Anna Feuchtwang, CEO of NCB, far left, with members of the APPGC, including new co-chairs Munira Wilson (fourth from left) and Jess Asato (fifth from left).
On Monday 21 October, the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Children (APPGC) met for the first time this Parliament to elect new chairs and to consider its priorities for government.
The APPGC is a group of cross-party Peers and MPs, whose work is co-ordinated by the National Children’s Bureau (NCB).
With a full room of 15 Parliamentarians, there was resounding support for the APPGC to continue its work taking the voices of children and young people to the heart of government.
Jess Asato, Labour MP for Lowestoft, who was elected to Parliament for the first time in July and also sits on the Education Select Committee, was appointed to co-chair the group alongside Munira Wilson, Liberal Democrat MP for Twickenham, who was part of our panel at our last APPGC parliamentary event in May and is the Liberal Democrat spokesperson on education.
Conservative peer Baroness Verma and Liberal Democrat peer (and former APPGC co-chair) Baroness Tyler were elected as officers.
The group discussed its priorities for this new Parliament, including ensuring that wellbeing is at the heart of the forthcoming Children’s Wellbeing Bill, and that child health is also a key consideration both in this Bill and in the government's ten-year health plan.
The group also committed to continuing its work to keep child poverty on the agenda, ensuring that any measures introduced include all children, and working with other APPGCs to bring attention to issues such as the early years, children's social care, children's nutrition and the SEND system.
Over the past few years, significant challenges - from the Covid-19 pandemic to the rise of social media - have taken their toll on our younger generations. Too often, these experiences have been disregarded by policymakers. Children and young people will bear the long-lasting impacts of what we do in Parliament, so it is vital their voices are heard. As co-chair of the newly formed Children's APPG, I look forward to working with the government and members from across parties to ensure that children and young people are at the heart of decision-making going forward.
Munira Wilson, MP
Co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Children
Children are our constituents too and while they don’t get a vote in elections, they will have to grow up with the consequences of the decisions we make over the next Parliament. There are huge opportunities ahead of us and the government is working at pace. It is important that as the government drives through important legislation, such as the Children’s Wellbeing Bill, it clearly involves and listens to children and I hope that this APPG can make sure that children and young people are being heard at every stage.
Jess Asato, MP
Co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Children
It's a real privilege for the National Children's Bureau to be the Secretariat of this APPG and we've been doing it for 40 years now... The thing that I am proudest of is the numbers of young people that have been given a voice through the activities of this group. It's not just the experience of speaking here in our meetings, but it's what they tell us about afterwards - the impact that sharing their voices directly with policymakers and parliamentarians has on their lives.
Anna Feuchtwang
Chief Executive Officer, NCB
At our event in May, 150 attendees, including representatives from other leading children’s charities, listened as children and young people shared their experiences of children’s social care, special educational needs and disabilities, mental health, and the importance of their voices being taken into account.
Nearly 40 young people and parents exchanged ideas with a panel representing all the main political parties, which included both Munira Wilson and Tim Loughton, a former co-chair of the APPGC who stood down as an MP at the last election.
At last night's meeting, the group thanked Tim for his guidance and stewardship and Baroness Tyler for her continued involvement.
The APPGC was founded by Baroness Faithfull, a former President of NCB, and NCB has provided the Secretariat for the group since 1984.