2134/18196
Emily R. Munro
Emily R.
Munro
John Pinkerton
John
Pinkerton
Philip Mendes
Philip
Mendes
Georgia Hyde-Dryden
Georgia
Hyde-Dryden
Maria Herczog
Maria
Herczog
Rami Benbenishty
Rami
Benbenishty
The contribution of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child to understanding and promoting the interests of young people making the transition from care to adulthood
Loughborough University
2015
Children's rights
UNCRC
Care leavers
Transitions from care to adulthood
Comparative child welfare
2015-07-09 10:20:15
Journal contribution
https://repository.lboro.ac.uk/articles/journal_contribution/The_contribution_of_the_United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Rights_of_the_Child_to_understanding_and_promoting_the_interests_of_young_people_making_the_transition_from_care_to_adulthood/9580409
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) acknowledges that young people without
parental care are entitled to special support and assistance from the State. In detailing their expectations, the
UN Committee have issued Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children which recognise that State parties
have a number of responsibilities towards care leavers. The paper explores how the UNCRC reporting process,
and guidelines from the Committee outlining how States should promote the rights of young people making
the transition from care to adulthood, can be used as an instrument to track global patterns of change in policy
and practice. Content analysis of State Party Reports and Concluding Observations from 15 countries reveals
that to date there has been limited engagement with understanding and promoting the needs of this
group in the reporting process; although where a government is committed to developing legislation and
practice then this does find its way into their national reports. Data supplied by affiliates of the International
Research Network on Transitions to Adulthood from Care (INTRAC) reveals that national concerns, political
ideology, public awareness, attitudes and knowledge of the vulnerability of care leavers influence service responses
to protect and promote the rights of this group and the attention afforded to such issues in reports to
the Committee. Findings also suggest that global governance is not simply a matter of top down influence.
Future work on both promoting and monitoring of the impact of the UNCRC needs to recognise that what
is in play is the management of a complex global/national dynamic with all its uneven development, levels
of influence and with a range of institutional actors involved.