Every Child Matters (ECM)
Every Child Matters (ECM) is a child protection policy initiative that was launched in England and Wales in 2003, aiming to enhance the safety, health, and welfare of children and young people. The initiative was a response to the tragic case of Victoria Climbié, an eight-year-old who suffered abuse and neglect before her death in 2000, prompting significant reforms in children's services. The ECM framework introduced the acronym SHEEP, which stands for safety, health, enjoyment, economic well-being, and positive contribution, highlighting the comprehensive support that all children should receive, regardless of their background.
The initiative was part of the Children Act of 2004, which sought to improve child welfare systems and reduce child poverty, although financial constraints hindered its implementation over time. Initially well-funded, ECM became less prioritized following the 2008 global financial crisis, leading to criticisms from social-service professionals about the government's commitment to child safety. In 2010, a new coalition government announced a shift away from the ECM terminology, raising concerns about the future of child protection efforts. Despite these changes, the government maintained that it would continue to pursue the objectives established by previous legislation, including the involvement of private firms in safeguarding children.
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Every Child Matters (ECM)
Every Child Matters (ECM) is a policy initiative for child protection in England and Wales. The aim of ECM, which was launched by the UK government in 2003, is to provide services that ensure the safety and health of young people and to protect them from violence and abuse. The policy is aimed at children aged nineteen and younger and disabled people aged twenty-four and younger. After the United Kingdom’s coalition government took office in 2010, the Department for Education announced that it would no longer use the terminology established by ECM in reference to its child-welfare initiatives.
Overview
The impetus behind the establishment of ECM in 2003 was the murder of eight-year-old Ivorian immigrant Victoria Adjo Climbié, who was living with her great-aunt, Marie-Thérèse Kouao, in London. Climbié endured serious neglect and several episodes of violent physical abuse at the hands of Kouao and Kouao’s boyfriend before dying of multiple injuries, organ failure, malnutrition, and hypothermia in February 2000. Despite the fact that Climbié had been treated at a hospital on two separate occasions, no effort to further investigate her living situation had been made on the part of health or law-enforcement officials. Following Climbié’s death, Kouao and her boyfriend were both sentenced to life in prison.
Climbié’s murder led to the passage of the Children Act of 2004, which instituted several amendments to the Children Act of 1989. The ECM policy initiative was a part of the 2004 reappraisal of children’s health and safety policies in the United Kingdom. ECM established the acronym SHEEP to represent the provisions ECM would aim to afford to every child, regardless of their economic status or background. The acronym stands for safety, health, enjoyment, economic well-being, and positive contribution, the latter of which is a reference to the idea that all children should have the opportunity to contribute to society at large. The Children Act of 2004 also established directors of children’s services throughout England and Wales and led to the creation of the ContactPoint database of children’s information, which was later discontinued.
The Children Act of 2004 aimed to cut the rate of child poverty in England and Wales by half before 2010. However, budget restrictions caused lawmakers and social-service organizations to miss this deadline. Similarly, ECM received robust government funding in the years following its initial passage but became less of a priority as the UK government struggled to manage its economy in the wake of the global financial crisis of 2008. Upon announcing in 2010 that it would change various terminologies associated with ECM and the Children Act of 2004, the newly formed coalition government, led by Prime Minister David Cameron, was criticized by some social-service professionals for abandoning the goal of child safety and protection. Despite the fact that funding for child protection did not return to 2004 levels, government officials continued to voice their commitment to the goals established by previous legislation. In 2013, the government announced that it would begin taking bids from private firms in its effort to safeguard children nationwide.
Bibliography
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