This book identifies the definition of a child within the law, the
rights of children, and discusses the extent to which primarily English
law gives adequate recognition to and protection of these rights.
To what extent does English law gives adequate recognition to and
protection of the rights of children? Historically the idea of and
protection of rights has focused on parental rights rather than the
rights of the child. The rights of children have remained far less
recognised and certain until recently. Using case studies from the
United Kingdom and beyond, this book takes a thematic approach to
children's rights and considers topics including: underlying concepts
such as the welfare of the child and safeguarding, the right to
education and to medical treatment, the right to freedom from abuse
and/or sexual and commercial exploitation, including contemporary
challenges from forced marriage, FGM, modern slavery and trafficking,
the role of the State in relation to children in need of care and
protection, children's rights in the criminal justice system, the right
to contract and employment. In addition, the book provides an
introduction to key aspects of domestic and international law, including
the Children Act 1989, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the
European Convention on Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998.
The book will be of great interest to law and social science students in
the areas of Child Development and Protection, Human Rights Law, Family
Law, Child Law, and Child Studies, as well as to social workers, police
officers, magistrates, probation officers and other related professions.
