Children rights are rights that all children should have – they include the right to the best health care possible, a safe place to live and the chance to go to school. They also include the right to be protected from violence, exploitation and discrimination, and to take part in cultural life. There are lots of organisations that work to protect and promote children’s rights, such as UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund).

The world’s 2.3 billion children have many different needs. They are at particular risk of poverty and malnourishment, but they also face a variety of other threats including child labour, early marriage and sexual exploitation.

There is a mass of human rights law – both treaty and ‘soft’ law – that recognises the special status of children. These legal rules are designed to ensure that children’s rights are respected and that their best interests are always taken into account in any decision or action that affects them.

In order to guarantee the protection of children’s rights, governments must follow a set of international principles known as the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This includes a commitment to try to keep families together where this is in the best interests of the child, and to respect parents’ responsibility for their children. It also includes a commitment to try to prevent children being exploited or taken advantage of, and to make sure that all those who are responsible for looking after children are doing a good job.

The Convention includes the right to education, which is a crucial factor in ensuring that children can enjoy their other rights. It also outlines the right to food, clean water and a safe home, as well as the right to rest and leisure activities. The Convention also sets out a duty to protect children from physical, emotional and mental abuse and neglect, and to provide a decent standard of living for all children.

A key part of the Convention is the idea that children must be able to express their views freely on all matters that affect them, and that adults should listen to them and take them seriously. It also includes a right to freedom of religion, which means that children should be allowed to practice their own beliefs as long as this does not harm other people.

Finally, the Convention says that governments should make sure that children are not separated from their parents unless this is in their best interests, and that they should be able to travel abroad if they want to. It also says that governments should do everything they can to support families and help children in trouble. This includes granting financial support to children from poor families.