Child protection agencies ‘need to have an overseer’

The draft National Children’s Policy missed the opportunity for holistic policy development by failing to embrace proposals in the draft National Curriculum Framework, according to the Church’s environment commission.

Instead of building on the NCF’s recommendations, the children’s policy, possibly unknowingly, repeated suggestions that had already been addressed in the NCF draft.

“It would have been more useful if the current document commented on whether its recommendations were adequately addressed by the NCF and what else remained to be done,” the commission said.

It sees childhood as falling within its scope as a sustainable society “implies the development of a holistic perspective and approach that merges environmental, social and economic concerns...”

The commission also called for an administrator of child protection agencies to be set up, as the draft clearly highlighted ambiguities in this area.

The commission said there had been cases of children who may not have been offered the protection they needed from the very agencies who should have been protecting them such as experiences of children engrossed in parental custody battles. It therefore proposed setting up an overseer of these agencies who assured “true protection” and to whom cases of abuse of power could be reported and investigated.

Apart from legal issues, the policy draft recommendations included the introduction of family-friendly measures that allow parents to spend time with children and ensuring they were provided with adequate space to play.

The commission pointed out that the document should include key policy actions ensuring adequate access to out-of-class activities during formal education. Research had shown that learning and playing outdoors was crucial for the sound physical, emotional and educational development of children. However, the document seemed to highlight just the play aspect of the outdoors.

The commission said the environment and surrounding community were a great resource that provided children not just with an opportunity for play but also with a myriad of learning experiences.

The commission commended the stance taken by the draft which valued children for who they were rather than what they would become.

The children’s policy draft is based on 10 main principles that include ensuring children’s best interests, well-being, inclusion, accessibility, protection and sustainability. However, the commission said the document had to present a “truly holistic view” about sustai-nable development.

The document also aimed to adopt a holistic approach to promoting the development of child programmes. “Adults working in this sector are to be accountable for what is transmitted through their means of information,” the commission said.

While acknowledging the presence of examples of good practice, it noted that a large number of children’s programmes left a lot to be desired.

It said the content was usually dictated by sponsors who, more often than not, gave conflicting messages about healthy nutrition, consumer education and environmental responsibility.

The commission believed there was an underlying stance that society had to adopt before clear policies concerning prevention of child abuse were implemented.

“Society needs to clearly decide what it really values and what it is willing to forfeit to safeguard its most prized possession – the child.”