Children’s Rights in Brief #3 – Respect for the Views of the Child

The Ombudsman for Children’s Office (OCO) is an independent statutory body, which was established in 2004 under the Ombudsman for Children Act 2002 (2002 Act). Under the 2002 Act, as amended, the OCO has two core statutory functions:

• to promote the rights and welfare of children up to 18 years of age; and
• to examine and investigate complaints made by or for children about the administrative actions of public bodies, schools and voluntary hospitals that have, or may have, adversely affected a child.

This briefing is third in a series that the OCO is producing to raise awareness of children’s rights under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).1 We are creating this series in line with our duties:

• to encourage public bodies to develop policies, practices and procedures designed to promote the rights and welfare of children (section 7(1)(b) of the 2002 Act); and
• to collect and disseminate information on matters relating to children’s rights and welfare (section 7(1)(c) of the 2002 Act).

Three Takeaways

1. Every child has the right to express their views freely in all matters affecting them and to have due weight given to their views, in accordance with their age and maturity.

2. Exercising the right to express their views is a choice for children. It is not an obligation for the child or children impacted by a decision to express their views if they do not wish to do so.

3. Children’s right to express their views is not limited by their age. States parties should ensure that all children, regardless of their age, have the opportunity to express their views in several ways and should not be limited to verbal communication.