This autumn, we had the joy of visiting two incredible schools — Struthers Primary School in September and David Livingstone Memorial Primary School in October — as part of our mission to promote health rights and empower children through play.
At Struthers Primary, the Health and Wellbeing Group showed amazing creativity and kindness by designing handmade badges to raise money for our work. Their fundraising helped support children and young people across Scotland — and they got to see the impact of their efforts first-hand! During Scottish Children’s Health Week, we returned to deliver a whole-school visit packed with fun, learning, and play.
In October, we were invited to David Livingstone Memorial Primary School during their Health Week, where we ran tailored sessions for Primary 1 to Primary 5. Each class explored our Play Box, took part in health-related play, and learned about their health rights through the voices of our Health Rights Defenders.
Here’s what some of the children had to say:
🗨️ “Playing with the hospital toys was fun. I didn’t know play could help you feel better when you’re sick.” – P2 pupil
🗨️ “We all have rights, even when we’re not feeling well. That’s really important.” – P5 pupil
🗨️ “I liked making up stories with the play box. It helped me understand how to help my friends when they’re not well.” – P4 pupil
Each visit was designed to meet the unique needs of the school, and we were blown away by the enthusiasm, empathy, and curiosity of every pupil we met. These sessions are a powerful reminder of how schools can be champions of children’s health rights — creating safe, inclusive spaces where every child can learn, play, and thrive.
Play is a fundamental right. These school visits show that schools want to be part of our Health Rights Defenders movement. They are becoming Health Rights Aware and making sure they are part of our My Health, My Rights Campaign. Visits like this are vital for school life and for children — they can ask questions, learn about their wellbeing, pick up self-management skills, and understand their rights in a way that’s appropriate for them. One of the rights in our My Health, My Rights Charter is the right to information in a way we understand — and visits like this fulfil that very important health right. We want to challenge all schools in Scotland to become Health Rights Aware.
Rhianne Forrest, Officer for Children’s Health Scotland
📣 Challenge to schools across Scotland: Become Health Rights Aware!
Our 2026 School Visit Diary is filling up fast, and we still have a few Winter 2025 spaces available. If your school or community group wants to join the movement, become Health Rights Aware, and help children understand their rights through play, storytelling, and creative learning — we’d love to hear from you.
📧 Contact Rhianne at: CYPHRS@childrenshealthscotland.org
Let’s make health rights real — together.
