Blog

This week The Adoption, Fostering and Kinship Care Association (AFKA) are hosting Adoption Week Scotland with a series of events throughout the country.  With the theme of the week being ‘Listening to and Supporting the Experience of Adoption in Scotland’, our Head of Legal Policy, Katy Nisbet, discusses how maintaining...

In this blog our head of Legal Policy, Katy Nisbet provides insight on Clan Childlaw’s perspective in relation to the recent publishing of the ‘Placing Children In Hotel Accomodation – A Human Rights Analysis Report’ by the office of the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland. A report published last Thursday,...

Our Head of Legal Policy, Katy Nisbet reflects on the publication of the Making Human Rights Justice report including 13 call to actions, the barriers to rights enforcement and potential opportunities through the UNCRC Implementation Bill. Today sees the publication of an important report into Making Human Rights Justice a...

Following the launch of our Rights In Justice project in April 2023, Project Manager Claire Lightowler reflects on the developments and discoveries since then.  It’s been four months since we launched the Rights in Justice project – to improve legal support for children and young people in conflict with the...

If we are to achieve the fundamental system change required by The Promise and ensure that rights are always respected, then lawyers and legal services for children and young people need to change too.

Dr Claire Lightowler shares emerging findings and insights from her work on a scoping study to better understand the legal needs of children and young people in conflict with the law.

Legal Policy Manager Katy Nisbet writes about the importance of the right to Continuing Care and considers Clan Childlaw's role in helping children to access their rights.

Our new Legal Policy Manager Katy Nisbet reflects on why the recent BBC documentary ‘Split Up In Care - Life Without Siblings’ resonated so deeply with her as she settles into her new role at Clan Childlaw.

Together with CELCIS (the Centre for Excellence for Children’s Care and Protection) and the Care Inspectorate, we have written a Practice Note to help explain the rights of looked after young people to stay put in positive care placements after they leave care

Our Legal Policy Manager Janet Cormack explains what has happened so far with UNCRC in Scotland and what could happen next.

It seems inevitable that a significant number of children and young people will find themselves without legal settled status when the deadline passes on 30 June. They will find themselves ineligible for housing benefits with no right to work, study and live in the UK.

New laws mean it’s much less likely someone with childhood convictions will have these disclosed when applying for jobs, courses, or volunteer work

The Children (Scotland) Act 2020 improves legal protection for children's right to be heard in courts and children's hearings and their right to a family life with their brothers and sisters - this blog explains the changes it will make

New laws have been put in place for children’s hearings and for looked after children during Covid-19. This blog explains what it means.

Justice First Fellow and Clan Childlaw trainee Louise Herd blogs about the first three months of her social welfare traineeship

Rebecca Scott, Managing Solicitor at Clan, discusses changes proposed in the Children (Scotland) Bill that would place a duty on courts to ensure decisions are explained to children - and argues it should be judges themselves who speak or write to children

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.

Ahead of welcoming another Justice First Fellowship trainee at Clan Childlaw, we take the opportunity to ask our solicitor, Jenna, about her experience as Justice First Fellow.

The Scottish Government published the Children (Scotland) Bill on 2nd September to amend the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and other legislation concerning children, and alongside it a Family Justice Modernisation Strategy - here's a quick overview

Street Legal's Project Co-ordinator, Rachel Farrier, reflects upon the work of the project and its future expansion.

Clan Childlaw's client's case is one of two Scottish appeals involving the rights of siblings in the Children’s Hearings System to be heard by the UK Supreme Court later this year.

Bill to be published later this year.

The Scottish Government is asking the public how the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child should be incorporated into the law in Scotland. Have your say before 14th August.

Michael Malvenda, who recently completed his LLB at Edinburgh University, spent a week in May on work experience with us after winning our Children's Rights essay competition, organised as part of our 10-year anniversary celebrations. He writes here about his experience.