Aileen Campbell: Bill that puts children first is way ahead

AT a time when we’re asking questions about our nation’s future, we must also consider what kind of tomorrow we want for our children, and what steps are required to achieve it.

I want Scotland to be the best place in the world for children to grow up, somewhere where all children get the best start in life and develop into healthy, happy, confident individuals.

Today we take a huge step towards making that vision reality by launching the consultation on the new Children and Young People Bill. It is the most important and comprehensive legislative change to the services that support children and their families in a generation.

Our proposals are built around a few key ideas. First, we believe more action is needed to improve support for children in the earliest years. Childcare is crucial here and the bill will increase the amount of free, flexible, family-friendly early learning and childcare to a minimum of 600 hours annually for all three- and four-year-olds and looked-after two-year-olds.

This will make it easier for parents or carers to structure childcare to suit their family needs or work plans. In short, it amounts to the best package of childcare anywhere in the United Kingdom.

It’s also paramount that we keep doing more to protect children who are looked after outside their homes. We want to strengthen the processes to help these vulnerable children go to permanent, caring environments as quickly as possible.

We also need services to work together to ensure the wellbeing and rights of the child are at the heart of everything they do. This is central to our Getting It Right For Every Child approach, which requires services to collaborate in the overall interest of the child so that children’s voices are considered whenever decisions are taken that affect them.

Through the new bill, we have a huge opportunity to make the most important changes to children’s services in a generation. I look forward to engaging with councils, health professionals, teachers, parents, carers, children’s organisations and other experts as we take forward this crucial legislation.

• Aileen Campbell is the Scottish minister for children and young people.