Derry and Strabane crowned UNICEF Child Friendly City and District

The Derry City and Strabane District Council area has become the first region in Northern Ireland and only the second in the UK to receive international recognition as a UNICEF Child Friendly Community.

The prestigious status signifies that UNICEF publicly recognises the significant and sustainable steps a local area has taken towards advancing the human rights of children and young people growing up in their city and communities.

A formal announcement was made today in the Guildhall by representatives from the four local partner organisations in Derry and Strabane’s bid for the designation: The Western Health and Social Care Trust, the Education Authority Youth Service, the Youth Justice Agency and Council.

It follows a seven year journey where all four partners worked with the UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK) to develop and deliver a comprehensive action plan to prioritise and uphold children’s rights across six priority areas.

Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Councillor Ruairí McHugh, welcomed the announcement and congratulated everyone involved in achieving the status.

Children and Young people from the North West Ministry of Youth push a button to illuminate buildings across the Council area in blue. (Photos: Jim McCafferty Photography)

“This is a momentous day for all the children and young people in our City and District and sends a clear message to all of them that we are a region where they should feel safe, heard and nurtured and where their rights are respected by everyone.

“It has taken years of detailed and collaborative working, led by our young people and delivered by the four partner public bodies to bring the journey to this monumental moment and I would like to congratulate each and every person who was involved in the process of achieving this recognition.

“That work means our children and young people can now feel meaningfully involved in the decisions that matter to them, enabling our service providers to meet their needs and for adults to be more accountable for the way children’s rights are respected, protected and fulfilled.”

Naomi Danquah, Programme Director for Child Friendly Cities and Communities at UNICEF UK, said: “The Derry City and Strabane District partnership have worked incredibly hard over the past seven years to achieve the ambitions they – and, vitally, children and young people – set out to achieve at the start of their journey.

"The partnership has established an impressive child rights infrastructure, with examples of excellent, embedded practice and involvement of children and young people across six important thematic areas. The sustainability plan shows how they propose to continue these commitments, and we are delighted that the partnership has been recognised as a UNICEF Child Friendly Community.”

Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Councillor Ruairí McHugh, signing UNICEF's declaration to uphold the rights of all the Children and Young People in the Council area.

Kian Hawes, a young person from the North West Ministry of Youth, the Youth Voice for the City and District welcomed the announcement: “As a member of the North West Ministry of Youth I am delighted to be a part of this incredible achievement for our city and community.

“This recognition supports our vision where every child and young person can have their voices heard and respected and where we are not just spoken for but listened to.”

Stephen Martin, YJA Chief Executive added: “As an organisation which works through a Child First ethos, I am delighted the Youth Justice Agency has been able to contribute to UNICEF UK's Child Friendly Cities and Communities programme within the Derry and Strabane District Council area.

“Achieving recognition as a UNICEF Child Friendly City and Community is a huge achievement.

“The leadership of Derry City and Strabane District Council has been key to this and I want to congratulate them and the other partner organisations who we have had the privilege of supporting in this process.”

Director of Children and Families of the Western Health and Social Care Trust (Western Trust) Dr Tom Cassidy said: “The Western Trust is immensely proud along with three key partners Derry City and Strabane District Council, EA Youth Service and Youth Justice Agency to have achieved UNICEF UK's Child Friendly Cities and Communities programme recognition.

“This is a powerful endorsement shown across the Trust, our partners and most importantly our children and young people, to place their rights, voices and wellbeing at the heart of everything we do.

“This recognition reflects a shared vision that every child should grow up safe, healthy, respected and empowered to shape services and communities around them.

“We look forward to building on this achievement in the months ahead across all our children’s services.”

Michael Hogg Strategic Services Manager Education Authority Youth Service added: “We are immensely proud that Derry and Strabane has been awarded UNICEF Child Friendly status.

“This recognition is a tremendous achievement and reflects the deep commitment across the City and District to place children’s rights at the heart of local decision-making.

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“The Education Authority Youth Service celebrates the strong partnership working alongside Derry City and Strabane District Council, Youth Justice Agency and Western Health and Social Care Trust. Together we’ve created meaningful opportunities for young people to shape the services and spaces that matter most to them, ensuring their voices are not only heard, but acted upon in line with the active participation of children and young people being a core principle of effective youth services.”

Following the announcement, the project partners will host a special celebration event at the Foyle Arena on World Children’s Day, on Thursday, November 20 full details of which will be released in the coming weeks.

For full details on Derry and Strabane’s Journey towards becoming a UNICEF Child Friendly Community including the Annual Report for 2024/25 visit derrystrabane.com/unicef.