Making Newham the best place for children and young people is at the heart of a new pioneering Commissioner’s Report, published by Newham Council.
The role of the Children and Young People’s Commissioner in Newham is the first of its kind and it was created to connect the voice of the child with policy makers, service delivery functions, Council services and the wider partnership. In doing so, the Commissioner acts as an advocate and ensures the views and interests of children are reflected when making decisions about them.
The Children and Young People Commissioner’s annual report sets out a child’s-rights-based approach taken by the Council. This means every decision made by the system should improve the lives of young people, which also includes making communications simpler and the narrative more accessible.
A child’s-rights approach allows for a continuous development and improvement towards achieving the best for young people in the borough. The annual report also outlines current progress and key ideas that support making the borough the best place for children and young people.
“Five Steps for the Best”, which are highlighted in the Report, give a comprehensive overview on how Newham uses national and local data, as well as insight and evidence to inform its approach. Anyone interested in using this knowledge and implementing some of these key innovative aspects can find detailed "recipes" at the end of the Report.
The bespoke steps include: Genuine participation, co-design and amplifying the voices of children, young people and families; A relentless focus on outcomes for young people; Strong and accountable local leadership; A culture of data, evidence and learning and last but not least, Families getting support as early as possible and at the point they need it.
Inevitably, such a reforming approach takes time to implement, especially given the challenges and increased need Covid-19 has brought in the borough. Despite these challenges, tangible progress has already been achieved throughout the year, and Newham will continue to relentlessly build on it.
Among other achievements so far, a ‘Journey of a Child’ web resource has been developed to give residents easy access to the support they need. The Young People’s Charter has also been launched, which is a major step towards holding all adults and our partners accountable for children and young people’s future and well-being.
Newham Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz OBE said: “Our young people are our future and it is imperative that we, as a council, keep doing our absolute best to make sure that these young people have the spaces and the opportunities to fulfil their true potential, which I have seen for myself, is limitless. We can only achieve this by working with, and listening to, what our young people, children and their parents say and their thoughts and ideas run through this report.”
Councillor Carleene Lee-Phakoe said: “Newham’s ambition is to place children and young people at the heart of everything we do and to achieve this the Report shares our journey, providing a roadmap to look at where we are and what we need to do. We are making good progress and we will continue to do all we can to make Newham the best place for children and young people, because they are 37% of our population and 100% of our future.”
Alongside the Report, Newham is launching a video version of Young People’s Charter which the Council’s Cabinet committed to at a meeting earlier this month. The Charter itself aims to improve young people’s lives by encouraging everyone in the borough to sign up to it.
To find out more and read the full report