What is a Child Friendly City?
Cork is a designated WHO Cork Healthy City The first item under Cork Healthy City Action Plan is to support Cork to become a child friendly City. While there are many frameworks and definitions provide for a child friendly city. The UNICEF definition of a Child Friendly City most encapsulates; the frameworks for implementation and the values and principles for the approach. It is the one selected to inform Cork Child Friendly City.
“A child-friendly city (CFC) is a city, town, community or any system of local governance committed to improving the lives of children within their jurisdiction by realising their rights as articulated in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
In practice, it is a city, town or community in which the voices, needs, priorities and rights of children are an integral part of public policies, programmes and decisions.”
Child Friendly City Cork is an open forum made up of intersectoral allies working collaboratively toward Cork becoming a Child Friendly City – in progressing children’s rights, participation and belonging in Cork City.
The inter-agency network forum brings together many stakeholders across government, academia, local authority, community & voluntary sector, health and social services and other stakeholders and organisations as well as children themselves who wish to make their cities and communities more child-friendly.
About Us
We are an inter-agency steering group forum committed to creating Cork as a Child Friendly City. We will work towards greater awareness raising and implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child at local level across our City and respective organisations so that the voices of children in our City are heard. We do this in collaboration and with the equal participation of children on our Steering Group Forum.
We are recruiting a Child Friendly Cities Development Worker to support Cork Child Friendly City Forum to deliver a Child Friendly City strategic plan, range of broad actions, and measurable outcomes for the city. This will inform and support wider adoption of the Child Friendly City framework aligned to the UNICEF model.
Stakeholders
Children’s Participation
In 2021, the Government of Ireland, Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth and Hub na nOg published the Participation Framework National Framework for Children and Young People’s Participation in Decision-making in association with Professor Laura Lundy, Queen’s University.
The Participation Framework provides guidance and checklists for decision-makers on the steps to take in giving children and young people a meaningful voice in decision-making across sectors, organisations and professional groups using a shared approach.
Statutory and non-statutory organisations are obliged to seek children’s views and take them seriously.
The Framework aims at achieving the overarching objectives of the National Participation Strategy. This includes:
- improving and establishing mechanisms to ensure that seldom-heard and vulnerable children and young people are listened to and involved in decision-making
- mainstreaming the participation of children and young people in the development of policy, legislation, services and research.
The Lundy Model
Professor Laura Lundy, Queen’s University, Belfast has created a rights based model of child participation, based on four key concepts (Space, Voice, Audience and Influence). This model is internationally recognised and accepted as a legally sound and practical conceptualisation to facilitate organisations in ensuring adherence to the key principles of the UN Convention allowing for young voices to be heard.
SPACE
Children and young people must be given safe, inclusive opportunities to form and express their views
VOICE
Children and young people must be facilitated to express their views
AUDIENCE
The views must be listened to
INFLUENCE
The views must be acted upon, and appropriate
News & Events
CCFC consultation with St Marys on the Hill
CCFC had the pleasure of piloting consultation workshops across the entire school. The young people of St Marys on the Hill had many brilliant...
World Children’s Day 24
Celebrating the children of Cork in collaboration with Cork Child Friendly Cities Forum*, Cork City Council and children and young people themselves! The children from the Crann Center performed some circus skills which they had been working on, supported by The Cork...
Ireland commits to embedding a children’s rights approach to public policy and decision-making in its 2023-2028 national strategy
Revolutionising Education through Play Conference 2024
The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) is seeking Expressions of Interest for membership of the Young Ireland Advisory Council
Instagram Feed
Resources
Local
Let’s Play Cork – An initiative of Cork Healthy Cities
- Let’s Play Cork
- PART-Y Participation and youth lab for equal cities
- Playful Cities
- Playful Pirate Culture Trail
- Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Cork
- Let’s Play Cork Resoucrces
Children’s Consultation Cork City Development Plan – Freedom of Our City
How Cork can become a UNICEF Child Friendly City – Webinar
- Cork Child Friendly Cities Webinar January 2022
- Graphic Harvest of the Cork Child friendly City Lord Mayor Cllr Colm Kelleher
Cork City Draft Development Plan 2022-2028
LECP Submission
Cork City Comhairle na nÓg
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Cork City Comhairle na nÓg, is a Youth Council advocacy group representing young people aged 12-18 craving a platform to be heard have launched their new website at here. Comhairle na nÓg Cork City Comhairle na nÓg is facilitated by YMCA IRELAND and supported by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.
National
Participation Framework Report – Government of Ireland National Framework for Children and Young People’s Participation in Decision-making
See links to the Government of Ireland Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth series of consultations with children and young people; the general public; and civil society stakeholders.
View the launch of the report on the consultation with children and young people on DCEDIY’s YouTube channel.
Young Ireland – The National Policy Framework for Children and Young People (0-24) 2023-2028
International
UNICEF
- A summary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
- The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
- Cardiff becomes the first city in the UK to achieve UNICEF Child Friendly City Status
- UNICEF Ireland Childs Rights Schools Programme
- Learn how to boost your baby’s brain from a Harvard Professor
The Lundy Model
Child Friendly Initiatives
Cities for Children Global Alliance – Blog by Tim Gill
