Coronavirus (COVID-19): re-opening childcare - impact assessment

Chapter 1 : How children's rights and wellbeing have been affected

Children and young people (Children's Rights and Wellbeing Assessment)

What aspects of the policy/measure will affect children and young people up to the age of 18?^[17]

All elements of these decisions have affected children in Scotland who attend registered childcare.

These children are generally between the ages of 0 and 12 years of age.

What likely impact – direct or indirect – will the policy/measure have on children and young people?^[18]

All elements of these decisions have had a direct impact on all children in Scotland who attend registered childcare. These impacts are further set out below in the section 'What impact have the decisions had on children's rights?'

Which groups of children and young people will be affected?^[19]

All children in Scotland who attend registered childcare have been affected by childcare closures. Some of the children who accessed critical childcare may never have accessed registered childcare before. This means, a broad profile of children will have been affected

Particular consideration will be given to children who will have experienced a disproportionate impact from closure, accessing critical childcare and re-opening. This includes children:

• with additional support needs who may have access to resources and experiences in childcare that are not available at home;
• at an increased risk of harm through domestic violence, neglect and poor mental health and wellbeing, where childcare provides safety, consistency and access to wider support/interventions.
• in poverty, where childcare provides access to experiences and necessities that are not (readily) available at home.

Which UNCRC Articles are relevant to the policy/measure?

All UNCRC rights are underpinned by the four general principles: non-discrimination; the best interests of the child; the right to life, survival and development; and the child's right to have their views given due weight.

The following are the key Articles of most relevance to the decisions we are considering in this document:

Article 2

Non-discrimination

Children should not be discriminated against in the enjoyment of their rights. No child should be discriminated against because of the situation or status of their parent/carer(s).

Article 3

Best interests of the child

Every decision and action taken relating to a child must be in their best interests. Governments must take all appropriate legislative and administrative measures to ensure that children have the protection and care necessary for their wellbeing - and that the institutions, services and facilities responsible for their care and protection conform with established standards.

Article 6

Life, survival and development

Every child has a right to life and to develop to their full potential.

Article 12

Respect for the views of the child

Every child has a right to express their views and have them given due weight in accordance with their age and maturity. Children should be provided with the opportunity to be heard, either directly or through a representative or appropriate body.

Article 13

Freedom of expression

Every child must be free to say what they think and to seek, receive and share information, as long as the information is not damaging to themselves or others.

Article 15

Freedom of association

Every child has the right to freedom of assembly: to meet with other children, and to join groups and organisations, as long as it does not stop others from enjoying their rights.

Article 18(1,2,3)

Parental responsibilities and state assistance

• Parents, or legal guardians, have the primary responsibility for the upbringing and development of the child, and should always consider what is best for the child.
• Governments must provide appropriate assistance to parents and carers to help them.
• Governments must take all appropriate measures to ensure the children of working parents have the right to benefit from childcare services and facilities.

Article 19

Protection from all forms of violence

Children have a right to be protected from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation. Governments must do all that they can to ensure this.

Article 23

Children with disabilities

A disabled child has the right to enjoy a full and decent life in conditions which ensure dignity, promote self-reliance and facilitate the child's active participation in the community. Governments must recognise the right of the disabled child to special care, and ensure the disabled child has effective access to education, training, health care, rehabilitation, preparation for employment, and recreational opportunities.

Article 24

Health and health services

All children have a right to the highest attainable standard of health, and to health care services that help them to attain this. Governments must provide good quality health care, clean water, nutritious food and a clean environment so that children can stay healthy.

Article 30

Children of minorities/indigenous groups

Every child has the right to learn and use the language, customs and religion of their family, whether or not these are shared by the majority of people in the country where they live.

Article 31

Leisure, play and culture

Every child has a right to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities, and to take part in a range of cultural and artistic activities.

Article 34

Sexual exploitation

Governments must protect children from all forms of sexual exploitation and abuse.

Article 39

Recovery and rehabilitation of child victims

Children who have been the victims of any form of exploitation or abuse; cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; or who are victims of war should receive the help they need to recover their health, dignity and self-respect, and reintegrate into society

What impact have the decisions had on children's rights?

