Realising children's rights in an ACE-aware nation

Abstract

An established body of multi-disciplinary evidence demonstrates that children and young people's lived experiences and spheres of influence are fundamental to their wellbeing and realisation of rights, with adversity suggested to have significant and long-term consequences. For the past two decades the Scottish Government has responded with a sustained strategic commitment to children and preventive policy measures. Only recently have Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) assumed a prominent role in this context. A corresponding policy development in Scotland has been on children's rights, with significant steps taken towards implementing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). This has involved a focus on incorporation, with the tag line ‘making rights real’. By analysing key literature and policy documents, this article considers the extent and shape of the interconnections between these policy areas. Informed by Carol Bacchi's problem representation framework, we identify evidence of conceptual pairing. However, deep engagement in children's rights appears to be lacking, as is children and young people's active role in national ACE-policy review and development.

Considering social justice: Lived experiences of education students during the first course year

“…It highlights the importance of ensuring that every child achieves the highest standards in literacy and numeracy and that ‘every child has the same opportunity to succeed’ (Scottish Government, 2019). This integrated approach positions children at the centre, emphasising parental involvement and interagency working to identify children at risk and support children and young people dealing with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) (Davidson and Wright, 2020). Furthermore, the recent Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated poverty for many families.…”

Problem-solving for problem-solving: Data analytics to identify families for service intervention

“…These problematisations become the bread and butter of local government, charities, advocacy organisations and indeed researchers seeking to establish credibility for their field. Again, relevant to our focus here, the formulation of ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) is a good example of problematisation, establishing the existence of a measurable problem consisting of categorically identified items of experience in childhood, around which an industry of fixing interventions has been built (White et al, 2019; Davidson and Wright, 2020).…”