Combating child poverty: an issue of fundamental rights

Children are full-fledged holders of rights. They are beneficiaries of all human and fundamental rights and subjects of special regulations, given their specific characteristics. This handbook aims to illustrate how European law and case law accommodate the specific interests and needs of children. It also considers the importance of parents and guardians or other legal representatives and makes reference, where appropriate, to situations in which rights and responsibilities are most prominently vested in children’s carers. It is a point of reference on both European Union (EU) and Council of Europe (CoE) law related to these subjects, explaining how each issue is regulated under EU law, including the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, as well as under the European Convention on Human Rights, the European Social Charter and other CoE instruments.

Child rights come first. Measures to ensure child protection and participation apply to all children in the EU. This brochure guides you to relevant FRA reports and tools that can support you when promoting and protecting the rights of all children in the EU.

Some 80% of Roma surveyed live below their country’s at-risk-of-poverty threshold; every third Roma lives in housing without tap water; every third Roma child lives in a household where someone went to bed hungry at least once in the previous month; and 50% of Roma between the ages of six and 24 do not attend school. This EU-MIDIS II report underscores an unsettling but unavoidable reality: the European Union’s largest ethnic minority continues to face intolerable discrimination and unequal access to vital services.

Children with disabilities face significant barriers to enjoying their fundamental rights. They are often excluded from society, sometimes living in facilities far from their families. They are also denied access to basic services, such as health care and education, and endure stigma and discrimination, as well as sexual, physical and psychological violence. FRA scrutinised the important but underreported issue of violence against children with disabilities, carrying out desk research and conducting interviews with knowledgeable stakeholders. This report presents the results of that research.

This report presents the results of the European Union Agency’s for Fundamental Rights (FRA) 2011 Roma survey on poverty and employment, which show, for example, that although most Roma are actively seeking a job, only about a third of those surveyed has paid work, which is often precarious and informal. It reveals multiple challenges:very low employment rates were observed, in particular for young Roma.