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Participating in the Covid-19 public inquiry

The Covid-19 pandemic affected everyone, but  for babies, children and young people experiencing poverty and disadvantage, the impacts may be particularly long-lasting and  era-defining. 

The government has set out to understand better how decisions were made during the pandemic and their consequences through the Covid-19 public inquiry. We are directly participating in this process to highlight the impact on children and families of the UK government’s choices. We have set this out in our report “What about the children?”

Important lessons must be learned for the future while the events are still fresh in our minds. And crucially, children need support to deal with the consequences of decisions made during the pandemic which continue to affect them now – the years of lost learning and, lost freedoms at a critical time in their development.

Quote: “Children are a low political priority in an adult-centric Westminster and often invisible as far as core decision-making is concerned. This invisibility was exacerbated during the pandemic.” Rajiv Menon KC, Barrister representing Children’s Rights Organisations

What about the children? Forgotten Voices at the Covid-19 Public Inquiry

OUR PARTICIPATION IN THE COVID-19 PUBLIC INQUIRY

The Covid-19 Public Inquiry has been set up to examine the UK’s response to and impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. There are ten modules, such as preparedness, vaccines and economics. 

Save the Children UK has been involved in two modules: Module 2 on Core UK decision making and political governance, and Module 8 on the impact on Children and Young People.

While our contributions in Module 2 focused on where children fit into overall systems and structures, a specific module on children and young people will allow us to draw on specific experiences of children from different backgrounds, and across different areas such as physical and mental health, schooling and social care. 

MODULE 2: DECISION MAKING AND POLITICAL GOVERNANCE

 

In 2023, Save the Children, in partnership with Just for Kids Law and the Children’s Rights Alliance for England, participated as a Core Participant in Module 2 of the Covid-19 public inquiry. This Module explored core UK decision-making and political governance.

We wanted to find out who, amongst leading politicians, civil servants and scientific advisors, was thinking about children, their rights, their development and their physical and mental health when critical decisions were made. 

We now await the interim report of Module 2. Despite the fact this will be over five years from the first lockdown, we hope the Chair will speak boldly to the effect that the pandemic had on children and recognise such failings in decision making for the covid generation. 

Read our findings from this Module.

Quote: “There has been almost a doubling in the prevalence of mental health problems and also a doubling of the social inequality... particularly for disadvantaged children.” by Professor Taylor-Robinson, Expert in child health inequalities giving evidence at Module 2 of the Covid-19 Public Inquiry

MODULE 8: CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

A module that will focus specifically on children and young people began with a Preliminary Hearing on 6 September 2024. 

Save the Children UK will once again be a Core Participant in this module as part of a coalition of Children’s Rights Organisations, alongside Just for Kids Law and the Children’s Rights Alliance for England, Centre for Young Lives and Child Poverty Action Group. 

Read more about how the impact on children and young people will be explored during the Inquiry.  

OUR RECOMMENDATIONS

The Covid-19 pandemic has cast a long shadow over the life chances of a generation of children. Through the Inquiry we are calling on the government to take rapid and assertive action to ensure that children have the best chance to recover from the impact of the pandemic, and so that in the case of any future pandemics, children will not be impacted in the same way. 

 

  • By incorporating the UNCRC in full into domestic law.
  • By making Child Rights Impact Assessments (“CRIAs”) a statutory requirement for all new policy and legislation, using the existing template developed by the Department for Education, and ensuring the CRIAs are robust and place children at the heart of decision making.
  • By appointing a Cabinet Minister for Children with cross departmental responsibility for protecting children’s rights across all policy making and ensuring that oversight and co-ordination of a Children’s Rights Strategy and Action Plan takes place at the highest levels of government.

  • By publishing a Children’s Rights Strategy and Action Plan, which would include a cross-departmental strategy to tackle child poverty, and which would set out the government’s vision for children with a clear road map for how it will meaningfully improve their lives and tackle inequalities that children and families experience. 
  • By strengthening parliamentary oversight and scrutiny before schools can be closed in future emergencies, and ensuring the decision to close schools cannot be made by ministers alone and is considered only as a last resort; this should also ensure that if schools do need to be closed that adequate steps are taken to mitigate the worst harms.
  • By testing future pandemic policy guidance with children and families, creating child and youth accessible, friendly and relevant information about accessing health services, and recognising and safeguarding opportunities to play and stay safe.

  • By providing the full £13.5 billion of educational recovery funding that was recommended during the pandemic directly to schools, nurseries and colleges, and focusing on children’s social and emotional development and mental health, so children can thrive and fulfil their potential. 
  • By setting out a comprehensive, long-term funding settlement for children’s services and children’s social care that invests at least £4.6 billion a year in early intervention and therapeutic services.
  • By investing in child poverty reduction so all families can afford essentials,  scrapping the two-child limit and expanding free school meals for all families that receive Universal Credit.

MORE INFORMATION

  • Save the Children’s overview of the inquiry
  • Oral Opening Statement on behalf of the Children’s Rights Organisations. Watch from 0:50 – 19:39
  • Oral Closing Statement on behalf of the Children’s Rights Organisations. Watch from 0:20 – 21:07

 

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