Committee on the Rights of the Child
Seventy-eighth session
14 May-1 June 2018
Item 4 of the provisional agenda
C onsideration of reports of States parties
List of issues in relation to the combined fifth and sixth periodic reports of Norway
Addendum
Replies of Norway to the list of issues * , **
[Date received: 16 February 2018]
Part I
Question 1
New Child Welfare Act and child welfare services reform
1.A public committee ’ s proposed new Child Welfare Act is being followed up. Some key proposals have been submitted to the Storting for consideration, including on children’s right to participate and the right to child welfare measures. Work on a consultation paper on the proposed new Child Welfare Act is also ongoing. The committee has thoroughly reviewed Norway’s international obligations. Ensuring the proposal complies with the human rights conventions and any judgments of the European Court of Human Rights is an important part of the work on the new Act.
Question 2
The Giant Leap
2.The Giant Leap programme was created to help municipalities concretise the articles in the Convention so they can be used in planning and quality assuring services for children and young people. The method has been adopted in various forms by all county governor offices. 11 of the 18 offices regard applying the Convention as a regular part of the office’s work. Experience shows that the offices feel they have a better understanding of the Convention and are more expert in its application. 16 of the 18 offices apply the Convention actively in their work with municipalities. Experience also shows that the thinking around children’s rights has become more holistic across professions and organisational units.
Municipalities and staffing
3.Variations in the staffing and coverage of municipal child welfare services are due to factors such as the municipalities’ different ways of organising services for vulnerable children and families. Part of the reason for the differing priorities and ways of organising the services in Norway is that Norwegian municipalities are funded through general appropriations that provide them with a right of autonomy.
4.Many municipalities have built up similar preventive services that result in less strain on child welfare services, which thus require lower staffing levels. At the same time, measures have been implemented with respect to municipalities that make low staffing levels in child welfare services a challenge. In the awarding of earmarked funds for posts in the last 4 years, more attention has been paid to the strain on the services. This has improved capacity in the most vulnerable services. The national authorities have also recently developed digital tools that provide municipalities with better information about the status and capacity of their own child welfare services compared with other municipalities. The aim is to increase the attention paid to child welfare services by municipalities’ senior administrative and political leadership.
Question 3
Strengthening the Ombudsman for Children
5.In recent years, the Ombudsman has received a special grant for work on pupils’ psychosocial school environment to strengthen the Ombudsman and ensure it can help children and parents in complicated cases. It was envisaged the funds would be used to strengthen the Ombudsman’s legal expertise on schools so pupils, parents and others could get advice on their rights and obligations pursuant to the Education Act.
6.The 2017 national budget increased this grant by 111 per cent from NOK 2.7 million to NOK 5.7 million. In addition to the aforementioned objective, the grant was to be used to strengthen the Ombudsman’s work with children’s psychological environment in kindergarten. The grant was continued at this level in the 2018 national budget.
Complaints mechanisms
7.The county governor’s office is the appeal body in child welfare cases for both decisions taken by municipalities and interventions made in institutions.
8.Parents can lodge complaints on their children’s behalf in a number of areas concerning kindergarten offers.
9.Parents can lodge a complaint if their child is not offered a kindergarten place in the annual general admissions process or is not assigned a place in their first or second choice. In some cases, children with disabilities can also lodge complaints in supplementary admission processes during the year.
10.Parents are entitled to lodge complaints concerning the maximum limit for parents’ fees and about decisions concerning lower parents’ fees due to discount schemes. Parents can also lodge complaints about decisions concerning: special educational assistance and compliance failures, the right to free transport, adapting kindergarten offers for children with disabilities, and sign language instruction.
11.Collectively, parents have a genuine opportunity to influence, and ask questions about, the content, environment and operation of kindergartens through parents’ councils and coordinating committees. Kindergarten owners must put all important matters before parents’ councils and coordinating committees.
12.For compulsory education, see the response to question 4.
Question 4
13.Article 104 of the Constitution fixes the principle of the best interests of the child in law, as do a number of special Act and Regulations concerning children.
14.A bill intended to help improve documentation of children’s participation and assessments of children’s best interests in child welfare decisions is being considered by the Storting.
15.The principle of the best interests of the child is also addressed in part II 15 (a) Imprisoned minors and children with imprisoned parents.
