Legislation Relating to the Protection of Children's Rights

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCROC) is a treaty which enshrines a series of rights to the world’s children in an agreement by the governments of participating nations. The New Zealand Government ratified the 54 articles of the convention in 1993 and has agreed that “the best interests of the child must come first where decisions, laws or services involve children.” (MSD, n.d.)

Core Principles of UNCROC

There are 4 core principles underpinning the convention:

1. Non-discrimination
2. Best interests of the child/children
3. The right to survival and development
4. The views of the child

UNCROC Rights

UNCROC gives children and young people up to the age of 18 years a set of rights. The key points of those rights can be summarised by these key points: (MSD, n.d.)

• The right to life, survival and development
• The government makes sure that the best interests of the child are taken into account when making decisions about the child.
• The right to access to education and health care
• The right to grow up in an environment of happiness, love and understanding
• Protection from discrimination of all kinds
• The right to develop their personalities, abilities and talents
• Protection from sexual exploitation, abuse and economic exploitation
• Special measures to protect those that are in conflict with the law
• The right to an opinion and for that opinion to be heard
• The right to be informed about and participate in achieving their rights
• Special measures to protect those belonging to minority groups

For more detail and the full text of the document go to the United Nations website and to the Ministry of Social Development website. Click this link to download a pdf poster summarising the 54 articles enshrined in the UNCROC.

Activity

Make a note of which articles of UNCROC specifically impact the operation of an ECE service. Think about how each would impact on the duties and responsibilities of kaiako or ECE management.

The purpose of the Children’s Act (2014) is to help protect vulnerable children to allow them to thrive, achieve and belong (About the Children’s Act, 2023).

• Part 1 deals with improving children’s wellbeing and Oranga Tamariki action plans and requires the government to adopt and review a strategy for improving the well-being of children. It also ensures children’s agencies work together to improve the well-being of particular groups of children.
• Part 2 deals with child protection services and requires them to identify and report cases of child abuse and neglect.
• Part 3 deals with safety checking of children’s workers. It aims to reduce the risk of harm to children by requiring anyone engaged in working with children be safety checked.

Activity

Look at the Ministry of Education’s website outlining the responsibilities of education providers and education professionals in relation to the Children’s Act 2014.

1. Note down the legal requirements which apply to kaiako and ECE service providers under the act.
2. Download and read the Ministry of Education’s guide to the Vulnerable Children’s Act 2014 (note: the “Vulnerable Children’s Act 2014”was renamed as the “Children’s Act 2014” in December 2018).

Oranga Tamariki is the Ministry for Children and is dedicated to supporting all children in Aotearoa | New Zealand at significant risk of harm now, or in the future. This organisation has its own policy setting out its commitments and responsibilities to child protection. This department is responsible for protecting the most vulnerable of our tamariki. You can read their Child Protection Policy document here.

The ERO (Education Review Office) states “Early childhood services operate under a comprehensive set of regulations that reflect the importance of managing for children’s safety and wellbeing. Services are expected to continually review and improve their practices and processes to meet current and new legislation” (Meeting Requirements for Children’s Safety and Wellbeing in ECE | Education Review Office, n.d.). Some key legislation governing ECE health and safety is listed here:

• Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 - Regulations 45, 46 and 47
• Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Services 2008
• Also the Building Act 2004 and Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 are relevant to the sector.

Activity

Investigate the relevant legislation linked above and read sections related to Health and Safety. Note down points which must be considered for kaiako or management when either planning a new ECE service or in maintaining and monitoring H&S standards in an existing business.

1. Download a copy of the Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Services 2008 (pdf linked above).
2. Read in detail the Health & Safety criteria (regulation 46, pp. 19-26).
3. For each relevant subsection of regulation 46:
   1. Briefly explain what the regulation requires, then
   2. Provide an example of a possible ECE scenario which it covers.
   3. Relevant subsections are:

      HS1-HS3	Hygiene
      HS4-HS8	Emergencies
      HS9-HS11	Sleep
      HS12-HS18	Hazards and Outings
      HS19-HS23	Food and Drink
      HS24-HS30	Child Health and Well-being
      HS31-HS33	Child Protection
      HS34	Notification

Early childhood education providers are an important part of the development and growth of young children in our society. They play a vital role in promoting the health, wellbeing and safety of not only the children in their care, but also staff, families and whānau, and the wider community. We have looked at the legal regulations governing health, safety and wellbeing, but each ECE provider should also think about their own unique service and how to ensure a safe and healthy environment for all stakeholders.

Developing a health and safety policy specific to the service is one way to ensure the legal regulations and any other relevant guidelines are clearly set out, agreed upon and made available to all concerned.

A sample health and safety policy template for a school is provided below.

Activity

Watch this interactive video “Nursery safety is no accident” about health and safety in an ECE setting and see if you can identify all the hazards depicted.

Sample health and safety policy template

Policy

This is an example policy only and your school’s policy should be developed with your board and community. This policy should be read in conjunction with the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.

Purpose

The board of trustees is committed to ensuring the health and safety of all workers, students, visitors and contractors by complying with relevant health and safety legislation, regulations, New Zealand standards, and approved codes of practice.

The board of trustees is committed to providing and maintaining a safe and healthy workplace for all workers, students, and other people in the workplace. We will achieve this through:

• making health and safety a key part of our role
• working with our workers to improve the health and safety system at our school
• doing everything reasonably possible to remove or reduce the risk of injury or illness
• making sure all incidents, injuries and near misses are recorded in the appropriate place
• investigating incidents, near misses and reducing the likelihood of them happening again
• having emergency plans and procedures in place
• training everyone about hazards and risks so everyone can work safely
• providing appropriate induction, training and supervision for all new and existing workers
• helping workers who were injured or ill return to work safely
• making sure contractors and sub-contractors working at the school operate in a safe manner.

All workers are encouraged to play a vital and responsible role in maintaining a safe and healthy workplace through:

• being involved in improving health and safety systems at work
• following all instructions, rules, procedures and safe ways of working
• reporting any pain or discomfort as soon as possible
• reporting all injuries, incidents and near misses
• helping new workers, staff members, trainees and visitors to the workplace understand the safety procedures and why they exist
• reporting any health and safety concerns or issues through the reporting system
• keeping the work place tidy to minimise the risk of any trips and falls
• wearing protective clothing and equipment as and when required to minimise your exposure to workplace hazards.

Others in the workplace

All others in the workplace including students and visitors are encouraged to:

• follow all instructions, rules and procedures while in the school grounds
• report all injuries, incidents and near misses to their teacher or other staff members
• wear protective clothing and equipment as and when required to minimise your exposure to hazards while learning

Students are provided with basic health and safety rules, information and training and are encouraged to engage in positive health and safety practices.

Health and safety is everyone’s responsibility.

You’ve reached the end of this topic. Let’s go over the key points:

• Children need their safety, well-being to be ensured, and to be treated equitably for their healthy development.
• There is legislation in New Zealand to safeguard children’s rights
• New Zealand is also committed to uphold the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
• The UNCROC has a set of 54 articles based on four core principles
• Key local legislation includes:
  • The Children’s Act 2014
  • Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008
  • Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood and Care Services 2008
• ECE Services are required to develop a Health and Safety Policy to ensure their compliance with regulations and ensure a safe and healthy environment for their stakeholders.

Make sure to complete the discussion forum tasks before moving on to the next topic.