Summary

Today we publish our 2021/2022 Annual Report, covering a momentous year for children’s human rights in Scotland. We also have a report for younger people and an Easy Read version. 

Our report covers the period from April 2021 until the end of March 2022, which begins just as the country was emerging from the second Covid-19 lockdown. The pandemic continued to impact a range of children’s human rights, including rights to education, to health, to play, and to family life. We have, of course, also been busy with work unrelated to the pandemic. Children and young people’s views and experiences continue to be at the heart of our work.  

This year we have: 

• continued to push for incorporation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child 
• published our secure care investigation and worked to make sure children in conflict with the law have their rights respected 
•  travelled where restrictions have allowed, to meet children and young people in their own communities 
• supported children and young people to contribute to significant international work, such as recovery from the pandemic and COP-26 
• focused on our other strategic priorities of child poverty, mental health, and climate justice, and carried on our international work. 

There have been many other positive impacts on our promotion and safeguarding of children’s human rights.