PRESS RELEASE

PlayBoard event celebrates 20 years of Children’s Rights

On Thursday 17th November 2011 PlayBoard, the lead agency for play in Northern Ireland, hosted an event exploring children’s right to play in Northern Ireland.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) establishes the basic human rights to which every child is entitled. Ratified by the UK Government in 1991, the convention places a duty on government to ensure that all children and young people in the UK have access to the rights enshrined within it.

Article 31 of the convention focuses on the child’s right to rest; to leisure; to play; to recreational activities and the right to participate in cultural and artistic life. The UNCRC recognises the importance of children having access to appropriate things to do, places to go and also having adequate time and energy to take up such opportunities.

Speaking about the event, Jacqueline O’Loughlin, PlayBoard Chief Executive said “This year the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has agreed to produce a General Comment on Article 31. This will not only draw the attention of government to the importance of the rights enshrined within the article, but will also provide State Parties with specific recommendations on the implementation of these rights.”

Jacqueline continued, “This event will provide us with a valuable opportunity to include the Northern Ireland perspective in this exciting development.”

Dr Roisin McCooey, Senior Research and Policy Officer with PlayBoard added “In many ways the UNCRC provides us with a means of assessing the degree to which we as a society are fulfilling our aspirations for children. As this year represents the 20th Anniversary of it’s ratification it seems timely to explore and discuss issues relating to play and the right to play in Northern Ireland.”

In addition to input from PlayBoard, the event included contributions from a range of individuals including the Commissioner for Children and Young People, Patricia Lewsley-Mooney; Professor Laura Lundy from Queens University; Virginia McVea Director of the Human Rights Commission and Theresa Casey, President of the International Play Association.

Notes To Editors:

About PlayBoard (www.playboard.org ):
PlayBoard is the leading agency for the development and promotion of children and young people’s play in Northern Ireland. To this end, the organisation provides a range of innovative services designed to strengthen service delivery through advice, support, training and tailored provision

PlayBoard’s work is concentrated and prioritised within a framework of ‘equity, diversity and interdependence’ (EDI), and is consistent with the ethos of human rights, social justice and social inclusion.