice system.

·       A commitment to urgently tackle Online Harm, its impact on child development and the right to a safe childhood.

Read their full Manifesto here

The Human Rights Consortium Scotland (HRCS) together with Amnesty International have created their Civil Society Working Group manifesto 2026. It centres around three main demands to help ensure that everyone in Scotland has their human rights respected.

·       Introduce a Scottish Human Rights Bill

·       Implement the UNCRC Act to full effect

·       Remove Barriers to access to justice

Read their full manifesto here

Parenting Across Scotland’s Manifesto for the 2026 Scottish Parliament election, outlines six key policy calls that, if introduced, would make a positive impact on the lives of parents, carers and their families in Scotland.

·       Increase the Scottish Child Payment to reduce child poverty

·       Ensure that parents and carers are confident champions of their children’s rights by increasing their understanding of the UNCRC

·       Put parents’ and carers’ views and experiences at the heart of policy development and implementation

·       Deliver universal and intensive whole family support to all that need it, incorporating Open Kindergartens as an effective means of universal provision 

·       Give ‘parenting with adults’ its own emphasis within national policy, recognising that parenting doesn’t stop when children turn 18

·       Invest in a national hobby framework so that every child and young person can take part in a hobby of their choice

Read their full manifesto here.

The Scottish Youth Parliament’s 2026-31 Manifesto “Dear Scotland’s Future” has five main topics that matter the most to Scotland’s Children and Young People.

·       Accessible, Equitable, and Inclusive Education

·       Safe and Supportive Communities

·       A Sustainable and Renewable Society

·       A Just and Fairer Scotland

·       Empowering Young People to Claim their Rights

Read their full Manifesto here

SCVO share priorities for Scotland’s Essential Sector for the next Scottish Government, in their Manifesto they outline six main points.

·       Deliver Fair Funding - reform the public sector funding landscape for voluntary organisations

·       Create a partnership of equals - A successful, equitable partnership between the voluntary and public sector

·       Commission with communities

·       Modernise regulation

·       Secure the future of volunteering

·       Protect the voluntary sector’s voice

Read their full manifesto here

Young Women Demand set out six policy priorities to ensure that the voices and experiences of young women and girls are at the heart of party manifestos.

·       Protect and promote young women’s human rights through the introduction of a Human Rights Bill for Scotland

·       Prevent and eliminate violence against young women and girls by providing sustained funding for women’s and youth organisations

·       Address online violence against young women and girls through the robust regulation of digital technologies

·       Tackle misogynistic and sexist views, attitudes and behaviours amongst young men and boys through increased educational interventions

·       Equitable healthcare access and outcomes for young women and girls, particularly in mental health and sexual and reproductive healthcare, by prioritising women’s health as a key policy area

·       Equal opportunities for young women and girls to get involved in politics, democracy and decision-making processes

Read their full manifesto here

YouthLink Scotland sets out three national commitments in their manifesto for the 2026 Scottish Parliament elections.

• A Right – A Legal Right to Youth Work for All Young People
  Every young person should have an entitlement in law to access youth work services, regardless of postcode, background, or income.
• A Space – Universal Access to Spaces for Youth Work
  Guarantee free, fair, and consistent access to public spaces – such as schools, leisure centres, and community venues – for youth work providers, and create new, dedicated youth spaces in every community.
• A Future – Sustained and Increased Investment in Youth Work
  Implement fair funding principles with ring-fenced, multi-year funding at both national and local level, rebuilding the workforce and ensuring long-term stability.

Read their full manifesto here

Who Cares? Scotland has published their manifesto for the 2026 election. “Connected by Care” has five priority calls to action.

·       Ensure the Promise is kept in full and fully resourced, with processes to track its delivery up to and beyond 2030.

·       Keep Care Experienced people’s voice at the heart of the Promise, implementing the statutory right to independent, relationship based, lifelong and accessible advocacy for all Care Experienced people who need it.

·       Every child in care should be offered mental health support, and Care Experienced people of all ages should be able to access trauma-informed support. Services providing spaces for connection including befriending should be accessible to Care Experienced people of all ages.

·       Adopt a whole-school approach to supporting Care Experienced children and young people, such as their ‘Communities that Care’ model.

·       Introduce the Scottish Human Rights Bill which includes Care Experienced people within the equality duty.

Read their full manifesto here