Enduring principles in a changing world

I have spent a large part of my professional life working in the Children's Hearings System in Scotland. This piece is about how and why the Children’s Hearings System continues to be the way in which we try to improve the situation for children and young people who face adversity of different kinds. I look at the founding principles of the Children's Hearings System and how they have continued to be relevant in Scotland. The piece is also about the current challenges faced by the volunteers, professionals and families who are involved in the system and the work that is ongoing to address these challenges. The piece is a personal reflection – not a statement of the position of either the Children's Hearings System or the Scottish Children's Reporter Administration. Some of the reflections also formed the basis for an opinion article by the Principal Reporter, Neil Hunter, titled "Agenda: The new dialogue around the Children’s Hearings system" which was published in Scotland in The Herald on 30th April 2018.