The Children’s Law Centre has said that the announcement of a social media ban for under 16s risks increasing, not reducing, online harm. While concerns about safety are real, blanket bans ignore the root causes of harm, potentially push children into less regulated spaces and make them less likely to seek support.
Emma Murray, Policy and Public Affairs Officer at the Children’s Law Centre said: “The UK Government has also failed to meaningfully engage with children and young people ahead of this announcement. The views of children and young people must not be ignored when making a decision that affects their lives. Throughout our engagement with children and young people, including our youth panel Youth@CLC, young people have clearly stated that the onus should be placed on platforms to protect children and young people, rather than using the blunt tool of a blanket ban.
“A blanket ban does not reflect the complexity of children and young people’s online lives. The digital world is both a vital space for creativity, learning, identity and connection, while also being marked by inequality and risk. Ignoring this dual reality ignores children’s lived experiences.
“Participation and protection are not competing priorities. Approaches grounded in safety by design, platform accountability and co-design with children and young people can deliver both.
“CLC envisions an online world where children are not excluded or restricted. The UK Government should therefore seek to ensure that children are able to participate in the digital world safely, confidently, and with the complete range of their rights fully realised.”
Children’s Law Centre Presents to the Education Committee on Proposed SEND Regulations
The Children’s Law Centre (CLC) has submitted detailed evidence to the Northern Ireland Assembly’s Education Committee on the proposed Education (Special Educational Needs) Regulations (NI) 2026.
While recognising the need for reform and acknowledging years of engagement between stakeholders and the Department of Education, CLC warns that the current proposals risk weakening protections for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) if significant concerns are not addressed before the regulations proceed.
CLC’s submission concludes that the information provided to the Committee is currently “not sufficiently accurate” and “incomplete”, and that there is a strong possibility of unintended consequences for children and young people.
CLC’s submission warns that parts of the proposed SEND framework could unintentionally weaken existing legal protections for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
A major concern relates to proposed changes to the format and content of Statements of SEN. CLC argues that amendments to how special educational provision is recorded could reduce the level of specificity in statements, weaken health provision within statements and make support less clearly defined and potentially harder to enforce in practice.
Parental Voices Being Removed
CLC also raises serious concerns about the proposed removal of parental “advice” from the statutory assessment process. Whilst parents will still be able to provide evidence, the submission argues that parental advice is often essential in ensuring a child’s needs are fully understood and accurately reflected within statements of SEN.
Reducing the formal role of parental advice risks weakening the quality of assessments and provision planning, while also diminishing the voice of families within the SEND process. CLC notes that the High Court has previously warned against the dangers of devaluing parental evidence in SEN decision making.
Weakening and Delay of Support to Children
The submission warns that the current trajectory of the wider transformation changes may conflict with the clear intention of the Northern Ireland Assembly when passing the SEND Act (NI) 2016, which sought to strengthen co-operation between education and health services and improve the specification of provision for children with SEND. It also fails to address significant criticisms in numerous reports, including operational failings around early identification, intervention and assessment, with heavily bureaucratic systems creating barriers when accessing support.
The Risk of Judicial Review
CLC raises concerns that some elements of the revised Regulations and Code of Practice may unintentionally undermine rights and protections contained within primary legislation, including the Education (NI) Order 1996 and the SEND Act (NI) 2016. Regulations cannot lawfully frustrate the purpose or intention of legislation passed by the Assembly and notes that failures in this regard could leave aspects of the framework vulnerable to Judicial Review.
Concerns over implementation
CLC also questions whether the education system is in a position to implement such extensive reform by September 2026, particularly given ongoing workforce pressures, existing delays within the SEND system and concerns raised by trade unions and sector organisations.
The submission states that introducing the revised framework in its current form could “increase bureaucracy and undermine existing legal rights and legal thresholds”.
Additional concerns raised include:
Outdated impact assessments which do not reflect current pressures on schools and services.
That professional recommendations are being restricted which conflicts with the professional duty of care.
Concerns that responsibility for SEND provision may disproportionately shift from the Education Authority onto schools.
Recognition of positive engagement
Alongside its concerns, CLC acknowledges that the Department of Education has accepted and implemented several recommendations made during previous consultations. These include changes designed to strengthen access to justice and improve safeguards for young people.
