We promote child-friendly justice systems, which recognise the right of children to special protection, have a minimum age of criminal responsibility of 14 or higher, abolish status offences and use detention only as a measure of last resort, diverting children away from criminal justice systems wherever possible.
- We advocate for child-friendly justice systems. Such systems prioritise crime prevention; increase the age of criminal responsibility; set up a separate criminal justice system for children with trained staff; abolish status offences; divert children from formal criminal justice systems wherever possible and use detention only as a last resort; focus on reintegration and rehabilitation programmes; and prohibit all forms of violence against children in conflict with the law.
- We co-organised the 5th World Congress on Justice With Children, held in Madrid in June 2025, alongside key global partners. Under the theme “Advancing Child-Centred Justice: Preventing and Responding to Violence Affecting Children in the Child Justice Systems”, the Congress included over 100 sessions featuring experts, practitioners and children with lived experience to examine violence affecting children in justice systems. The event concluded with the launch of the 2025 Global Declaration on Advancing Child-Centred Justice, which outlines specific commitments to improve access, accountability and participation in justice processes involving children.
- We support children through initiatives that strengthen rights-based justice systems in Europe: The Data MOSAIC project enhances the monitoring of violence against children in detention by developing a child-sensitive data collection tool, co-designed with children and implemented in collaboration with justice authorities. The PPRO Child project focuses on the impact of digitalisation (e.g. remote hearings) on the procedural rights of children, identifying risks and good practices to safeguard child-friendly justice.
- We provide guidance on how criminal justice responses should meet the unique and specific needs of girls, based on the UN Bangkok Rules and other human rights standards.
- We publish research and recommendations for reform, and develop resources for policy-makers, prison authorities, judges, members of inspection committees, prison staff, as well as social and probation workers who work with children in contact with the law.
- We provide training to build the capacity and skills of professionals, such as judges, prison staff, social and probation workers who work with children in contact with the law
- We advocate at regional and international forums, to highlight the most pressing challenges in implementing international standards on children in conflict with the law.