If a negative impact is assessed for any area of rights or any group of children and young people, what options have you considered to modify the proposal, or mitigate the impact?

Article 2

Non-discrimination

Article 23

Children with disabilities

Article 30

Children of minorities/ indigenous groups

At the point of closing registered childcare settings, both local and national government recognised that some children would be particularly adversely impacted. This would be compounded by restrictions on informal childcare.

Childcare provides access to opportunities and respite from home for many children and can be a key element for them enjoying their broader rights (e.g. those covered below on play and freedom of association).

The provision of critical childcare was put in place to support those children as well as their families.

Children affected by disability and children with complex additional support needs were identified in guidance on who could access critical childcare^[20].

Guidance on re-opening childcare (e.g. for early learning and childcare^[21]) identified some specific groups who may require particular consideration in recognition of differential impacts on them:

• Support for Minority Ethnic children
• Children who are clinically vulnerable
• Children who are clinically extremely vulnerable (shielding)
• Support for children with Additional Support Needs

Article 3

Best interests of the child

Article 6

Life, survival and development

Article 24

Health and health services

In making decisions on childcare, there is a recognition that we are directly impacting on children's enjoyment of their rights.

While some rights have been negatively impacted during lockdown, we believe the decisions we have made promote their best interests, their right to life, survival and development and their right to health.

This is embedded in our Getting It Right For Every Child approach.

In re-opening childcare, sector specific guidance has been put in place to ensure risks to children, staff and parents are managed and minimised as far as is possible.

Article 12

Respect for the views of the child

Article 13

Freedom of expression

Children's rights to have their views considered in decisions that affect them have been negatively impacted during the decision-making processes. Children were not consulted on the closure of childcare and have not been consulted on re-opening.

For children of school age, we commissioned work from Active Inquiry to capture the views of children who would normally attend school age childcare using online theatre. While this did not reach a wide audience it provided some insight in to their thoughts and views.

The refreshed early years national practice guidance for Scotland 'Realising the Ambition: Being Me^[22]' has been central to the national response during lockdown and preparation for re-opening. This puts a focus on individual children's needs and interests and promotes seeking and listening to children's views as a central theme.

Article 15

Freedom of association

Article 31

Leisure, play and culture

Children's rights to play, to learn and to access experiences that meet their physical, social, emotional and cultural needs, and to associate with their peers have been impacted by childcare closures.

Childcare provides access to these experiences for many children and guidance on re-opening all registered childcare highlights the importance of friendships, play and social connections for children.

Article 18(1,2,3)

Parental responsibilities and state assistance

Re-opening of childcare will have had a particularly positive impact on families who access wider support through their child's attendance. This can be resources, including food and advice and signposting to more specialist services.

Article 19

Protection from all forms of violence

Article 34

Sexual exploitation

Article 39

Recovery and rehabilitation of child victims

Research indicates children were more likely to experience domestic violence during lockdown^[23]. These children for whom home is not a safe or stable environment will benefit from the re-opening of childcare services which provide access to trusted adults and to wider support.

We know from the 'ELC data dashboard'^[24] that children meeting the criteria on access to critical childcare for those who are 'vulnerable', attended ELC in increasing numbers from March to June. This is perhaps because their usual settings closed at the beginning of lockdown and reopened gradually.

How have the decisions and actions contributed to the wellbeing of children and young people in Scotland?

Safe and Healthy

All of the decisions related to closing and reopening childcare have been taken bearing in mind the delicate balance of keeping children safe from harm and promoting their health and wellbeing. These decisions have been informed by specific scientific advice for different age groups of children from the Sub-Group on Education and Children's Issues and on the advice of the Chief Medical Officer^[25].

As outlined above, we know that some risks to children will have increased during the pandemic including experience of domestic abuse, child protection concerns and poor mental health and wellbeing. The Children and Families Leadership Group was a key forum for consideration of these issues with representatives from national and local level public and third sector stakeholders.

Registered childcare was recognised as a priority element to be opened through the route map in response to the risks to some children. These considerations have also informed our focus on recommending the benefits of outdoor learning and highlighting the importance of children's opportunities to play and socialise together.