Call for Further Scrutiny
The submission further highlights concerns that aspects of the revised SEND framework are already being introduced operationally, including through the Education Authority’s Graduated Response Framework and related processes, before the Regulations and revised Code of Practice have completed Assembly scrutiny and approval processes.
CLC argues this risks pre-empting democratic scrutiny and creating confusion across the education sector, particularly given the scale and complexity of the proposed changes.
CLC is urging the Education Committee to carefully scrutinise the proposals before they are laid before the Assembly. It further states that it is not possible to scrutinise such a high volume of documentation properly within a short time period and the Committee should consider recommending that the Department pause or withdraw the regulations until further work is completed.
The full submission outlines detailed legal and operational concerns across the proposed regulations and revised Code of Practice, focusing on ensuring that reforms strengthen, rather than weaken, children’s rights and access to support.
CLC remains committed to working collaboratively with the Department and Education Authority to ensure reforms genuinely improve outcomes for children and young people with SEND.
Children’s Law Centre calls for halt on “potentially damaging” revised SEND framework
Legal experts criticise approach that risks undermining strong legal safeguards for children and young people
Serious concern raised at “break with due process” and lack of transparency
The Children’s Law Centre has published an open letter, raising alarm around significant and potentially damaging changes to the system that provides support to children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). The open letter, published on Wednesday 22nd April and endorsed by 14 other organisations – including unions – states that the new direction undermines decades of work with expert stakeholders, fails to address the issues around capacity and resources and places increased pressure on schools. This is despite repeated critical reports highlighting failures within the Education Authority, which will not be properly addressed.
Specialist SEND Legal Adviser at the Children’s Law Centre, Rachel Hogan, BL said: “The Children’s Law Centre is seriously concerned that the current reform to the support for children with special educational needs and disabilities is repeating the failures of the past. Rather than address the issues that have been well researched and articulated over past decades, the proposed reforms run the risk of undermining the legal framework that supports children, compounding the current failures.
“The Children’s Law Centre and others have committed many years of work to the Education Authority and the Department of Education to ensure the SEND system provides the proper support for children and young people. However, this sudden change of direction has abandoned that work and risks rushing through reforms that potentially make the situation worse, with very little scrutiny.
“These changes do not reflect what has been recommended in numerous reports and by expert stakeholders, including the Children’s Law Centre, other specialist organisations, teaching professionals and parents. They seek to shift the responsibility to schools and water down children’s individual rights. The implementation of the revised SEND framework must now stop”.
The Children’s Law Centre (CLC) is seeking passionate, committed individuals to join our Board of Trustees and help shape the next phase of our organisation’s development.
This is an exciting time to join us. We are currently developing our new strategic plan and in 2027, CLC will mark 30 years of championing children’s rights in Northern Ireland. We are looking for people who share our vision of a society where all children and young people have their rights respected, protected, and fulfilled.
The Children’s Law Centre (CLC) has presented evidence to the NI Assembly Committee for Communities as part of its scrutiny of the implementation of the Children’s Services Co‑operation Act (Northern Ireland) 2015 (CSCA).
During the session, CLC outlined the significant gap between the promise of the CSCA and the practical reality experienced by children and young people a decade after the legislation was enacted. While there has been some progress, including the adoption of a children and young people’s strategy and examples of effective joint working, CLC maintains that these developments are not yet embedded as a consistent, system‑wide approach to improving well‑being.
CLC’s Written Evidence Highlights Several Key Issues:
Reports on the operation of the Act show that cross‑departmental co‑operation is still often ad hoc, reactive and not clearly driven by the statutory duty set out in the CSCA.
Insufficient measurement of impact on children’s well‑being
Despite the intent of the Act, government has yet to demonstrate, through data, shared metrics or transparent reporting, how children’s well‑being has tangibly improved. The system remains stronger on describing activity than evidencing outcomes.
Barriers to pooling resources and aligning systems
Departments remain unclear or hesitant about the CSCA’s enabling powers and opportunities for deeper collaboration are being missed. Guidance exists, but it is under used in practice.
Need for meaningful engagement with children and young people
Comments from young people reinforce that children do not feel genuinely involved in shaping decisions that affect them. Participation remains inconsistent and often tokenistic.
What’s Next for the Children’s Services Co-operation Act?
