Children's hearings redesign
Amplifying children’s voices throughout the process
The Scottish Government is interested in the views of respondents on how changes to participation might operate in practice, to ensure children’s rights and best interests are upheld, and their views and wishes reflected to decisionmakers. (See section 5.6 of the consultation document)
The Scottish Government considers that there may be value in the creation of a statutory process, undertaken by the children’s reporter, which:
- records what has been done up to the point of referral to gather the child’s views, including confirming that they have been offered advocacy
- applies a “best interests” test regarding appropriate participation prior to a hearing being arranged. This would account for the child’s views on how they wish to attend/participate, their age and stage of development, and the nature of the matters due to be considered by the hearing
- makes any necessary further arrangements to gather the child’s views and support their ongoing participation. This would include additional offers of advocacy and bespoke and enhanced forms of participation depending on the age and stage of the child, or any other needs they may have