Children’s Rights in Brief #1 – The UN Convention on the Right 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 the first 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). 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. Having ratified the UNCRC in 1992, Ireland is obliged to respect, protect and fulfil the rights of children contained in the UNCRC for all children in Ireland.

2. Children’s rights are fundamental entitlements and freedoms that children have because they are children. Children’s rights are universal, inalienable, indivisible and interdependent.

3. Broad measures that need to be pursued to implement children’s rights in practice include: legislation, national strategy, coordination, monitoring and assessment, data collection, adequate resourcing, and awareness raising and training.