Children's Rights in Scotland: using the law and human rights to advance policy

This project, supported by the Baring Foundation, the Legal Education Foundation and the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, which seeks to highlight the benefits of using the law, legal processes and human rights to progress policy issues to tackle discrimination and disadvantage in relation to children in Scotland. It brings together voluntary sector organisations, lawyers and other professionals working in the field of children’s rights to identify ways to use the law more effectively to achieve policy aims.

As part of this project, we coordinate a Children's Rights Strategic Litigation Group which meets periodically as a forum for knowledge exchange and collaboration on using the law to further children's rights in Scotland. If you would like to know more or join the group, please contact our Legal Policy Coordinator, Janet Cormack, at [email protected].

Our aims   The third sector in Scotland increasingly uses the law to further CYP rights and tackle disadvantage and discrimination   Policy work in the third sector is embedded in human rights  Active use of the law and human rights forms part of influencers’ policy toolbox  Organisations learn from each other’s experience of using the law  Lawyers and third sector organisations work together to realise CYP rights  Our method  Connect organisations and professionals with legal and human rights expertise and those with an interest in learning more about or exchanging experience of using the law and human rights to further CYP rights by coordinating the Children’s Rights Strategic Litigation Group   Facilitate working groups for cross-sectoral collaboration to progress particular policy areas  Share learning about realising CYP rights through use of the law and human rights, including by: Identifying rights violations  Alerting the Children & Young People’s Commissioner Scotland, the Scottish Human Rights Commission or the Equality and Human Rights Commission to the rights issue  Intervening in a case as a third party in the public interest, in Scottish courts, the UK Supreme Court or the European Court of Human Rights  Embedding policy work in rights arguments and holding decision-makers to account by invoking their human rights obligations    Identifying potential test cases     Providing a witness statement or other evidence for one party or for interveners in a case  Seeking legal opinions on legal remedies    Taking legal action – or joint legal action with others - to hold authorities to account, e.g. judicial review     Funding an individual or another organisation to take legal action  Developing research to support claims & gathering evidence to lay groundwork for legal challenge  Referring a case to the Equality and Human Rights Commission which may be able to use its legal powers to provide legal assistance, intervene or institute proceedings  Supporting a victim engaged in legal action

In October 2016 we organised a Roundtable on Children’s Rights in Scotland: using the law and human rights to advance policy. The event brought together around 60 representatives of voluntary organisations, lawyers and other professionals working in children’s rights. The speakers' presentations and other conference materials and resources on strategic litigation can be found here.