Northern Ireland Community Relations Council - About Us - News - Childhood in Transition - Experiencing Marginalisation and Conflict in Northern Ireland

10 November 2009

a report by Siobhán McAlister, Phil Scraton and Deena Haydon Childhood, Transition and Social Justice Initiative Queen’s University Belfast

Project:This partnership research project, within six communities in Northern Ireland most affected by poverty and the legacy of the Conflict, raises profound concerns about entrenched inequalities, infrastructural under-resourcing and the systemic denial of children’s rights. Presenting compelling evidence from their daily experiences in families, schools, and communities, it illustrates the marginalisation and exclusion experienced by children and young people. In contrast with official discourses of peace/ post-conflict and rights, it considers the persistent impacts of violence and sectarianism on children’s and young people’s experiences, including their sense of identity and place. The findings establish a framework for action at a key moment in the contemporary history of Northern Ireland. They reinforce the need for rights-based policies across government departments and promotion/ protection of rights within the practice of statutory, voluntary and community agencies involved in the lives of children, young people and their families.

Chapters:Theoretical and Methodological Contexts; Northern Ireland – Transition from Conflict; Images of Children and Young People; Personal Life and Relationships; Education and Employment; Community and Policing; Place and Identity; Segregation and Sectarianism; Violence in the Context of Conflict and Marginalisation; Services and Support; The Rights Deficit; Findings and Summary of Key Issues.

ISBN: 976 0 8536 9962 4

For further details please contact: Deaglan Coyle, School of Law, QUB

Tel: 028 9097 3472

Em: d.p.coyle@qub.ac.uk