The second decade of the CSCA must focus on implementation, measurement and accountability, with a renewed commitment to co‑operation rooted in children’s rights. This includes:
Establishing shared indicators of well‑being
Transparent data collection
Stable long‑term planning
Co‑designing improvements with children and families.
CLC will continue to work with decision makers, duty bearers and young people to ensure the Act reaches its full potential as a system wide driver for improving the lives of all children and young people in Northern Ireland.
This includes requiring each country, every five years or so, to make a report on their progress to an international committee of experts on children’s rights (this is called: ‘The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child’). This Committee will then visit those countries to check if they are doing what they should be for children and let them know where they need to improve.
People should think about ways to make sure everyone knows about the Convention, regardless of their age. There should be training around how to do this, especially for those who work with children and young people.
Countries are free to give children and young people more rights than the Convention lists; they just can’t take away the rights that are given by it.
the government should always try to make sure that your rights:
are realised in practice
actively help you to live a safer and happier life
It also means that the government should take steps so that you and the adults who work with children and young people all know about the UNCRC.
The age of criminal responsibility in Northern Ireland is 10, however the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child say that this is too low and have asked our government to raise the age of criminal responsibility to at least 14 years old.
The government must do all that they can to protect you and look for your family so they can reunite you. If your family cannot be found, the government must provide you with the same support and protection as any other child that has been separated from their family.
This includes being taken from where you live against your will and forced to live somewhere else.
It is your right to learn and practice your language, customs and religion. The government must do all that they can to support you and make sure you do not face unfair treatment or discrimination as a result of this.
Our government should make sure you can participate in fun activities you like e.g. places to meet and socialise with friends, sports, youth clubs and cinemas. You should also have opportunities to enjoy cultural life and customs for instance taking part in special events and activities.
The government should;
Make sure primary education is compulsory and free
Develop different types of secondary education, for example vocational training, and offer accessible guidance to all young people on their options
Offer financial support for young people who cannot afford further education
Work to reduce dropout rates from school
Make sure all school disciplines are appropriate, for example teachers should not use violence or harm children or young people
Your education should:
Respect human rights and freedoms
Respect the environment
Respect your family, identity, language, your values and the values of communities different than your own
Prepare you for life when you leave school for example understanding, peace, tolerance, equality and friendship with people of all backgrounds
The government should help your parents/guardians to provide for you. This includes supporting you, or a parent/guardian on your behalf, to make a claim for social security benefits, offering support and training, clothing, food and housing.
This support and training should also include teaching you about the effects of drug use and the government should protect you from any harm you might suffer if your parents/guardians are using drugs.
You have the right to clean water and nutritious food so that you can stay healthy. You should also be taught about nutrition, hygiene and how to keep yourself safe.
The government should make sure you have access to education, training, health care services, rehabilitation service, preparation for employment and recreation opportunities necessary for your development, especially if you have a disability.
The government should do as much as they can to make sure you grow up happy, healthy and safe.
This includes providing you with child-care or other arrangements if your parents/guardians are working.
If you are living in conflict, it may be in your best interests to place you in a different country.
Your other rights must still be met, for example keeping in contact with your parents where it is safe to do so.
Some examples of being in the care of the government are when you are living in;
care homes
foster care
hospitals
residential schools
boarding schools
prisons
detention centres
rehabilitation centres
If it has been decided that the best option for you is alternative care (e.g. foster care, a children’s home or being adopted),
there should be independent checks to make sure that your rights are respected.
You have the right to keep in contact with your family if they are living in a different country, and to leave your country to live with your family, where possible.
Applications to reunite a family involving children can be made by children who are outside the UK,
to join their parent(s) with leave to remain in the UK, subject to meeting requirements set out in the Immigration Rules.
Being kidnapped also includes being taken from where you live against your will and forced to live somewhere else, e.g. being sent to a different country against your will.
The government must understand that your parents and family are important people in your life.
The government must also see that, generally, as you get older and more mature you should have even more say in these types of decisions.
For example;
If your parent is in prison you have a right to visit them if you want to, so long as this is in your best interests.
If you are in care, your parents may still be involved in decisions affecting your life. They should be helped to do this in a way that respects your rights and is in your best interests.
This includes help for survivors of:
violence
sexual violence
neglect
exploitation of any kind
abuse
torture
armed conflict
trafficking
This also applies to young people who are suspected of having breached immigration laws, such as asylum seekers and refugees.
