Claire Osborne

Solicitor
Age of Criminal Responsibility (Scotland) Act 2019 - from 29th November under 12s can no longer be referred to Hearings on offence grounds

From 29th November 2019, children who commit an offence when aged under 12 will no longer be able to be referred to a Children’s Hearing on offence grounds. They can only be referred on care and protection grounds.
Clan Childlaw wins Pro-Bono Award at The Herald Law Awards of Scotland 2019

We are delighted to have won the Pro-Bono award sponsored by the Law Society of Scotland at The Herald Law Awards on Wednesday 27th November.
External evaluation summary

A summary of Iconic Consulting's organisation-wide evaluation of Clan Childlaw

Care Leavers' Rights

Although the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 introduced new care leavers' rights into law, many care leavers are not getting what they are entitled to and we have noticed many problems in the implementation of these rights and disparities between different local authority areas.
Review of Part 1 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and creation of a family justice modernisation strategy

Read our response to the Scottish Government's 2018 consultation on its Review of Part 1 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and creation of a family justice modernisation strategy
Impact of childhood offending behaviour later in life

The very different nature of childhood offending behaviour from adult offending should be better reflected in law. We are calling for changes to the current disclosure and PVG scheme to ensure the adverse implications for later life are minimised.
Equal protection against assault

Children and young people should enjoy the same legal protection against assault as adults. We support the proposed bill to end the defence of 'justifiable assault' in Scots law. The Children’s Rights Strategic Litigation Working Group on Equal Protection instructed the Opinion of Senior Counsel on the legality of Scots law on the physical punishment of children - read the legal opinion here
Right to privacy & the Named Person scheme

It is essential that children and young people's privacy rights are protected when professionals share information under the Named Person scheme. We intervened in the Supreme Court 'Named Person' case to put forward the children's rights perspective.
Access to justice & legal aid

Children and young people's rights can only be secured through proper access to justice. Access to legal aid must be independent and confidential.
Minimum age of criminal responsibility

The minimum age of criminal responsibility, currently 8 years old in Scotland, is to be raised to 12 under the Age of Criminal Responsibility (Scotland) Act 2019
Sibling contact

The law as it currently stands does not allow children and young people to easily address sibling separation and contact, especially care experienced children and young people. We are calling for the law to be changed to prioritise sibling relationships.

What we do
Law student essay competition

To mark our 10-year anniversary, we asked law students around Scotland: What is the biggest children’s rights issue in Scotland and how can the law be used to resolve it? Congratulations to winner Michael Malvenda!
Child law case summaries

Summaries of cases undertaken by Clan Childlaw.
Legal Training

Our specialist training ensures you have a good working knowledge of Scottish child law in action, providing essential understanding to help you achieve positive outcomes for your clients.
Alison Reid

Principal Solicitor and Chief Executive
Get legal help for a child or young person

Information for professionals, support, advocacy, and advice workers or foster carers seeking help with the law or a legal problem for a child or young person they are working with. You will find frequently asked questions, case studies and other information on this page.
Sibling contact

The law as it currently stands does not allow children and young people to easily address sibling separation and contact, especially care experienced children and young people. We are calling for the law to be changed to prioritise sibling relationships.
Clan at 10

Events & Fundraising marking our 10th anniversary
A-Z resource library

Comprehensive library of material relating to children and young people's rights. This is reference point for all legal questions and problems children and young people might have.
Brothers and sisters matter

Brothers and sisters who are looked after by a local authority or are experiencing family separation often need support to stay in contact. Clan Childlaw is working in different ways to help promote sibling contact.

Legal Training

Our specialist training ensures you have a good working knowledge of Scottish child law in action, providing essential understanding to help you achieve positive outcomes for your clients. Read more

What do we do? Podcasts on why Clan Childlaw was set up and the work we do

This year marks 10 years since Clan Childlaw was set up. In these two podcasts our Chief Executive and Principal Solicitor Alison Reid discusses our origins and the work we do. Read more

Launch of the Care Leavers' Law Service

On 18th June we welcomed nearly 100 colleagues from across the sector to the Lighthouse in Glasgow for an engagement and launch event for our new Care Leavers’ Law Service, a 5-year, Scotland-wide project funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation. Read more

UNCRC incorporation in Scotland - our consultation response

28th August 2019 - We are delighted the Scottish Government has committed to incorporating the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child into Scots law. Read our response to the public consultation. Read more