Lapsiasiavaltuutettu

Remarks by Ms. Maria Kaisa Aula, Ombudsman for Children in Finland
British Columbia Childrens Summit 20.-21.10.2008 in Vancouver, BC, Canada.
International Success stories - what to learn from the Finnish experience in promoting the wellbeing of children

In what areas has Finland succeeded best and where is room for improvement most needed?

What are the current strategic goals of child policy in Finland?

What good practises exist in promoting national consensus on and commitment to children's rights issues? 

Some background

Finland is a very sparsely populated Northern European country of 5.2 million inhabitants, 20 % of those are under 18 (1.1 million) in the most northern part of Europe. The population has in recent decades become concentrated in the southern part of the country and the capital area (Helsinki). In northern and eastern parts long distances incur additional costs for the provision of services.

The Ombudsman for Children in Finland was established by an Act of Parliament in 2005 as an independent institution. Its task is to promote the realization of the rights and interests of children together with the other actors in the field of child policy. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child constitutes the basis of the work of the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman does not deal with individual cases, but concentrates on lobbying for children at the level of strategic policy-making. The post has only advisory powers. http://www.lapsiasia.fi/en/frontpage

The tasks of the Ombudsman for Children include 1) monitoring the living conditions of children 2) influencing legislation and other areas of decision making 3) keeping in touch with children and conveying children's opinions to decision makers (through meetings, studies, surveys) 4) promoting better coordination of policy towards children in Finland (Advisory Board for the Ombudsman for Children, a national network of 40 professionals supports this work).

Note! There is a general parliamentary ombudsman that works with specific cases. The state provincial authorities also deal with individual complaints. This same division of powers applies to other Nordic ombudsmen for children institutions (in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, in addition to Finland).  In all these countries the ombudsmen for children concentrate on opinion making, influencing decisions and promoting the participation of children.  

In what areas has Finland succeeded best concerning the wellbeing of children?

• Finland has ranked fourth in comparisons of child well being among EU and among OECD countries with selected indicators (Bradshaw, 2007, Social Indicators Research 80 or Unicef Innocenti report). Two other Nordic countries (Denmark, Sweden) and the Netherlands were ranked one to three. All these states have for decades implemented universal public services provision policies in children's welfare (day care, education, health, child protection). The better the quality in the basic services, the better the requirements of the most vulnerable groups of children with special needs are met.
  
  
•  According to the UNICED/OECD and EU, indicators Finland has ranked best in the areas such as health at birth (very low infant mortality rate), educational attainment (best PISA scores in reading, maths and science in the world), material situation (relative child income poverty is low (12 %)) and experience of violence among young people (among peers) is low.
  
  
• The high standard of education evens out the possibilities of children from different backgrounds. There are very small differences between schools in learning results. Teachers are university-educated and well respected. The children with special needs get extensive individual support. Finland actually succeeds well in PISA rankings because also gifted children perform so well (not because of high scores at the top). Basic education (from grades 1 to 9) is free (no tuition fees, free meals and transport from long distances, books). There is a national core curriculum, but the municipalities have also a lot of possibilities to adjust this as they see fit.
  
  
• Practically all students complete their compulsory studies (grades 1 to 9, age 7 to 16). About 96 % of students continue to the secondary education after completing comprehensive school. All education, including university education, is tuition free.
  
  
• The families have a subjective right to public day care for children under 7 (higher fees for well-off families, no fees for the low income families). Day care is not oriented to school-like education but places emphasis on play-like activities and care.
  
  
• The corporal punishment of children has been criminalized since 1984. About 10 - 20% of parents admit in surveys that they have been using corporal punishment in surveys. These numbers have decreased greatly since the early 1980s. It is assumed that this transformation towards positive parenting may in the long term have a reduced impact on the prevalence of criminality among the youth.
  
  
•  We have very few adolescents (age 15-18) in prisons (about 5 cases). Children in conflict with the law are in the first place located in child protection institutions (age 15-18,150 cases, under 15,100 cases).
  
  
• There is a small minority of indigenous children (a few thousand Saami) who since the early 1990s have been able to increasingly enter school using their own language. This minority lives in the northern parts of Finland, Sweden, Norway and Russia and is the only indigenous group in the EU area. The Saami people in Finland are fairly well integrated in terms of jobs and education today. According to a survey by the Ombudsman for Children's office, the majority of Saami children have a positive identity and they are proud of their ethnicity. Their parents' experiences of the assimilation policy that was used up until the 1970s (Saami language not allowed or spoken at school, many children were housed in dormitories far from home on weekdays) still overshadows their relationship with their own children. Finland, Norway and Sweden need to co-operate more to provide educational materials, improve the availability of teachers and strengthen continuity in Saami education. 

