On 8 May 2002, hundreds of children representing more than 100 countries marched on New York in the Global March for Children's Rights.

UNICEF/Stacy Sullivan

Every child and young person under the age of 18 has rights, no matter who they are, where they live or what they believe in. These rights are protected by an agreement between almost all of the countries in the world. This is called the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

On the 20th November 1989, the United Nations (UN) approved the Convention on the Rights of the Child. All of the countries in the world have now signed up to it (or "ratified" it) except for Somalia and the United States of America. A convention is an agreement between countries to obey the same law.

Under the Convention, children have the right to have their basic needs met: survival, protection, health care, food and water. They also have the right to opportunities to help them reach their full potential: education, play, sports, opinions and involvement in decisions that affect them.

The Convention is needed because people under the age of 18 need special care and protection that adults don't need. It says that everyone under 18 years of age has all the rights it contains, whatever their race, religion, abilities, whatever they think or say, whatever type of family they come from. With these rights come responsibilities. Every child, young person and adult has a responsibility to make sure that the way they behave doesn't stop others from getting their rights.

Governments are responsible for making these rights available to everyone, and making sure that all parents and children know about and understand the convention. Adults and governments should work together to make sure all children get all their rights. All organisations concerned with children should work towards what is best for them.

Rights in the UK

The United Kingdom ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child on 16 December 1991. That means that our government now has to make sure that every child has all the rights in the convention, except the two rights that they said they had "reservations" about. They have to regularly report to a panel of independent experts, to tell them about the progress they've made towards getting all children all of their rights.

The UK has reservations about article 10, which says that families who live in different countries should be able to move between those countries so that parents and children can stay in contact, or get back together as a family.

It also has reservations about article 37, which says that children who break the law should not be treated cruelly. This article says that children should not be put in prison with adults, and should be able to keep in contact with their families. Because the UK has expressed reservations about these rights, it hasn't agreed to make sure that children get them.

Find out more

Learn more about the Convention.

Download all your rights under the Convention.

Read about the Every Human Has Rights campaign.