Children and young people took part in a special event this month as part of Sandwell Council’s partnership with the children’s charity the UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK).
The ‘Discovery Day’ was hosted at the council chambers and saw children and young people from across the borough learning about their human rights – as set out in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child – and speaking directly to elected members and decision makers about their ideas for making Sandwell child-friendly.
Sandwell is in the ‘Discovery’ phase of its three-to-five-year journey to become recognised as a UNICEF Child Friendly Community. The aim is to make Sandwell a place where all children and young people have a meaningful say in, and truly benefit from, the decisions, services and spaces that shape their lives.
We want Sandwell to be a place where children’s rights are realised and where children’s voices influence decisions that will impact them. Young people have ideas that can benefit the whole community and ensuring we listen to them will set us all up for a better future.
Nine schools took part in the Discovery Day and the children and young people enjoyed a range of activities hosted by storyteller Polar Bear, Empower Poetry, UNICEF UK and our child friendly team ending with the opportunity to vote on the priority areas they think we should focus on improving during our journey.
During the event children and young people were asked about what is working well and exploring the vision of what Sandwell could look like in the future.
Councillor Jalal Uddin, Cabinet Member for Children and Families said: “The Discovery Day was a great first step towards becoming a UNICEF Child Friendly Community. It was great to hear first hand the needs of young people and how we can prioritise actions to meet those needs.
“We want Sandwell to be a place where children’s voices are listened to and where children’s voices influence decisions that will impact them. Young people have ideas that can benefit the whole community and ensuring we listen to them will set us all up for a better future.”
Naomi Danquah, Child Friendly Cities and Communities Programme Director at UNICEF UK said: “When local decisions are made and services like health, education and policing are delivered in line with a child rights-based approach, whole cities and communities benefit. A Discovery Day is an important milestone for partners on the Child Friendly Cities & Communities programme. Sandwell has made a bold commitment to upholding the rights of every child and this event was part of making sure that children and young people’s voices are at the heart of making that a commitment a reality for all.”
About Child Friendly Cities & Communities
Child Friendly Cities & Communities is a UNICEF UK programme that works with councils to put children’s rights into practice.
The programme aims to create cities and communities in the UK where all children – whether they are living in care, using a children’s centre or simply visiting their local library – have a meaningful say in, and truly benefit from, the local decisions, services and spaces that shape their lives.
The programme is part of Child Friendly Cities – a global UNICEF initiative launched in 1996 that reaches close to 30 million children in over 40 countries.
In the UK, UNICEF provides training based on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and supports councils, their partners, and children and young people, as they work together on an ambitious three-to-five-year journey towards international recognition as a UNICEF Child Friendly City or Community.