Childhood Practice 2nd Annual Conference
Positive futures: bridging theory and childhood practice through the UNCRC
Against the backdrop of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), "Positive Futures" explores a future where children's rights are realised in childhood practice and in children’s everyday life. Featuring a range of workshops, keynotes and lightning talks, this conference supports dialogue to aid our understanding of children's rights within the Scottish context.
Recognising the importance of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation)(Scotland) Act 2024, which will be in force by 16 July 2024, this conference brings together practitioners, educators, human rights defenders and policy makers to explore the changing landscape in children's rights.
Join us to consider innovative strategies, rights-based approaches, share best practices, and create a network of advocates as we pave the way for a positive future, where every child is an equal member of society whose rights are respected, protected and fulfilled.
Programme of the day:
9.00 Registration open and networking from 9am
Conference start at 9.30
9.30 Welcome from Head of School Prof Kristinn Hermannsson and Childhood Practice Team
9.45 Minister for Children and Young People and Keeping the Promise
10.00 Prof Bruce Adamson
10.30 Alison Precup, Scottish Social Services Council Learning and Development Advisor
10.50 Diane Janczyk, Care Inspectorate
11.10 Break for refreshments, stalls and networking
11.40 Break out sessions
12.20 Return to main session for student lightning talks
Catherine Knox – SAMH
Russell McKillop
Aimee Muir - North Lanarkshire Council
Break out sessions:
The Voice of the Baby
Bio
Dr Rachel Drury is a researcher and creative artist working in the field of music psychology and therapeutic arts. She is Co-programme Lead for the MA Psychology in the Arts (Music) programme at the RCS and is the music specialist for Rachel House Children’s Hospice (CHAS). Rachel’s current research projects focus on rights-based approaches in the arts (Starcatchers and QMU); music and child/parent relationships in prisons (BBC SSO), and music in hospices (QMU).
Info about the session
We welcome you to join our interactive session exploring the voice and participation rights of babies in relation to creative arts experiences. You'll be introduced to Starcatchers' Voice of the Baby Reflective Guide, which has been developed through a research partnership with RCS and QMU, and be invited test it out in practice.
Why is Play a Child’s Right?
Bio
Patrick Morrison is the Training and Practice Officer at the Scottish Out of School Care Network. He started his career in school age childcare in 2011 as a Playworker, moving into management and running one of the largest out of school care services in Scotland until August 2023 before joining .
Info about the session
This session is entitled Why is Play a Child’s Right? We’ll consider the important factors that highlight the necessity for play in children’s lives, and how as childhood practitioners, we can push the play agenda and raise its profile within society.
A wish and intention to support a shift from vulnerability to visibility
Bio
Midlothian Sure Start use a relationships based approach to our work in our currently funded areas in Midlothian and East Lothian.
Info about the session
We’d like to Invite participants to join us in a mindful moment to set the scene.
We will demonstrate how we take a Childrens Rights based approach, through discussing 2 case studies.
The first case study will focus on how we support the parent and infant relationship and our second case study will focus on children with Additional Support Needs who attend our Early Years settings. In both examples we will focus our attention on the UNCRC Underpinning articles:
2 – non-discrimination
3 – best interest of the child
6 – right to life, survival and development
12 – right to be heard
Throughout our workshop we will demonstrate our use of the Facilitating Attuned Interactions approach developed by the Erikson Institute.
This model uses the arc of engagement, which begins with Mindful Self- Regulation, moves to Empathic Enquiry, Collaborative Exploration and Capacity Building to bring focus to the most urgent presenting concern. Reflecting and Integrating are the final steps to remember insights and discoveries.
Children’s rights
Bio
Dr Stephen Daniels is a Lecturer in the Philosophy and Theory of Education at the University of Glasgow. His research centres on the application of analytic philosophy of education to questions surrounding the right to education and the development of Human Rights Education. He is more broadly interested in political theory, conceptions of human rights, civic and moral education, and children’s rights. Before completing his PhD at the University of Glasgow, he trained as a teacher of Religious, Moral, and Philosophical Studies and taught for several years in Scottish schools.
Info about the session
In this session you will be invited to critically reflect on questions surrounding professional and personal understanding(s) of human rights and human rights values. Practitioners in Scotland are increasingly asked - and often required by professional standards - to contribute to cultures that promote children and young people’s rights. However, what does this entail and how expansive might such duties be? Engagement with human rights theory can provide a rich vocabulary for understanding and justifying practice, aid practitioner reflection, and spark innovation. We all have underlying philosophical beliefs about human rights and what counts as human rights values. These beliefs implicitly or explicitly feature into our decision making and practice. This session aims to bring some of these beliefs to the surface and prompt productive discussion on theory-informed practice and the development of rights-respecting cultures.
Student lightning talks
Catherine Knox – Let’s Connect Team Leader, SAMH
Russell McKillop – Team leader, Kibble Residential Care for Children and Young People
Aimee Muir – Virtual School Children and Families Support Worker, North Lanarkshire Council