What is the Children and Young People Plan?

The Children and Young People Plan (CYPP) is a strategic plan which local authorities have a legal responsibility to produce under the Children Act 2004. The plan outlines the borough’s priorities for children and young people, based on the profile of children and young people’s needs, and what we have been told through consultation and involvement work with children, young people, parents, carers and professionals.

Waltham Forest’s first Children and Young People Plan ran from 2006 to 2009, and focused on twelve key priorities across the five Every Child Matters outcomes. Electronic copies of the original plan and its annual reviews are available on the CYPP documents page.

An interim plan is in place for 2009-2010, as our next three year Children and Young People Plan 2010–2013 was required to include some forthcoming changes in legislation.

These changes are likely to mean that the ‘duty to co-operate’ with the local authority when producing the plan will be extended from our current statutory partners, which include the Police and Primary Care Trust, to also comprise schools, further and higher education providers and JobCentre Plus.

How are we developing our plan for 2010–2013?

Children and young people have inalienable rights, which are most clearly defined by the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child. Waltham Forest’s Children and Young People Plan 2010-2013 will be built around a rights framework, which reflects the spirit of the convention.

It is designed so that all adults in a child’s life – parents, grandparents, wider family, community, teachers, GPs and so on – can work together to deliver these rights to our children.

The four rights in our draft framework are:

  • The right to be safe at home, school and on the streets;
  • The right to access quality education, health and welfare services;
  • The right to participate in shaping their futures;
  • The right to be supported to fulfil their potential and become resilient.

The draft rights and priorities have been developed from data, and also from feedback at the Children’s Rights Supper, which took place on 26 March 2009 and was well-attended by children, young people, parents and professionals. (Download the draft framework (50KB PDF file).

Where can I go for more information?

To contact us about the Children and Young People Plan, please call Waltham Forest Direct and ask for the Policy and Partnerships team on 020 8496 3000.