Forces Children Scotland has been working with service children across the country to focus on what the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) means to them and how they feel their rights, which are related to being a service child, can be understood by those outside the military community.
As a result service children in Scotland have created their own Children’s Rights Charter to help others understand how their unique experiences and challenges should be considered when discussions about the military take place.
Due to be launched during MotMC in April at a special event in Edinburgh, service children will be hosting a round table discussion to ensure that there is a better awareness of their needs, as well as giving them an opportunity to ask those working with them what they will do to better support them as a group in the future.
When asked why it was important for the children to create the charter themselves rather than having one made that reflects the thoughts of service children, Meg Thomas at Forces Children Scotland said: “This piece of work is representative of the service child voice across Scotland and the end result is a charter decided by them. It needs to be their charter for their rights.”
More information about the work of FCS and the launch of their Children’s Rights Charter can be found at forceschildrenscotland.org.uk