16.In 2015, it became compulsory for applicants in international adoption cases to complete a preparatory course for adoption prior to gaining advance approval. A new, easier to understand Adoption Act has been passed. The Act is not yet in effect. The Act will ensure adopted children have a right to information and expand the rules concerning who can learn the identity of the original parents. Previously, only the adoptee had this right, but if the adoptee dies their descendants can now also learn the original parents’ identity.
17.The Regulation on the right of children aged 12–16 to consent to research using their medical data (medical and health) in a limited number of specified research projects came into force on 1 July 2017.
18.The Regulation on the genetic screening of newborns was amended from 1 January 2018 to expand such screening to cover two new diseases. The diseases added can cause serious health damage or death in the first year of life. If they are identified early and treatment starts quickly, the child can recover.
19.The Health and Care Services Act has been amended to give municipalities a duty to inform child welfare services when a decision to detain a pregnant, substance-addicted woman has been made and executed. Up to now, the duty has been limited to children who have been born, but with this change child welfare services will learn if a pregnant woman is abusing substances in a manner that could cause birth defects. Child welfare services will in these cases thus receive enough information to contact the institution holding the woman and try and establish a dialogue and partnership with the pregnant woman.
20.The Specialist Health Services Act, Dental Health Services Act and Health and Care Services Act were amended from 1 January 2018 as part of a greater effort to combat domestic violence. The amendments clarify the services’ responsibilities at a systemic level. The services must pay particular attention to the fact that patients may face, or be in danger of facing, violence or sexual abuse. The amendments also enable the health and care services to prevent, identify and avert violence and sexual abuse.
21.The principle of the best interests of the child has been integrated into the Kindergarten Act and Regulations through the objective and content of kindergartens in the Kindergarten Act and a separate provision concerning children’s right to participate. The provisions are described in the Regulation on the framework plan for the content and tasks of kindergartens. The framework plan refers to the principle in the Constitution and the Convention as an overarching principle that applies to all kindergarten activities and specifies how kindergarten employees should treat children to ensure good, tailored kindergarten provision and work with parents in the child’s best interests.
22.Amendments to the Education Act came into force in 2017. There is now a clear zero-tolerance policy in compulsory education against all forms of bullying, violence, discrimination, harassment and other violations, irrespective of the basis for the discrimination or harassment, i.e. gender, philosophy of life, functional ability, sexual orientation, etc. A clear new duty to act for schools should help to ensure a good, safe school environment for each pupil. In practice, the duty means that schools must act quickly and effectively. No school will be able to turn its back, say they did not know, play down pupils’ experiences or not intervene. A stricter duty to act also applies in cases where the bullying is committed by a school employee.
23.The county governor will be the first point of contact for pupils’ and parents’ complaints. The complaints mechanism is simultaneously being made simpler, faster and better than the old system. The county governor can impose coercive fines/daily fines on municipalities. The amendments also involve other measures such as a duty for schools to inform pupils and parents about rules concerning the school environment and changes to school rules. The amendments are intended to underpin other measures, including enhancing skills and various information measures.
Training in and knowledge about the Convention
24.The content of several professional courses was changed in the tertiary education sector in 2016–2017 to ensure students acquire better skills in the area of violence and abuse. The change involves various teacher education courses, including for kindergarten teachers and health and social studies courses.
25.The CRC as such is not a defined part of the curriculum for the general prison officer education at the University College of Norwegian Correctional Services. It is, however, partly integrated into the subjects ‘Rehabilitation & Reintegration’ and ‘Vulnerable Groups’. Personnel in the Juvenile Units receive basic knowledge of the Convention. In 2015, a new scheme was introduced in all Norwegian prisons. In this connection, Child Responsible personnel were given a general introduction to the Convention and its incorporation into Norwegian law. The Convention is also a topic in specialised courses.
26.The qualifications framework for higher education describes what everyone who has completed a course should have learned and the learning outcomes for the various levels of higher education. The Ministry of Education and Research establishes descriptors for some courses in framework plans. This applies to teacher education and many health and social studies courses. However, actual syllabuses are set by universities and university colleges themselves.