You should be protected from anyone doing anything to your body that you do not want them to do, this includes physical punishment in school or for someone to touch you, to take inappropriate pictures of you, or to use images of you in a negative or inappropriate way.
Some types of harm include physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect, maltreatment or exploitation. There are also traditional practices in some cultures which can cause harm to children, such as forced marriage, food restrictions, scarring/branding and other body modifications.
The government must help to make sure that people are never violent or harmful towards you and they should take steps to prevent you from harming yourself in any way.
You are free to join a peaceful protest about issues you feel strongly about e.g. climate change and your privacy should be respected when doing this, but you don’t have a right to meet others for unlawful purposes e.g. to cause harm to other people.
Some young people living in places like residential homes, juvenile justice centres or hospitals, may find it difficult to have their own space. Regardless of where you are living, you have a right to privacy.
Everyone should have access to the media and the internet, including young people whose freedoms are limited e.g. those in the Juvenile Justice Centre. Young people with a disability or where English is not their first language should get the help they need to access the media. You should be protected from harmful media for example material that shows graphic violence.
You can express yourself in different ways such as talking out loud or posting things on the internet. Your parents/guardians can guide you in this but as you get older and more mature, your ability to hold beliefs that are different from others must be respected.
For example, if your religion/beliefs are different from other students at your school, your teachers should make sure you have the chance to practice your religion and customs during school hours, if you want to. You should be able to follow your own beliefs as long as these beliefs respect and don’t cause harm to others e.g. you don’t have the right to reveal private information or say harmful things about a person that are not true.
Your identity is made up of many different parts, including:
Your name and nationality
Your race, culture, religion and language
Your appearance, abilities, gender identity and sexual orientation
The government should not interfere with your right to any of these and they should be able to help if any of these things are taken away from you.
For example;
Children in care – This means that your name should not be changed, unless you want it to be.
Stateless children – being stateless can affect whether you can go to school or to the hospital. The government should not have any laws that discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, race, religion or gender to cause statelessness.
If you are in care you have a right to have a say in where you are going to live. If you are in a hospital you have a right to have a say when there are different treatment options available to you. As you get older and more mature you should have even more say in these types of decisions.
The government should do as much as they can to make sure you grow up happy, healthy and safe.
This means all adults, like your parents/guardians, teachers, social workers, doctors and the police. When adults make decisions that will affect your life they must always think about what’s best for you and make sure you have a say in these decisions, where possible.
Discrimination can be direct or indirect. For example;
Direct: If someone did not get a job because they had a disability or a different skin colour.
Indirect: If everyone had to climb up a flight of stairs to get to an after-school club, this would discriminate against children who couldn’t do that because of a physical disability.
Youth Participation and Advocacy
Youth Participation and Advocacy Project
The work of the Children’s Law Centre is guided and informed by the views of children and young people, particularly youth@CLC, our youth advisory panel.
Youth@CLC work closely with our Youth Participation and Advocacy Worker and other youth forums/young people in schools to raise awareness of children’s rights issues in Northern Ireland and advocate for positive change in children’s lives using children’s rights.
Youth@CLC inform our work and government policy affecting children through:
Participation in consultation responses
Running children’s rights projects and campaigns
Policy Work
Policy Work in CLC
CLC’s policy work ensures that where proposed governmental policies or legislation will impact on children and young people, government is reminded of its obligations to deliver on children’s rights as it is set out in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Some of the policy work we do includes:
Making consultation responses
Providing policy briefings to decision makers, partner organisations, children and young people and the general public
Delivering policy training
Making written and oral submissions to NI Assembly Committees
Carrying out consultations with children and young people and representing the views of children and young people to government
Legal Services
Our values
Our legal services are child focussed and the child is always our client.
We ensure that public authorities, tribunals and courts recognise children as rights holders with the right to express their views and have those views taken into account.
We strive to ensure that when decisions are being made that impact on the lives of children we represent…
The voice of the child is always heard ,
The child’s best interests are at the heart of decision-making
All children have equality of access to their legal rights, regardless of their age, background or circumstances
Chalky – Free phone Advice Line 0808 808 5678…(phone and email icon and address)
Our CHALKY legal advice and information service was launched in May 2000. We provide a free child friendly legal advice and information service, which deals with over 2000 issues annually. Our service provides free advice by phone or email to children and young people, their parents/carers and professionals with legal queries relating to difficulties in school, access to services for disabled children, special educational needs, mental health service provision, homelessness, family law issues and other general legal queries.
