Incorporating the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into Northern Ireland legislation is to be the subject of high-level discussions at Queen’s University Belfast today.
Legal professionals, academic researchers and other key stakeholders will discuss how best to incorporate the UNCRC, which was ratified by the UK Government in 1992, on 17 June 2025 at Riddel Hall, Queen’s.
In the UK, only Scotland has so far fully and directly incorporated the UNCRC, which it did in 2024. The former Children and Young People’s Commissioner for Scotland, Bruce Adamson, will address the Queen’s event to share learnings from that process.
In Northern Ireland, incorporation of the UNCRC has been outlined as a key priority for the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People (NICCY). The NICCY Commissioner, Chris Quinn, will also address the Queen’s discussion, which is the second in a series of four planned ‘Incorporation Conversations.’
The first ‘Conversation’ consulted with the children focused organisations in the third sector. Today’s event focuses on the legal aspect, while an upcoming conversation in the Autumn will engage with faith-based organisations. The fourth and final, scheduled for January 2026, will gather all feedback and determine next steps towards implementation.
Also speaking at today’s event is Queen’s alumna and Northern Ireland’s most senior judge, the Right Honourable Lady Chief Justice, Dame Siobhan Keegan.
Other speakers include Professor Laura Lundy, a global expert on children’s rights and incorporation; and young people from the NICCY Youth Panel (NYP).
The day will be facilitated by Professor Bronagh Byrne and Prof Laura Lundy, Co-Directors of the Centre for Children’s Rights at Queen’s University; and Joanne McGurk, Head of Legal at NICCY.
Prof Byrne from Queen’s said the purpose of the event was “to explore how we can better protect children’s rights at a time of great uncertainty and precarity. Legal professionals have a key role to play in identifying both the opportunities – and challenges – in making the UNCRC part of domestic law.”
NICCY Commissioner Chris Quinn said: “I am thankful for the advice and input from the professionals from the legal and academic sectors who have come today to discuss and share their experiences of children’s rights in Northern Ireland’s legal system.
“Enshrining children’s rights into domestic law is not a solitary mission. We trust in the partnership of our advocates, from Queen’s and the legal profession. They play a crucial role in providing feedback and actively advising NICCY in achieving our goal. We will continue to provide advice to Government, that the full and direct incorporation of the UNCRC into domestic law is the best solution for our children and young people.”
The conversation events are being funded by the ESRC Impact Fund.