27.The framework plans for teacher education highlight candidates’ responsibility to accommodate the rights of children and young people and their needs, possibly together with the children’s home and/or other professions. Participation and formation in a democratic society are mentioned in several framework plans. Thus, educational institutions are bound by the framework plans and must ensure candidates have achieved the set learning outcome when they get their diploma.
28.The Regulation concerning a common framework plan for health and social studies courses contains a descriptor that states that after completing such a course candidates should possess knowledge about children and young people and be a practitioner who addresses their need for care and/or services and who can ensure their participation and rights.
29.As a method, the Giant Leap programme helps to concretise the articles in the Convention. It is a tool that consists of a number of questions and is used to train those who work with/for children at a municipal level in the Convention and raise their awareness of it. These questions are collectively answered by staff in municipal services in cooperation with the municipal youth councils. The results are then presented for political consideration. The results of this work can be used in planning and quality assuring services for children and young people. The county governor of Troms has had special responsibility for helping to implement the Convention in county governor offices and municipalities.
Question 5
LGBTI
30.Many LGBTI children feel they do not fit in with society’s expectations concerning gender and sexuality. Surveys indicate that non-heterosexual children are overrepresented when it comes to the use of child welfare services and struggle with poor mental health. Limited research-based data is available about intersex children.
31.The Government’s action plan for combating discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression, Safety, Diversity, Openness (2017–2020), contains a series of measures specifically targeted at LGBTI children and young people. For example, support for Skeiv Ungdom (the national organisation for young LGBTI people) will continue, the Government’s Ung.no website will be updated, and the skills of school teachers and child welfare service staff will be improved. The Ung.no help service is operated by the Norwegian Directorate for Children, Youth and Family Affairs (Bufdir) and has 200 experts who can answer questions on a total of 80 subjects. No fewer than 886,000 unique users used the service in October 2017.
Ethnic discrimination
32.We have no general overview of discrimination against children from ethnic and national minority groups and indigenous groups. There are reports on some sectoral areas.
33.Many children are bullied, are targets of hate speech, or are subjected to sexual and other abuse via digital media. It has been reported that many Jewish pupils feel they are harassed due to their faith. Pupils with Muslim backgrounds also appear to be more exposed than before because of the greater polarisation in society.
34.About one in five Sami pupils with strong Sami links has experienced discrimination in school or an educational context.
35.According to the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act, schools have a duty to prevent and stop harassment. Teaching and teaching materials should be based on equality and combating discrimination whatever the basis for discrimination.
36.The Government has financially supported the “Stop hate speech” campaign since 2014. It is part of the Council of Europe’s “Young people combating hate speech online” campaign. The Government has launched its own strategy against hate speech. The strategy is intended to counter hate speech due to ethnicity, religion and philosophy of life disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression. One of the strategy’s focus areas is children and young people. The Government presented an action plan to combat anti-Semitism in October 2016. Many of the measures are targeted at children and young people.
37.A special survey on the living conditions of the Norwegian-born children of immigrant parents will be conducted in 2018.
Question 6
38.The framework plan obliges kindergartens to work actively on inclusion and individual development. Children with disabilities have a statutory right to prioritisation in kindergarten admissions. Municipalities must ensure that children with disabilities receive a suitable, individually adapted kindergarten offer.
39.The Education Act contains a series of provisions that are intended to ensure inclusion. The Government will give schools a duty to offer intensive teaching to pupils who are behind in reading, writing and arithmetic in years 1–4. In March 2017, the Government appointed an expert group for children and young people who need special adaptation, which will submit its report in spring 2018. A county-based bully ombudsman scheme will be launched in autumn 2018. The “0–24 Partnership”, a 5-year project between several directorates will improve the follow-up of vulnerable children and young people aged 0–24. In collaboration with the sector, the Government will develop a comprehensive plan for improving quality in pedagogical-psychological services. Vocational subjects will also be boosted in collaboration with school owners and business parties.
40.Statped, the national service for special needs education for municipalities and county authorities, will base its work on a perspective of inclusion. It is also responsible for producing Braille, sign language and other teaching materials.
41.The Storting has passed a single Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act that ensures inclusive education by expanding the universal design obligation for ICT to include the teaching and education sector. Teaching materials and teaching should be based on the objective of the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act.
