Making Nottingham Child Friendly

Cover Action Plan

Nottingham's Child Friendly City Action Plan 2023 - 2025

The full version of our Action Plan

Resource

UNICEF UK Child Friendly Cities & Communities programme, themes or priorities are represented as badges.

Our action plan will work towards achieving ambitions and outcomes in three badges decided by children and young people and three UNICEF UK mandatory badges. These are:

“Equal and Included” was also very important to our children and young people so we made this our “golden thread” to run throughout the whole programme.

  1. Safe and Secure.
  2. Healthy
  3. Education and Learning
  4. Culture (mandatory)
  5. Communication (mandatory)
  6. Co-operation and

Nottingham’s Golden Thread:
A Kind and Inclusive city 

Our children and young people said:

I would like everyone to be treated fairly and no one excluded – all children to be given the opportunity to participate in a range of activities

We asked children and young people what they associated with not having enough money. Their answers included ‘no housing’, ‘no food’ and ‘sadness’. It is in this context that barriers to inclusion need to be addressed.

Talking with children and young people the idea of fairness came up repeatedly. Alongside this was the children’s wish for Nottingham to be a kind city. Children and young people place a very high importance on fairness and inclusion. Because it is so important to them we decided to adopt Equal and Included as a golden thread that will run through all the badges.

Children and young people feel safe online.

Children and young people should feel more confident and safer online. They understand online risks, how to manage those risks and be able to recognise how changing technologies might impact on them.

Children and young people should feel confident and safe in local communities.

Local activities will take place in neighbourhoods across the city, in which children and young people feel that they are safe and welcome to take part. We will publish a report in a family friendly format, which will include evidence that children and young people are engaging in
local activities.

  • Staff at our partner agencies who are delivering services in the community will feel more confident in working with children and young people.
  • Child Friendly Nottingham will promote safe transport for children and young people across the city. We will look for evidence that young people and parents / carers feel more confident when moving around the city.

A Child Friendly City Centre
Nottingham city centre will make parents of young children, children and young people feel welcome, engaged and safe. Businesses and partners will work collaboratively to build a city centre that is welcoming and dynamic for children, families, and young people in its design. The contribution of children and young people should be visible across the city centre; in activities, shops, displays and exhibitions. 

We will support good mental health for children and young people.

  • Children and young people will become more aware of the mental health and wellbeing support that is available and how to access local services.
  • We will target improved numbers in the children and young people who experience and live with poor mental health, as measured by Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) referral and assessment data, and as reported in our Perception Survey.

We will find new solutions to support mental health and wellbeing.

  • Children and young people will be able to access mental health support in a timely manner when they need it. We will work to deliver a sustainable workforce plan for CAMHS.
  • Local health and care organisations in Nottingham will work closely with children and young people to identify gaps in mental health and wellbeing support, identifying and addressing the improvements that Nottingham’s children and young people would like to see.

We will understand young people’s health needs in Nottingham and support healthier lives.

  • We will aim for children and young people to be able to take part in local healthy activities and services to support a positive, holistic, healthy lifestyle.
  • We will encourage schools to co-produce Health and Wellbeing Plans.
  • We will aim to launch an annual Health and Wellbeing Survey for school pupils.
  • We will make it our goal for children and young people to receive more support from our integrated wellbeing service - ‘Eating and Moving for Good Health’.
  • Child Friendly Nottingham will support the launch of a vaping cessation service and develop a new ‘social prescribing’ function in healthcare for children and young people.

We will aim for continuous improvement of positive
lifestyle changes, using evidence from integrated wellbeing service referral and delivery data reports, as well as increased uptake of the Healthy Start scheme. We will measure children and young people’s involvement using the Health Equity Audit & feedback from the Health
Scrutiny Committee.

Celebrating culture and diversity

Child Friendly Nottingham will treasure learning. Children and young people in Nottingham should be able to use their imagination and creativity to celebrate their diverse cultural heritage.

  • Cultural activities that are run in community centres and local areas will involve protected groups of children and young people in their production. Activities for babies, children and young people should be available all year round.
  • Child Friendly Nottingham will seek to mainstream the Cultural Rucksack to widen the offer to children and young people within alternative provisions (an alternative to mainstream education), and babies and children in early years settings.
  • Children and young people should feel connected to Nottingham city, taking part in its cultural life, expressing themselves creatively and feeling valued.

Learning and flourishing

  • Children and young people feel confident to create and access learning, skills and training opportunities within the city, enabling them to learn new things, flourish and be guided and supported by trusted adults.
  • Child friendly life learning programmes will be available to babies, children and young people.
  • We will aim for a Nottingham Community and Business Group to be established, to support career and work experience opportunities for young people across the city.
  • Child Friendly Nottingham will aim to roll out a programme of mentorship across the city

Active learning, championing children and young people’s voices

  • Children and young people will be empowered to be active learners and champions for all children and young people’s voices.
  • More schools and academies will commit to working towards getting UNICEF ‘Rights Respecting Schools’ bronze and silver badges. Schools and academies previously working at silver level will work towards RRS Gold.
  • There will be a pilot programme for alternative provision to work towards bronze/silver

Rights Respecting status.

  • Child Friendly Nottingham will develop champions to advocate on behalf of babies, children and young people.
  • The educational experience of babies, children and young people in Nottingham will be positive, inclusive and anti-racist, enabling children and young people to advocate for themselves, their peers, and others.
  • We will aim to reduce fixed term and permanent exclusions, reported cases of bullying, and an increase in school attendance. 