Achieving and Nurtured

We know the closure of childcare, particularly disrupting children's access to statutory early learning and childcare, will have had a negative impact on outcomes for some children.

While many children will have benefitted from rich experiences at home, it is likely that a return to childcare, particularly funded ELC, will support improvements in outcomes for all our children.

While childcare was closed, some childcare settings provided contact and resources to families to support their young child's learning and wellbeing at home. Some children were also able to access this through attendance at critical childcare.

At a national level, a range of support was provided for children at home e.g. advice and ideas were provided through the Parent Club website and from Education Scotland. Another example is the 'Virtual Nature School'^[26] which was launched during lockdown, enabling childcare practitioners to support families with outdoor learning opportunities at home.

The childcare workforce were able to access professional learning and development during the lockdown period in order to support the return to settings and support for children whose experience in childcare was disrupted. The Scottish Social Services Council reported a significant increase in the uptake of 'Open Badges' (online accredited learning) during the lockdown period.

Many have also engaged in online sessions hosted around the themes in 'Realising the Ambition: Being Me^[27]' to support children's sense of safety and connection when they return to settings.

Active

As indicated above the focus on outdoor learning and benefits of play and socialising are a key element of the provision of childcare in Scotland. The reduced risks of transmission in outdoor settings was a key driver to opening fully outdoor settings in advance of other registered childcare.

The benefits of active play and outdoor activity were highlighted during the lockdown period in critical childcare provision and are emphasised in the re-opening guidance for registered childcare^[28].

Respected and responsible

The decisions to close and reopen regulated childcare have been made first and foremost in light of scientific advice and on the advice of the Chief Medical Officer.

As outlined above, we commissioned work from Active Inquiry to capture the views of children who would normally attend school age childcare using online theatre.

Views from young children were not sought directly by national government although a survey was developed by Public Health Scotland to gather the experience of children from age 2-7 during the pandemic through the 'COVID-19 Early years resilience and impact survey' (CEYRIS)^[29]

The childcare workforce is well experienced in seeking and observing children's thoughts and feelings and will be well attuned to their needs and views when they return to settings. This is supported by the practice guidance (Realising the Ambition^[30]).

For older children and young people, their voices have been well expressed through surveys such as the Lockdown Lowdown and the Coronavirus Times publications.

These sources will inform ongoing support to children and families as we work through the different stages of the pandemic.

Included

Mitigation of negative impacts, particularly on those children who most need support, has been central to our response. There have been a number of approaches to provide support for those affected by disadvantage, including access to critical childcare, continued provision of free school meals and alternatives during lockdown and during holiday periods.

How will the policy/measure give better or further effect to the implementation of the UNCRC in Scotland?

In these complex, finely balanced decisions, there has been consistent consideration of children's wellbeing and rights, and a particular focus on the reduction of negative impact through mitigating actions.

We recognise that in some circumstances it is not possible to wholly mitigate the impact to children's rights and that some decisions will have had a negative impact on some UNCRC rights. These have been assessed as necessary and proportionate and in the best interests of children and young people.

With a return to childcare and with the underpinning approach set out in 'Realising the Ambition^[31]' we believe access to high quality childcare fundamentally promotes and gives further effect to children's rights.

What evidence have you used to inform your assessment? What does it tell you?

We have reflected the information gathered through research, statistical evidence and data, and information provided by colleagues across the Scottish Government.

Footnotes are provided throughout.

The evidence supports the position that the closure of childcare will have had a negative impact for children, particularly on those where home does not provide a safe and secure environment or where access to essential resources (including food or support for additional needs) is limited.

For some children, an extended period at home may have provided positive experiences, although we are not aware of specific research on this at the present time.

Have you consulted with relevant stakeholders?

We have worked closely and collaboratively with sector representatives throughout the period of closing and re-opening childcare. We have not consulted specifically on this document but ongoing discussions have informed its creation.

We are open to further discussion on the findings of this process.

Have you involved children and young people in the development of the policy/measure?

Given the pace of decision-making, limited resource and limitations of ongoing restrictions, we have not directly involved children in the development of these decisions.