42.The Government has presented its report Deltakelse og mangfold — regjeringens innsats for personer med funksjonsnedsettelser (2014–2017) [Participation and diversity — The Government’s work for people with disabilities]. The report contains a series of measures concerning inclusive education, vocational training and recreational opportunities.
43.The Government ’ s Action Plan for Universal Design (2015–2019) contains measures that will help secure children with disabilities access to education, vocational training and recreational opportunities. From 2019, the plan will be followed up by a national strategy plan for equality for people with disabilities. The purpose of the plan is to ensure a more coordinated, holistic, nationwide effort for equality for people with disabilities. Dialogue meetings between the political leadership of the Ministry of Children and Equality and the organisation Norwegian Young Disabled are held twice a year.
44.Bufdir administers the grant schemes “Support for follow-up and pilot functions” and “Recreational measures for people with disabilities”.
45.Bufdir has created an online resource for people with disabilities with a special section on rights in school and recreation.
46.The Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sports (NIF) awards earmarked funds for work with athletes with disabilities and for equipment for people with disabilities. Children are a priority target group.
Question 7
Youth councils
47.Around 90% of Norway’s municipalities have a youth council or children and youth municipal council. In 2018, the work on encouraging good participation schemes for children and young people will include preparation of a Regulation with which municipalities and county authorities must comply if they want a youth council.
School environment committees and pupils’ councils
48.Every primary and lower secondary school must have a school environment committee with representatives from among the pupils, parents’ council, staff, management and municipality. School environment committees are regulated by the Education Act.
49.School environment committees are meant to help ensure schools, staff, pupils and parents actively participate in creating a good school environment. School environment committees are entitled to express themselves on matters concerning the school environment.
50.There must be pupils’ councils containing pupil representatives of the pupils for years 5–7 and 8–10 at each primary and lower secondary school. Pupils’ councils are regulated by the Education Act. Pupils’ councils are meant to promote the common interests of pupils in the school and help create a good learning and school environment. The councils should also be able to express themselves, and make suggestions, on matters to do with the pupil community.
Question 8
51.Education must be understood here as meaning the provision provided by public or private kindergartens and schools governed by the Kindergarten Act, Education Act and Independent Schools Act, and not holistic, human rights-based education in sports clubs, faith communities or other voluntary activities in which a child participates.
Education
52.Kindergarten is the first, voluntary step on the educational pathway and should be based on the fundamental values of Christian and humanist heritage and tradition, such as respect for human dignity and nature, intellectual liberty, benevolence, forgiveness, equality and solidarity, cf. the Kindergarten Act, section 1. Owners of private kindergartens can specify in their regulations that the values in section 1 should not be rooted in Christian and humanist heritage and tradition, but cannot exempt themselves from the values. Private kindergartens and kindergartens owned/operated by congregations of the Church of Norway can also adopt special provisions in their regulations concerning faith and philosophy of life objectives. Such provisions cannot replace the fundamental values in the objective provision, but will be a supplement.
53.Compulsory education is provided by public and independent schools. The operation of independent schools is governed by the Independent School Act and they are subject to government supervision. The purpose and content of the teaching in both independent and public schools are governed by law. The Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training is the national, executive agency for all supervisory activities in the area of compulsory education. Independent schools are supervised by the directorate. The directorate can open a supervision case at a school based on systematic selection, based on established criteria or after specific reports from county governors, pupils, parents, staff or others about possible unacceptable conditions at the school. The themes of the supervision must be selected based on risk assessments and can, for example, be the school’s use of state support and school fees, the school’s anti-bullying work and the physical school environment.
The subject of Christianity, Religion, Philosophies of Life and Ethics
54.Christianity plays a very important role in Norwegian history and culture. Hence the wish to afford Christianity a somewhat larger place in religious education in school. The change from RLE (Religion, Philosophies of Life and Ethics) to KRLE (Christianity, Religion, Philosophies of Life and Ethics) was part of both the Government’s platform and the cooperation agreement between the supporting parties, the Liberal Party and the Christian Democratic Party, for 2013–2017. According to the Education Act, KRLE must present world religions and philosophies of life in an objective, critical and pluralistic manner. The purpose of the subject must be to provide knowledge about Christianity, other world religions and philosophies of life, and ethical and philosophical subjects.