UNICEF UK Mandatory Badges

Embedding children’s rights in our city’s culture and our work:

  • Nottingham Councillors and leaders in public, business and community agencies will champion children’s rights, demonstrating visible leadership of our commitment to equality and inclusion of young citizens.
  • We will make Children’s Rights training with UNICEF UK available for partners and professionals across the city.
  • A number of senior leaders in Nottingham will become ‘Child Friendly Champions’ - public advocates with a strong  understanding of children’s rights who will share the work of the programme at every opportunity.
  • Partner agencies will record and share their experience of involving children, young people and their parents or carers in decision making; involving people from all backgrounds including marginalised groups.
  • Child Friendly Nottingham will use a ‘train the trainer’ model to grow a network of children’s rights trainers.
  • Leaders and staff will complete training to feel more confident about children’s rights.
  • Partner agencies will be more responsive to the issue of how children and young people access their services, they will monitor contacts and use feedback from children and young people to improve accessibility.
  • Child Rights Impact Assessments from public agencies will lead to improved understanding of babies, children and young people’s needs when delivering services. Agencies will use these to review and share experiences of involving children, young people in decision making.
  • 30% of frontline staff in NCC libraries and leisure services will complete training on children’s rights.

Communicating clearly with children and young people

  • Child Friendly Nottingham’s communications will be clear, understandable and responsive to the views of children and young people.
  • We will involve children and young people in developing communications including in early years settings and in alternative provision.
  • We will make it our goal for children and young people to learn how to play an active part in producing content for websites, journals, social media and schools.
  • Digital communications including social media will be child and family friendly, designed to include those with particular speech and language needs.
  • We will aim for communication professionals at our partner agencies to have an ongoing engagement forum with children and young people in Nottingham.
  • Children and young people will be encouraged to visit and take part in activities involving mainstream media, e.g. local BBC, Notts TV or Confetti studios.
  • We will aim for a measurable increase in children and young people reporting that responsible and elected adults are listening to their voices.

Promoting and understanding of children’s rights across Nottingham

  • Our goal is that a positive view of babies, children and young people will be held widely and promoted across Nottingham.
  • A greater number of children and young people will know what their rights are according to the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child.
  • Schools, colleges and other educational centres will work with us to promote activities with the theme of children’s rights.

Children and young people helping to make decisions in Nottingham

  • There should be a variety of ways for children and young people from all backgrounds to help make decisions in Nottingham. We will aim for a measurable increase in children and young people involved in making public decisions, and for decisions made by children and young people to be delivered.
  • Partner agencies will report on the level of engagement of children and young people in their decision making.
  • A digital library will be created which can be used by partners to develop services. These will be shared on social media and appropriate websites.
  • Our Child Friendly City Children and Young People Network will hold annual meetings to discuss priorities. Network representatives will also meet with partners, stakeholders and selected elected members on a regular basis.
  • Staff will understand the many challenges faced by babies, children and young people in being heard. More creative approaches will be employed to ensure their voices are included.

Involving young people in local democracy

  • Elected officials will visit schools and community venues, and take part in workshops to encourage involvement with local democracy.
  • Councillors and others with elected positions in Nottingham will include the rights of children and young people in their election manifestos.
  • We plan to hold lessons and workshops in schools and colleges to encourage electoral registration and participation amongst children and young people. Local political groups will actively support increased young voter registration.

The Outcomes of the Child Friendly Nottingham Action Plan.

1. A Kind and Inclusive city

Nottingham is an inclusive and kind city where children and young people are celebrated, valued, respected, and listened to. 

3. Children and young people can access support when they need it

Children and young people can find help from public agencies when they need to and feel confident to do so.

5. Children’s democracy

Children and young people are actively involved in local democracy.

7. Promote understanding of children’s rights

Our communications will promote and encourage understanding of children’s rights across Nottingham.

9. Child friendly city centre

Nottingham city centre is a child friendly place which makes children and young people feel welcome, engaged, and safe.

11. Mental health and wellbeing solutions

Children and young people are aware of available mental health and wellbeing support and are able to access local services.

Local Health and Care Organisations, children and young people work closely together to identify gaps in mental health and wellbeing support; collaboration and co-design enables children and young people in Nottingham to suggest solutions for these gaps.

13. Understand health needs and support healthier lives

Nottingham will have a better understanding of children and young people’s health needs and preventative health improvement initiatives will support children and young people to live healthier lives.

15. Learning and flourishing

Children and young people feel confident to create and access learning, skills, and training opportunities within the city; they feel enabled to learn new things, flourish and be guided and supported by trusted adults.

2. Children’s rights at work

Nottingham Councillors, leaders and staff across partner agencies confidently and consistently apply a child rights-based approach in their work.

4. Children’s decision making

Children and young people are actively involved in local decision making.

6. Communicate clearly with children and young people

Our communications are clear, understandable, and responsive to the views of children and young people. A positive view of children and young people is widely held and promoted across Nottingham.

8. Confident and safe in communities

Children and young people 
feel confident and safe in their communities, such as in the park, neighbourhoods and on the way to and from school.

10. Children feel safe and are safe online

Children and young people to feel safer online, understand how to manage the risks and can recognise how changing technologies might impact on them.

12. Support good mental health

Timely support for children and young people with identified mental health needs and preventative action to maintain good mental wellbeing.

14. Celebrating culture and diversity

Children and young people are enabled to use their imagination and creativity to celebrate diversity and their cultural heritage.

16. Active learners and champions for children and young people’s voices

Children and young people will be empowered to be active learners and champions for all children and young people’s voices.