Children and Young People on the margins
Children and Young People on the margins
Inquiry2
The Children, Young
People and Education Committee is conducting an inquiry into children and
young people on the margins, which in summary relates to missing children and
those vulnerable to criminal exploitation.
This inquiry follows on from the Committee’s report into radical change for care experienced children. From the evidence received, care experienced children are estimated to make up almost 40% of children who go missing in Wales. Also, it has been reported that specific groups thought to be at risk of being ‘criminalised’ include care experienced children, unaccompanied asylum seeker-children, some groups of children who are experiencing challenges within the education system, and black and minority ethnic children and young people.
This inquiry will focus on:
Missing children:
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>>>Nature and scale: of the issue and regional variations
>>>At risk groups: including the impact of care experience and out of area placements
>>>Practice: issues such as information sharing and data collection.
>>>Policy: The effectiveness of devolved policy and practice responses, including Welsh Government oversight. Whether there is effective read across to relevant WG (Welsh Government) strategies.
>>>Devolved and UK powers: How joined up is the interface between devolved and non-devolved policy such as criminal and youth justice.
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Children and young people who are victims of criminal
exploitation:
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>>>Nature and scale: across Wales and regional variations (e.g. traditional, drug related, sexual, financial).
>>>At risk groups: including care experience, children experiencing trauma in the home, and some groups of children who are experiencing challenges within the education system.
>>>Policy: The effectiveness of devolved policy including Welsh Government oversight. Whether there effective read across to relevant WG strategies such as Child Sexual Exploitation.
>>>Practice: Approaches to prevention, community resilience, early intervention, support provided and exit strategies for victims. Practice issues such as information sharing and data collection.
>>>Devolved and UK powers: How joined up is the interface between devolved and non-devolved policy such as criminal and youth justice. Are there any points of tension between criminal law and safeguarding.
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Other groups: You may wish to identify other groups
of children “on the margins”. These would be groups of children in
circumstances that require a specific response from children’s services or
other statutory providers and for which there are concerns about the current
policy or practice.
Evidence gathering
Over the summer term we will be holding stakeholder events and engagement activities.
Consultation
The Committee launched a call for written evidence on 23 January 2024. The consultation closed on 28 March 2024. All the response have been published.
This page was amended on 06/03/24 to clarify that home
educated children are not considered to be at a greater risk of going missing
or being criminalised than children who are educated in schools.
Business type: Committee Inquiry
Reason considered: Senedd Business;
First published: 15/09/2023
Consultations
- Children and Young People on the margins (completed)