Every Child Matters
Every Child Matters is a new approach to the well-being of children and young people from birth to age 19. The Government's aim is for every child, whatever their background or their circumstances, to have the support they need to:
- Be healthy: enjoying good physical and mental health and living a healthy lifestyle.
- Stay safe: being protected from harm and neglect.
- Enjoy and achieve: getting the most out of life and developing the skills for adulthood.
- Make a positive contribution: being involved with the community and society and not engaging in anti social or offending behaviour.
- Achieve economic well-being: not being prevented by economic disadvantage from achieving their full potential in life.
This means that the organisations involved with providing services to children - from hospitals and schools, to police, voluntary groups and Training Providers will be teaming up in new ways, sharing information and working together, to protect children and young people from harm and help them achieve what they want in life. Children and young people will have far more say about issues that affect them as individuals and collectively.
Some young people need extra help, perhaps because of their health, or because they have trouble learning, or they are, or have been abused. If this help is not available early on, the problems can get worse. Spotting these problems and sorting them out as early as possible can help stop this happening.
Once we know that a young person or their family needs extra help, it is important they get it. This is more likely to happen if different services work together. We pledge to work with each young person on our training programmes who need additional support to make sure they get the very best out of life.
Some useful sites: -
www.everychildmatters.gov.uk
info@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk
www.dh.gov.uk
www.ofsted.gov.uk
www.dfes.gov.uk