In what areas should Finland seek improvements?

• Finland has to make the most improvements and is ranked low in EU and OECD/UNICEF comparisons in the areas such as adolescent risky behaviour (drinking and smoking start at early age), relationships with parents (for example families seldom have meals together, single parent families 17 % of all), subjective well-being at school (only a small proportion of children say they like being at school a lot). Finland also does not rank very well in the civic participation of children and young people (voluntary organisations, school boards).
  
  
• The numbers of children in alternative care outside their families have been increasing constantly since 1987 (3-5 % increase annually).  Despite the economic advance since late 1990s and the well being of the majority, the need and demand of child protection social work have not diminished. In a small minority of families the problems are intensifying and becoming increasingly complex. The preventive services are too weak and support for the family is provided too late. One of the main subjects of my work has been to lobby for stronger preventive services and support for parenting in early years.
  
  
• Almost 16,000 children (1.1 % of all under 18) are placed in alternative care outside their homes (about 10,000 of them in custody). In addition, about 60,000 children and their families (4-5 % of all those under 18) get support services in non-institutional care (child protection).  Most often the reasons for social workers' interventions are related to alcohol abuse by parents (related to domestic violence, mental health problems, dysfunctional parenting).
  
  
• Despite national legislation, the practical responsibility of child protection policies and methods has for a long time been primarily with the municipalities (about 400). This has caused a situation where the processes and services vary greatly and are heterogeneous. During the last 5 years alone there has been stronger national guidance developed for child protection work. The new Child Protection Act (2008) seeks to improve and homogenize the field. However national evaluation and standard setting in the area is still far too weak.
  
  
• There was a cut in alcohol taxation due to EU demands, which has even intensified the harm caused for children due to their parents' alcohol abuse.  There is a long term estimate that 1/10 of children in Finland live in a family where alcohol abuse by at least one parent disturbs the wellbeing of the child. This does not necessarily imply addiction that is easily recognized by the community.
  
  
• Another key focus in my work has been to activate decision makers/government ministries to develop policies in order to prevent harm to children from parents' alcohol abuse. There is at the moment a government working group designing a broad scale of policies to support children that live in families that abuse alcohol, and especially to work more effectively to cut FAS/FAE -problems (expectant mothers and their partners). In addition, the state owned alcohol company is planning a very long term public awareness campaign focusing on "How does parents' drinking look like from the point of view of children?"
  
  
• Conclusions from new research on childhood indicate that children themselves most often complain of being lonely. They would like their parents to be more present in their lives. The working life of parents is in some cases too demanding and competitive. On the other hand, youngsters give loneliness (not having any friends/10 % in the 8 ^th grade) as the main reason for being and feeling excluded.
  
  
• Mental health problems are increasingly coming into focus of child and youth welfare. The National School Health Survey indicated (2006) that 18% of 8 ^th grader (age 15 years) girls and 14% of high school girls (age 17 years) suffer from symptoms of depression (=their subjective evaluation, not diagnosed).  Mental health problems among teenager girls, especially, seem to be increasing. These may be related to media and advertising pressure to look good, pressures to perform at school and to the loose contacts among family members.
  
  
• Depression is often the background factor in youth suicide. The self-destructiveness of young people (age 15-25) has for decades been high in international comparison in Finland. In 2005 there were about 100 cases (35 girls, 65 boys) of youth suicides (of age 15 to 25).  This number of deaths is bigger than the number of youngsters of same age dying in traffic accidents in Finland. On the positive side, however, the numbers have come down since the early 1990s, especially among boys, thanks to suicide prevention work.
  
  
• Two tragic school shooting cases during the last year have triggered a national discussion about their causes and risk factors involved. Official investigations are still ongoing but in the background we can see that, on the other hand, the easy availability of guns (rooted in the tradition of hunting) and, on the other, the close attachment of the perpetrators of the school killings to very strongly ideological international internet communities that promote "a hatred of mankind". The perpetrators had done well at school but bullying has partly overshadowed their lives. The proposed remedies have been to lower the threshold of seeking help for mental health problems, more education also at school in expressing feelings and discussing values, programs against bullying, a greater youth work presence on the internet, closer contacts between parents/other adults and adolescents, stricter legislation on guns and better tools for the police to investigate internet activity. 

Current strategic approaches: where are we heading at national level? 

