The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is an international human rights treaty that recognises and protects the human rights of children. It was unanimously adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1989 and is the most widely ratified international human rights instrument. The Convention is separated into 54 articles; most give social,economic, cultural or civil and political rights to children and young people, whilst others set out how Governments must publicise or implement the Convention.
The UNCRC requires all state parties to report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child their progress against the convention. The convention can be viewed below:
The Committee for the Rights of the Child is a UN body of 18 independent experts on child rights from around the world. The Committee monitors implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child by its States parties. All countries are required to report every five years to the Committee on their work in the area of children’s rights. During the reporting cycle the Committee will hold constructive dialogue with each State so that it can make an accurate assessment of the child rights situation in that country. The reporting cycle ends with the Committee issuing a set of Concluding Observations. The Concluding Observations point out progress achieved, main areas of concern and recommendations to the State on how to fulfill its obligations and advance child rights.
The UN Committee considered the fifth periodic report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in May 2016. The Committee published its final set of Concluding Observation in July 2016.
The UK as State party has been invited by the Committee to submit its combined sixth and seventh periodic reports by 14 January 2022 and to include therein information on the follow-up to the present concluding observations.