Welcome to November children’s rights month

We want Cheshire East to be a great place to be young, a place that respects and champions the rights of all children and young people, encouraging them to express their views and be actively involved in decisions that affect their lives.

So we dedicate the whole month of November to raising awareness of children’s rights and making it clear to children and young people that we value their opinions.

November Children’s Rights Month (NCRM) is an initiative of the Cheshire East Youth Council and this year’s theme is based on Article 31 of the UNCRC, which states that “every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.” Cheshire East Youth Council’s focus will be on safe spaces for young people with an aim to develop artwork which depicts what a safe space is or means for young people.

This year’s campaign is an extension of the “Hate Stops Here” campaign which was developed by young people in 2024 to educate and raise awareness of Hate Crime and Discrimination after young people in Cheshire East said that “Crime and Safety” was the most important topic to them in the 11-18 year old youth ballot Make Your Mark back in February 2024.

Opportunities you could take to recognise and celebrate children’s rights

You can support NCRM by selecting one or more of the opportunities set out below. These have been put together to enable children and young people to influence the decisions that affect their lives.

Opportunity 1 - Takeover Day

Offer an opportunity to put a child or young person into a decision-making position for the day. Give children and young people the chance to experience the world of work and allow them to influence the way your team or organisation delivers the services they receive.

Opportunity 2 - Attend the Voice of the Child Conference - 18 November

Are you passionate about embedding the voices and experiences of children and young people into the services you provide? This is your opportunity to take that commitment further.

Join us in person at the Voice of the Child Conference, where you’ll:

Hear directly from young people
Explore a powerful art exhibition themed around “What safe means to me”
Receive training delivered by young people themselves
Take part in hands-on workshops led by experienced colleagues, covering:

Rights-based approaches to participation
Writing to the child
Involving children and young people in decision-making

By expressing interest, the Participation Team will send you the booking form for this unique training and development opportunity.

Let’s work together to create services that truly reflect the voices of those they’re designed to support.

Opportunity 3 – Support children and young people to create a piece of artwork which portrays “what a safe space means to you”

Our children and young people care deeply about their right to have safe spaces - places where they can play, relax, and express themselves creatively. By getting involved, you’ll receive a simple brief to help guide and support the young people you work with in creating artwork that reflects what “safe” means to them.

Their creations will be proudly showcased at the Voice of the Child Conference on 18 November, as part of our first-ever art exhibition for November Children’s Rights Month.

This is a fantastic opportunity to champion children’s rights and celebrate their creativity. Let’s help their voices be seen and heard.

Opportunity 4 - Be part of Cheshire East Youth Council's "Hate Stops Here" campaign by receiving and implementing the “Safe Space Checklist”

Cheshire East Youth Council invite you to receive and implement their “Safe Space Checklist” in your setting.

It’s really simple to take part

Complete the November Children's rights month online form and the participation team will send you all of the information you need.

At the end of November the Participation Team will contact you and ask you to complete a short feedback form to develop future campaigns.

Please also show your support for the campaign by adding them NCRM logo (JPG, 189KB) to your email signature.

Events taking place during NCRM 2025

National Care Leavers Month – events and activities for Care Leavers to celebrate successes, launch the biannual survey and review the local offer.

Youth Work Week 3-9 November – this year’s theme is Building Brighter Futures – Safe Places, Trusted Support and an Opportunity to Thrive. The Youth Support Service will host celebration events across the week building upon this year’s theme.
Cheshire East Members of Youth Parliament attend Annual Sitting at the House of Commons for the UK Youth Parliament – The UK Youth Parliament Annual Sitting is a landmark event where over 300 elected Members of Youth Parliament (MYPs), aged 11–18, gather in the House of Commons Chamber to debate and vote on key issues affecting young people across the UK.
Children and Families Committee 10 November – children and young people will take over elements of Children and Families Committee to share their views on agenda items with elected members to inform their decision making.
Voice of the Child Conference 18 November – a training event delivered by young people and the Participation Team. An opportunity to improve participatory practice and listen to the views and experiences of children and young people from across Cheshire East.
Children and Young People’s Trust Board 20 November – young people co-chair the Children and Young People’s Trust Board with Senior Leaders and are involved in the decisions that affect their lives.
Universal Children’s Day 20 November – a day to celebrate and raise awareness of children’s rights.
Star Celebration Day 30 November – annual event to celebrate the achievements of our Cared for Children.

Events that took place in 2024

In 2024 the opportunities were based on Article 29 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) which states that “Children’s education should help them fully develop their personalities, talents and abilities. It should teach them to understand their own rights, and to respect other people’s rights, cultures and differences. It should help them to live peacefully and protect the environment.”

2024’s focus was on education connected to hate crime and discrimination after young people in Cheshire East said that “Crime and Safety” was the most important topic to them in the 11-18 year old youth ballot Make Your Mark back in February 2024.

Some of the events and opportunities included: Cheshire East Youth Council launched the Hate Stops Here Campaign, professionals from across the borough took part in participation training to further embed our rights-based approach and Senior Managers offered Takeover Days to our children and young people.

Events that took place in 2023

The theme for 2023 was based on Article 24 of the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child, which states that “Every child has the right to the best possible health. Governments must provide good quality health care, clean water, nutritious food, and a clean environment and education on health and wellbeing so that children can stay healthy”. There was an emphasis on the cost-of-living crisis and how this connects to children and young people’s health and wellbeing for example, equality and food poverty.

Page last reviewed: 12 August 2025