We can provide advice on children’s rights relating to the following areas:
Family Law
Being Looked After
Youth Justice
Mental Health Law
Access to Medical Services
Access to Family Support Services
School Admissions
Suspensions and Expulsions
Special Educational Needs
Social Security Benefits
Employment
Leaving home
The Human Rights Act
Equality and Discrimination
Housing
Immigration
Do you know you Rights series link here
Free Legal Representation for Children and Young People
We also provide free legal representation, particularly at SENDIST and Mental Health Review Tribunals and undertake strategic litigation following the criteria contained within our Casework Policy.(link to)
Some stats here
New Digital Information and Advice Service for Children and Young People only (under 18)– Live Now!
Ree Rights Responder and Live Chat
Young people (aged 13 – 17) who would prefer to access information on their rights online can access our Children’s Rights chatbot REE- Rights Responder, which also offers a connection to an online legal advisor through REE live Chat for those young people who may need additional information and advice on their rights. See Ask an Expert in Youth Section for more information on REE.
Training
Training
Due to the current Covid 19 Public Health Emergency all CLC’s face to face Training Calendar Events are postponed until further notice. We are hoping to offer online training seminars in the near future. Dates for online events and booking details will be posted to this page in due course…
The provision of training and information events are integral to the work of the Children’s Law Centre. All training delivered by CLC is directly informed by legal, policy and legislative developments relevant to children and young people and is underpinned by the key principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, ratified by the UK Government in 1991:
Article 2 – Non discrimination
Article 3 – Best Interests of the Child
Article 12 – Voice of the Child
CLC training aims to support all stakeholders in making children’s rights a reality in this jurisdiction by:
Raising awareness and understanding of children’s rights
Promoting the protection and mainstreaming of children’s rights
Links to online booking feature for future use?
Children’s Law Centre Service during Covid-19 Health crisis
We are not receiving post at present, all communication to be sent by email.
As a result of the current health crisis, and in accordance with government advice, all Children’s Law Centre staff are now working from home. We will continue to deliver services to the best of our ability and within ongoing restrictions.
What about Children’s Human Rights during the COVID-19 Pandemic?
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child recently set out that “…restrictions must be imposed only when necessary, be proportionate and kept to an absolute minimum” and that “States should respect the right of every child to non-discrimination in its measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic as well as take targeted measures to protect children in vulnerable situations…States should ensure that responses to the pandemic, including restrictions and decisions on allocation of resources, reflect the principle of the best interests of the child.”
For answers to your legal FAQs on how COVID-19 impacts on children’s rights click here>>>
Brief note on children and the Mental Capacity Act (NI) 2016 and temporary changes to Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards during COVID-19 emergency, click here>>>
If you are concerned about how COVID-19 may impact on children’s enjoyment of their legal rights and you require further legal advice please email: info@childrenslawcentre.org
You may contact individual Children’s Law Centre staff via email. Please initially contact Sarah McAuley on reception@childrenslawcentre.org
If you have already been in contact with a member of staff please contact the relevant member of staff directly.
Email addresses for Children’s Law Centre staff are below:
reception@childrenslawcentre.org
sarahmcauley@childrenslawcentre.org
barbaramuldoon@childrenslawcentre.org
catherine@childrenslawcentre.org
claire@childrenslawcentre.org
dianehammond@childrenslawcentre.org
eamonnmcnally@childrenslawcentre.org
samnelson@childrenslawcentre.org
emmaroseduffy@childrenslawcentre.org
helenrafferty@childrenslawcentre.org
kathrynstevenson@childrenslawcentre.org
liammackle@childrenslawcentre.org
mariamccloskey@childrenslawcentre.org
paddykelly@childrenslawcentre.org
rachelhogan@childrenslawcentre.org
Sinead@childrenslawcentre.org
If you wish to contact our legal advice service you may continue to do so by emailing: info@childrenslawcentre.org
Please note that CHALKY our Free Phone Advice Line has been suspended until further notice.
We will continue to monitor government advice and hope to be able to return to a full service as soon as it is safe to do so.
Please stay safe and well.
Children’s Law Centre Management Committee and Staff
