Every child should feel that their voice matters and that their opinions can drive real change. During my tenure I have given young people a platform to call for a Better World through my major surveys, The Big Ask and The Big Ambition, visits and my participation programmes.
My annual Festival of Childhood brings together children, young people, policymakers and leaders. I have convened youth advisory boards for Ofcom, Government Office for Science, and on the impact of AI on education. I made sure children’s voices shaped 2025 Child Poverty Strategy
The government should listen to children’s ideas more and children shouldn’t have to pass their idea to an adult to make it happen. Children should be able to change the world too.
Girl, 11, The Big Ambition
My first act as Children’s Commissioner was to listen to children. My 2021 survey of over half a million young people, The Big Ask, found that children of all backgrounds and abilities, right across the country, were happy, optimistic, and determined. But it was undeniable that some children – particularly many disabled children – face […]
I’ve designed a version of my Business Plan aimed specifically for children and young people, sharing the projects and themes that my office will be working on. As Children’s Commissioner for England, it is my job to listen to you and take your voices to decision makers. This will be my sixth and final year […]
2026–27 will be my final year as Children’s Commissioner, marking the conclusion of a six-year term that began in March 2021. It is a moment to take stock of how children’s lives have changed during that time, and to focus on the work that still needs to be done to give every child in England […]
As Children’s Commissioner I have the privilege of speaking to and working with thousands of professionals supporting children in every aspect of their lives. I know first-hand how caring and dedicated the vast majority of them are, and how the relationships they build with children can be transformative. But I have also seen the other […]
Read The Children’s Plan: The Children’s Commissioner’s School Census in full. Read the Summary version. For the first time as Children’s Commissioner, I have used my statutory powers to ask all schools, and colleges, a set of questions. A census in response to what children told me they wanted and needed to attend, engage, attain, […]
This report should not have to exist. Shining a light on children’s experiences of poverty in 2025, in one of the wealthiest countries in the world, should not be necessary. And yet, the findings in this work highlight real hardship; an almost-Dickensian level of poverty facing some children in England today. After four years as […]
The year ahead – 2025-26 – will be my penultimate year as Children’s Commissioner for England. It will also mark 20 years since the establishment of this office – a milestone that offers an opportunity to reflect on the progress we have made and a reminder about the many urgent challenges that remain. More than […]
I’ve designed a version of my Business Plan aimed specifically for children and young people, sharing the projects and themes that my office will be working on. As Children’s Commissioner for England, it is my job to listen to you and take your voices to decision makers. In my survey, The Big Ambition, only one […]
Last July, the country was rocked by the murders of three little girls in Southport. Bebe King, Alice da Silva Aguiar and Elsie Dot Stancombe who were killed while taking part in a dance class during their summer holiday; a scene of simple childhood innocence destroyed by terrifying violence. The initial response from the community […]
Children’s voices have shaped, and continue to shape, all my work – and all my representations to government. I have heard from a million children since becoming Commissioner through my major surveys, The Big Ask and The Big Ambition, visits and my participation programmes, including thousands of children with additional needs, children in care, and those in secure or hospital settings. They are united on the things they value: families and happy homes; a safe community with activities and things to do; mental and physical health; a great education; the environment; a secure future; fairness; getting on in life. But only 20 per cent told me that they felt listened to by politicians – and that is why I have launched my final survey, The Big Future.
Alongside my national surveys, I established the annual Our Future, Our Voice: Festival of Childhood, creating opportunities for direct engagement between hundreds of young people and decision makers.
I have created a Youth Ambassadors Programme, to champion the issues children told me matter most. Three cohorts of 15-17 year olds have now taken part, attending ministerial meetings, speaking in Parliament and engaging with MPs and peers to help decision makers better understand young people’s experiences.
I also launched a Youth Voices Forum and Youth Voices Hub on my website, where children can learn about my work and explore what young people are saying about the issues they care about alongside getting involved withopportunities to have their say across my office, government and the public sector. With government departments and public bodies working with my team to convene youth advisory panels on issues including AI in education, online safety and the future of childhoodTo amplify young people’s voices further, I started the Big Conversation Podcast, where my Youth Ambassadors interview decision makers on key issues affecting children. Recent guests have included Lord Nash and Education Minister Georgia Gould.