Question 9
55.The Escalation Plan against Violence and Abuse (2017–2021) was adopted by the Storting in April 2017. The plan describes the main challenges associated with violence and abuse, especially in relation to children, and presents measures to meet these challenges.
56.These measures include the following:
Norway is developing a national teaching and training programme on talking to children and young people about violence and abuse for municipal staff;
The capacity of “Alternative to Violence” has been strengthened, including by ensuring the foundation is better able to offer child victims of violence help and treatment;
Norway intends to present a parental support strategy. One of the goals is better support, help and guidance for parents so they become more confident and better caregivers for their children;
The Government has tightened the requirements for certificates of good conduct for kindergarten staff;
A new framework plan for kindergartens is clearer about the staff’s responsibility to be aware that children may face neglect, violence and sexual abuse, and to know how this can be prevented and identified;
The Education Act that came into force in summer 2017 introduces a clear zero-tolerance policy against all forms of bullying, violence, discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment and other violations. Skills enhancing measures have also been introduced aimed at enabling teachers to foster good relationships between children and between children and adults;
The content of teacher education, including kindergarten teacher education and health and social studies courses, was changed in 2016–2017 to ensure students acquire skills in the area of violence and abuse;
The Government will present a strategy for preventing and combating internet-related abuse;
In 2017, the Government presented its Action Plan against Negative Social Control, Forced Marriage and Female Genital Mutilation (2017–2020);
In March 2017, the Norwegian police started an international campaign against file sharing networks aimed at increasing the police presence where abuse materials are shared;
Since 2012, the Children’s House in Tromsø has had national responsibility for Sami-speaking child victims of violence or sexual abuse, and has a Sami-speaking employee;
The Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies’ study on domestic violence in Sami society is being followed up. The report shows that the Sami population can experience special challenges in their contact with the police and public services;
It was discovered that a number of cases of abuse have been committed in the municipality of Tysfjord in the period 1953–2017. Almost 70 per cent of the victims and suspects belong to the Lule Sami community in Tysfjord. A large-scale investigation has been carried out by the police into a total of 151 cases of sexual abuse. A large number of these cases were dismissed due to statutory limitation, but several have resulted in indictments;
The family counselling services have their own expert environment in the work on combating violence against and the abuse of children;
The capacity of the police to investigate digital abuse has been enhanced.
Helpline for children and young people
57.The helpline is a supplement to other emergency assistance for children and young people. The service is part of the child welfare services and is open when other on-call child welfare services in Norway are closed. The helpline’s goal is for all children subjected to violence, abuse or neglect to know its number: 116 111. In recent years, the helpline has intensified its information work aimed at children and a steadily growing number of children and young people are calling it. The helpline is free.
Question 10
Mental disorders and ADHD
58.National professional guidelines for diagnosing, treating and following up ADHD/hyperkinetic disorders were completed in 2016.
59.The guidelines replace the guide diagnosing and treating ADHD (IS-1244). In addition to being announced in the health services in connection with the publication of the guidelines, in 2017 the Norwegian Directorate of Health entered into a funded agreement with NevSom (Norwegian centre for neurological disorders) (for the diagnostic groups ADHD, autism, Tourette’s syndrome and hypersomnia) concerning commencing implementation of the guidelines.
60.One of the key, introductory recommendations is that the diagnosis process for ADHD in the specialist health services must be wide-ranging such that relevant areas are surveyed and the question of whether other factors or conditions are present that better explain the symptoms and difficulties is always examined. Both individual characteristics and environmental factors must therefore be examined closely.
61.With respect to environmental factors, it is relevant in this context to refer to research showing that children/young people with ADHD have a higher risk of being victims of violence or neglect and are therefore a more vulnerable and exposed group.
62.General recommendations were included in the last revision of the prioritisation guidelines for mental health protection for children and young people that stated the specialist health services, together with the front line, should pay particular attention to vulnerable groups with an elevated risk of developing mental difficulties and disorders. This vulnerability may be due to patient-related factors or stresses in the environment.
63.The Norwegian Directorate of Health has been tasked with assessing which steps can be taken to reduce the prescription of psychoactive drugs, especially including assessing whether the current prescription of antidepressants is professionally desirable.