• The Finnish Constitution gives a strong status for children as bearers of rights:  Section 6 (1999) "Children shall be treated equally and as individuals and they shall be allowed to influence matters pertaining to themselves to a degree corresponding to their level of development."
  
  
• This section reflects clear commitment to the UN CRC and therefore provides legitimacy to the work of the Ombudsman for Children. However, this does not automatically imply that good policies are created. During the last 3-4 years, however there has been a clear change in national policies where children, youth and families issues and children's rights have received more attention and focus in the national level strategic planning and the agendas of political parties. We are living amidst interesting and promising changes in the focus of key administrators and politicians where children get more attention and more coordinated child policies are drafted. The political parties are rather unanimous in the field, and it is not "a battleground" in any means.
  

What has made this possible?

• There have been legislative changes that have promoted the change and have given continuity throughout the changes of government coalitions. This began from the establishment of the Ombudsman for Children office in 2005, new Youth Act (2006) and the profoundly reformed Child Protection Act (2008). The Youth Act and Child Protection Act emphasize the role of strategic planning and coordination cross sectors both on the government level (Youth Act) and municipal level (Child Protection Act). They also emphasize the obligation of decision makers to listen to the opinions of children and young people themselves in developing services and concerning matters pertaining to them.
  
  
• According to the Youth Act, the first "Finnish Government Child and Youth policy Programme 2007 - 2011" was adopted in late 2007. This includes, for example a commitment for introducing broad concept of web based and in the web youth work in Finland. http://www.minedu.fi/OPM/Julkaisut/2007/Lapsi-_ja_nuorisopolitiikan_kehittamisohjelma_2007-2011?lang=en
  
  
• All ministries, many NGOs and academic researches took part in the process of drafting the program. Advice of the Ombudsman for Children was well taken into attention. This one-year process was educative for the roughly 20 senior officials from ministries who for the first time discussed children, youth and family issues in cross-sectoral terms. These had previously been planned separately and within each sector alone (social, health, education, youth work).
  
  
• There was continuity across the change in the government coalition. The new government launched a 4-year special coordination office (2007 - 2011) to secure the implementation of the prioritized parts of the national programme. This was possible because since 2003 governments have followed the policy of adopting 2-4 special priorities for their work. After the 2007 elections, the welfare of children, youth and families was chosen as one of three priority areas. http://www.minedu.fi/lapset_nuoret_perheet/?lang=en
  
  
• The Leadership in the Youth Work Department of the Ministry of Education has been very co-operative and interested in promoting child policy, children's rights and co-operation with the Ombudsman for Children. The Ombudsman's office has put a lot emphasis on networking and committing key actors in the field to the childrens´ rights based approach. These include 1) national children's protection NGOs, 2) Evangelical Lutheran Church, 3) Youth Sports NGOs, 4) the National Youth Council and 5) Children's health NGOs.  This network conducted much lobbying of the new government and succeeded in getting children, youth and families as prioritized as mentioned above. Personal contacts to high enough decision makers that have strategic mandates were necessary (party leaders, key negotiators of government platform).
  
  
• The government coordination office focuses especially on the basic infrastructures of coordinated child policies such as 1) improving the knowledge base about childrens wellbeing 2) studying child impact assessment methods 3) information and communication campaigning on the children's rights 4) preventive and early intervention approach in supporting families, children and youth 5) better media education/increased media literacy of children and their parents and safe media environment.
  
  
• There are municipal elections ongoing and the network mentioned above has launched a campaign in order to commit potential local decision makers to wellbeing of children and young people. About 1000 candidates have already signed in their commitment in the web. The municipalities are obliged according to the Child Protection Act, draft once in every 4 years a strategic plan to improve the wellbeing of children in cross-sectoral terms (a new obligation).
  
  
• In conclusion: My emphasis in working as the Ombudsman for Children is on the national, strategic level.  My goal is to get the issue of children as high on the agenda nationally as possible. This means having an impact on documents such as the government platform, key parliamentary documents and the strategic plans of different ministries.
  
  
• I emphasise that in the UN CRC Protection, Provision and Participation are all equally important rights. Better means and methods of participation of children are needed in order to attain better quality in the protection and provision of services.
  
  
• Listening to the opinions of children has to be applied on different levels. These include 1) client relations in services or institutions (school, day care, social work, health, alternative care) 2) planning and feed back procedures of individual services (leadership commitment) and in 3) setting priorities, which includes interaction with decision makers and children/youth.  It is the responsibility of adults to learn to interact with children of different ages and to inform them about relevant issues. This means giving value to children's experience and knowledge. However, this does not mean transferring decision-making powers to children in matters where the educator or the parent should bear the responsibility.