Policy and Legislation Promoting the Involvement of children

Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child enshrines the right of the child to be heard in any judicial and administrative proceeding affecting the child, either directly, or through a representative or an appropriate body'.

The Children Act 1989 and The Children Act 2004 establish in law children's rights to participation in decisions regarding their care and require a local authority to ascertain the wishes of a child in need about the provision of suitable services and to give those wishes due consideration.

The Quality Protects Initiative (Department of Health 1998) provided for looked after children and their carers, to be more involved in decisions affecting them, and funding has been made available to provide advocacy to these circumstances.

The guidance issued under Working Together to Safeguard Children also emphasises the importance of involving children in decision making and acknowledged that children may need advocacy support to assist them in understanding and participating in child protection processes.

National Standards for the Provision of Children's Advocacy Services (Department of Health 2002) provided a framework for the planning, review and evaluation of advocacy services. The standards set out what children and young people should expect from professionals providing advocacy services. There are ten standards, including the role of children and young people in advocacy, the policy context, equal opportunities, confidentiality, publicity, accessibility, independence, complaints procedures and

The Adoption and Children Act 2002 places a duty on local authorities to provide advocacy services to looked after children, and ‘children in need’ (including disabled children)  who wish to make a complaint or a representation under the 1989 Children Act procedures.