Question 11
64.Placements outside the home are based on individual assessments of children’s needs and interests. The reasons why children are placed outside the home vary from case to case. There is no specific data that can explain the general rise in the number of children in care. In 2017, the Storting passed a child welfare services reform in which the goal was for children and families to receive earlier and better help. Changes in the municipalities’ funding responsibilities for child welfare measures will give municipalities’ greater financial latitude and stronger incentives to prioritise prevention. The reform also contains a substantial financial effort focused on developing a preventive offer in the municipalities and educational measures for developing the child welfare services’ skills in following up vulnerable children and families. The family council method or other methods for involving children’s families and networks are important measures in preventing placements. The state Child Welfare Service assists municipalities with training and methodological support for family councils. All of Norway’s municipalities have received such an offer.
65.An amendment to the Child Welfare Act came into force on 1 April 2016. The amendment gave the County Social Welfare Board the ability to impose assistance programmes against the parents’ wishes. The aim of the amendment was to improve the situation of children and prevent more invasive measures such as a care order.
Question 12
66.The Norwegian Government refers to the previous response in section 296 of the report and underscores that the Child Welfare Act applies to all children in Norway. Pursuant to Circular Q-06/2010, child welfare services must follow up any report of concern about an unaccompanied asylum-seeking child older than 15 “in accordance with the same procedures and procedural routines that apply in other child welfare cases”.
67.Responsibility for the day-to-day care of unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors is shared between the child welfare services and the immigration authorities. This is described in sections 291 and 294 of the report. There are no immediate plans to expand the child welfare services’ care responsibilities for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children older than 15.
68.In April 2017, the Government presented a bill to amend the Immigration Act’s rules concerning the use of coercive means. The bill contains special rules concerning the detention of children and entails more detailed regulation of detention cases involving families with children and unaccompanied minor asylum seekers. The provisions are designed to ensure that deprivation of liberty is only used when absolutely necessary as a last means of achieving deportation and for the shortest possible period. When arrested, children must be brought before the courts the following day. A clear, general rule applies that children may only be detained for 72 hours, with the option of a 72-hour extension. Exceptions can occur if special and compelling reasons exist and in these circumstances the detainment period may be extended by up to one week at a time. The bill proposed that the Immigration Act should define more precisely that the child’s best interests should always be a primary consideration in cases of detention, and an assessment must be made of whether alternative measures can be implemented instead. How the child’s best interests and alternative measures are assessed must be evident from the court’s reasoning. It also stipulates rules concerning the child’s right to be heard and the role of child welfare services in detention cases.
69.Alternatives to detention were also considered in the work on the bill. The most important “alternative” to deprivation of liberty and forcible return is assisted (voluntary) return with the offer of various support schemes. Information and motivation work (reality orientation) combined with various support schemes for return and reintegration are measures that have been implemented to encourage as many as possible to choose assisted return. Other alternatives to using deprivation of liberty is a duty to report or a specified place of residence. Sometimes, families with children are detained for deportation the following day but it proves impossible to carry out the deportation as planned. In such cases the police often choose to release the family and impose a duty to report and live at a specific reception centre.
70.To try and prevent unaccompanied children disappearing from reception centres, centre staff and immigration authorities follow the routines described in sections 353 and 354 of the report. The aforementioned fast procedure still applies. The police must treat information that a minor asylum seeker is missing from a reception centre in the same way as any other missing child report. All police districts must work closely together and maintain a continuous dialogue with reception centres in their district and establish routines for following up such cases. If there is reason to believe the disappearance is due to a criminal act, an investigation must be started.
Question 13
71.Section 311 of the Penal Code came into force on 1 October 2015. The section applies to a number of forms of dealings with depictions of the sexual abuse of children or depictions that sexualise children. The section continues section 204a of the General Civil Penal Code 1902, but with a number of expansions. A proposition concerning ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse of 25 October 2007 is currently being considered by the Storting.
