Torbay has been awarded its UNICEF Child Friendly Cities and Communities ‘Certificate of Commitment’ in recognition of the work we have been doing with children, families and partners across the Bay to demonstrate commitment to listening to children and respecting their rights.

A new Child Friendly Action Plan, developed with input from local children and young people and those who work with them, was agreed at Torbay Council Cabinet on Tuesday 12 May before being submitted to UNICEF UK for approval.

Children and young people have been engaged through surveys, face to face sessions in local schools, and a ‘Discovery Day’ event was held at the Riviera International Centre.

At the Discovery Day, children and young people voted on what they thought were the most important things to focus on for the rest of the programme. These things are called "badges,". Progress will be measured based on these badges.  

This plan explains:

• What needs to change to make Torbay safer, healthier and more child friendly
• What adults and organisations will do differently
• How children and young people will continue to be involved in decisions

Naomi Danquah, Programme Director of Child Friendly Cities and Communities, UNICEF UK, said:

“Torbay’s Certificate of Commitment is a proud moment for the area, recognising a shared effort by the council, partners, and most importantly children and young people, to put children’s rights at the heart of local decision-making.

Their voices have helped shape the priorities for what comes next, and while this is just the beginning, it sets a strong foundation for lasting change by embedding children’s rights across services, creating more opportunities for young people to be heard, and building a community where every child feels respected and able to thrive.”

Councillor Nick Bye, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services for Torbay, said: “This is a really exciting step forward for Torbay and I would like to say a big thank you to all the children and young people in particular who have worked with us and local partners to create our Child Friendly Torbay Action Plan. We have engaged with local children and young people, professionals who work with them and the local voluntary and community sector and we are aiming to take the Action Plan forward as soon as possible.”

Councillor Cordelia Law, Chair of Torbay’s Children’s Overview and Scrutiny Board, said: “Our children are 23% of our community but 100% of our future.

“This is just the start and we look forward to embedding this important work across everything the Council does and continuing to enhance our work with children and young people to give them a strong voice in Torbay’s future.”

The Child Friendly work sees councillors, council staff and local community and voluntary sector partners turning to children’s rights to guide decisions that affect children and young people in Torbay.

The right of the child to have their views heard and taken seriously for example, will mean that children will have a say in council decisions – from important policies, to decisions around the care they receive – as well as the opportunity to design local services and spaces.

The goal of the programme is to make communities places where all the local children and young people have a positive and meaningful input, so they can benefit from the plans, decisions, spaces and services they use and that impact their lives where they grow up.

Following approval by UNICEF UK and the awarding of the Certificate of Commitment by them, we will now collaborate with local children and young people across the Bay to work on a Child Friendly version of the Action Plan.

One of the first ‘Child Friendly’ workstreams that is already being progressed is to improve and upgrade play parks in Torbay, with the Council working with SWISCo to invest £500,000 across 13 play parks in Torbay. Work has already started on parks including Kitson Park, Exe Hill, and Dart Park.

SWISCo has already spoken to around 2,000 pupils at seven schools across the Bay to capture their views about the next phase of the play park improvement programme.

There is also £270,000 of central government funding available for play improvement for the creation of three playgrounds within the Torquay area. 

Find out more about our Child Friendly work on our webpages.