Change can feel exciting, overwhelming, and everything in between. For many children living with health conditions or experiencing inequality, these moments can feel even more difficult — whether that’s moving to high school, managing friendships, or coping with everyday worries.
rights
SMS HUB: Travelling Through Time Together
Our latest SMS HUB session took young people on a journey through the past, present, and future, exploring how life has changed over time and imagining what the future might look like for the next generation.
Play, Rights and Bear’s Big Adventures at Health Weeks in Scottish Schools
We had a fantastic time celebrating Health Weeks in Schools across Scotland, alongside the children and young people at Greenhill Primary School and Broxburn Primary School, reaching an incredible 760 children and young people across both schools.
Growing Up in the Online World: Why Children’s Health Scotland Supports the CYPCS Call on Social Media and Children’s Rights
Children’s Health Scotland welcomes and supports the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland (CYPCS) position that there is not enough evidence to show a blanket social media ban will protect children’s rights. At the heart of this conversation are children’s voices—and what they are telling us is clear: safety matters, but so does connection, participation, […]
“We Want Change”: Health Rights Defenders Share Their Story Through Film
What does it really feel like to grow up in Scotland today with a health condition — waiting, navigating systems, and too often feeling unheard? On Saturday 30 May, our Health Rights Defenders began to answer that question in their own words, as we came together to watch the first cut of a powerful new […]
MY HEALTH, MY RIGHTS: A NATIONAL SURVEY FOR SCOTLAND’S CHILDREN
For fifty years, Children’s Health Scotland has been listening to what matters most to children and young people about their health and their rights. Through five decades of stories, surveys, programmes, hospital visits, school sessions, and lived experience, one message has never changed: Children and young people know what they need — and their voices […]
Join Our Self-Management Skills (SMS) Programme in Edinburgh
Referrals now open for our next SMS Programme (Ages 9–17) which is being delivered in Edinburgh. Our Self-Management Skills (SMS) Programme is a supportive group experience for children and young people living with health conditions. Delivered over a series of sessions, it helps young people build confidence, develop practical skills to manage their health and […]
Protection Without Participation Is Not Protection: Children’s Health Scotland Responds to Social Media Ban Consultation
Children’s Health Scotland has published its response to the national consultation on proposals to introduce a social media ban for under 16s, drawing directly on the voices of children, young people, parents and carers. While the intention to improve online safety is welcomed, the organisation is urging policymakers to rethink a blanket ban approach, warning that […]
A Wild Adventure from Home: Safari Comes to the SMS HUB
Roaring with excitement and packed with imagination, our latest SMS HUB session took young people on a virtual safari adventure — all from the comfort of home. From spotting “wild” treasures to creating brand-new species, it was a journey full of curiosity, creativity and connection.
“Sometimes You Have to Be a Little Brave”: Volunteering, Voice and Seeing Ourselves on Stage
Elodie is ten. She’s thoughtful, creative, and clear about one thing: children deserve to be listened to when it comes to their health. She also knows how often decisions are made around children rather than with them, which is why she’s a Health Rights Defender. As a Health Rights Defender, Elodie gives her time, ideas and creativity to help adults understand what it’s really like to […]