Question 14
72.Last November, Norway endorsed the Vancouver Principles on Peacekeeping and the Prevention of the Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers at the defence ministers’ meeting on peacekeeping operations. The Principles are voluntary, non-binding rules for raising awareness about the challenges associated with the recruitment and use of child soldiers. Endorsement means that Norway will help to:
Ensure all peacekeeping mandates include measures for protecting children, including preventing the recruitment and use of child soldiers;
Ensure that protecting children and measures for preventing the recruitment and use of child soldiers are included in the training of peacekeeping personnel;
Ensure personnel report child abuse, including the recruitment and use of child soldiers, help to prevent such recruitment, and help to ensure that children subjected to this are treated in accordance with international humanitarian law and international human rights;
Ensure its own personnel comply with UN standards of conduct;
Ensure the protection of children is included in peace agreements;
Ensure it shares the lessons it learns.
73.The immigration authorities have no special procedures for identifying children who have been recruited into, or used in, hostilities abroad. However, as described in the report, the immigration authorities are focused on identifying vulnerable children who need follow-up so they get the necessary support and guidance. Identification takes place during the introductory asylum interview or through contact with reception centre staff.
74.We have no statistical data in the health sector in Norway about children who have been involved in armed conflicts. Children and young people who are traumatised or struggling with post-traumatic disorders are referred to the ordinary support system in the specialist health services, especially to children’s and young people’s psychiatric out-patient clinics (BUP). In recent years, the knowledge-based treatment of traumatised children and young people has been a major area of focus with traumatised cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) in BUP.
Part II
Question 15 (a)
Absolute age limit for entrance into marriage
75.A proposal to introduce an age limit of 18 for getting married in Norway, with no exceptions, is undergoing a consultation process. Work is being done on tightening the rules on recognising marriages entered into abroad in part to ensure that Norwegian law does not support the entry of children into marriage aboard.
Better legal protection from violence and abuse
76.Proposed amendments to the Children Act and General Civil Penal Code have been presented to give children better legal protection from violence and abuse. The proposal gives judges a new duty to assess if a person convicted in a case of violence should be given a restraining order.
Adoption
77.Please see the discussion of a new Adoption Act under question 4.
Transfer schemes for families with children
Cash-for-care benefit
78.From 1 July 2017, parents must have lived in Norway/the EEA for 5 years to be eligible for cash-for-care benefit. The rate was increased from NOK 6,000 to NOK 7,500 on 1 August 2017. Expanded parental leave for parents of multiples. The Storting has issued guidelines on expanded rights for parents of multiples. Parents of twins will get an extra 4 months of parental leave. Parents who have three or more children will get double parental leave. The Government will follow up the guidelines with a bill. The changes will apply to children who are born on or after 1 July 2018. Expanded maternal and paternal quotas — maternal and paternal quotas in parental leave will be expanded for children who are born or adopted on or after 1 July 2018. The quota expansions will take place within the framework of the scheme.
Lump-sum grant
79.The lump-sum grant rate will rise to NOK 63,140 per child for children born or adopted on or after 1 August 2018, i.e. an increase of 79% from 2009 when the amount was NOK 35,263.
Family reunification
80.In 2017, based on a petition decision from the Storting, the Government set the income requirement for family immigration down to the previous level. The amendments described in section 145 of the State Report have come into force. As far as the attachment requirement is concerned, the Immigration Regulations underscore that the relevant country must respect the fundamental rights of refugees and asylum seekers and be available to the family through safe and legal entry. The attachment requirement does not apply when family life must be conducted in a refugee camp. The best interests of the child must be a fundamental consideration in the assessment. The attachment requirement only applies when the reference person has a residence permit based on a need for protection and ceases if the person gains a permanent residence permit or Norwegian citizenship.
Health
81.For changes to health legislation, see the response to question 5.
Imprisoned minors and children with imprisoned parents
82.The following legal amendments regarding imprisoned minors and children with imprisoned parents entail implementation of the principle of the best interest of the child in the Norwegian legal framework: Guidelines for the functioning of Child Responsible personnel in the Correctional Services (which entered into force 23 February 2015); Amendments in the regulations to the Execution of Sentences Act regarding imprisoned minors; as well as children of prisoners; including the introduction of Child Responsible personnel in all prisons (which entered into force 30 October 2015 and Guidelines for imprisonment of minors (which entered into force 28 November 2017.
Procedures for age determination
83.There is currently no medical method for determining someone’s exact age. The results are therefore used with caution and are one of several factors in the immigration authorities’ final age assessment. If there is reasonable doubt about the asylum seeker’s age, the applicant will be considered a minor. The scientific quality of today’s method has recently been improved, but research into a method that can provide more exact results continues.
Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act
84.The Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act came into force on 1 January 2018. The Act provides protection against discrimination due to gender, pregnancy, leave in connection with childbirth or adoption, care responsibilities, ethnicity, religion, philosophy of life, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age or a combination of these. Several provisions in the Act are of special importance for children, young people and parents. The universal design obligation for ICT has been expanded to include the teaching and education sector. Teaching and teaching materials must be based on the principles of equality and anti-discrimination. Discrimination based on age outside working life has been prohibited. Both children and seniors can be treated unequally because of their age.
Child Welfare Service
85.Proposed amendments to the Child Welfare Act are being considered by the Storting. The legislative proposals will help to increase the legal protections of children and parents in child welfare cases by improving the Child Welfare Service’s procedures and strengthening the child perspective in the Act. Work is also being done on comprehensive follow-up of the public committee’s proposals in a consultation paper with proposals for a new Child Welfare Act.
Kindergartens
86.The statutory right to a kindergarten place was expanded in 2016 and 2017 to also apply to children born in September, October and November. These children are now entitled to a kindergarten place from the month they turn 1 year old. The rules concerning special educational assistance for children under compulsory school-starting age were moved from the Education Act to the Kindergarten Act in 2016. The rights of children with special needs were strengthened and the obligations of municipalities to facilitate the offer is clearer. New Regulation concerning the Framework Plan for the Content and Tasks of Kindergartens came into force on 1 August 2017. The new Regulation clarifies the obligations and responsibilities of owners, head teachers and pedagogical leaders.
Question 15 (b)
87.A new Anti-discrimination Tribunal was established on 1 January 2018. The Tribunal enforces complaints about discrimination. The Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud continues to be a driving force in the area of equality and anti-discrimination, provide legal advice and ensure that Norwegian authorities fulfil their obligations pursuant to CEDAW, CERD and CRPD.
Question 15 (c)
88.The Government has presented a young people’s health strategy and a strategy for good mental health, which highlights health promoting prevention measures. The Government wants to develop the public health programme, facilitate better knowledge about the health and life quality of children and young people, including how social media affects children and young people. The Government will also introduce life mastery and public health as an interdisciplinary topic in the national curriculum for the Knowledge Promotion Reform. The strategy for good mental health is not being followed up with special grants. The discussion of children and young people in the strategy is intended to provide a starting point for an escalation plan for the mental health of children and young people. Work on the plan started in January 2018.
89.In 2017, the Storting passed a child welfare services reform. The reform involved transferring increased responsibility for child welfare services to municipalities and measures aimed at improving the quality of these. The organisational changes will come into force at the earliest in 2020. More knowledge — better child welfare services, Skills strategy for municipal child welfare services 2018–2024 is part of the child welfare services reform and contains more skills measures targeted at the child welfare service’s staff. NOK 82.6 million has been allocated for the strategy in 2018.
Anti-Semitism
90.See the description of the new action plan in question 5.
Targeted plan for the Kven language
91.The Government has drawn up a targeted plan for the Kven language (2017–2021) which was presented in the end of January 2018. The reason for this is that the Kven language is in a critical state and there are few young speakers of the language.
The Cultural Rucksack (TCR)
92.In 2017, a special national youth committee was established for TCR.
Consultation paper on a single Act on faith and philosophy of life communities
93.A draft new, single Act on faith and philosophy of life communities has been sent out for consultation. The consultation paper particularly asks questions about membership and affiliation that affects children’s rights. The introduction of an age requirement of 15 years old has been proposed in order for members to count for the purposes of grants. It is also being proposed that children who have turned 12 must give their consent to enrolment and disenrollment. There is also a proposal that a child’s right to be heard in all cases concerning the practice of their faith or philosophy of life should be clarified in a separate provision.
Question 15 (d)
94.In 2016, the Government presented a White Paper to the Storting on individual complaints mechanisms for the Conventions on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Rights of the Child and the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The conclusion was that the Government would not at present submit proposals to ratify the relevant Optional Protocols. This was due to considerable uncertainty about the consequences this might have for Norwegian policy. A large majority in the Storting concurred with the Government’s conclusion.
Part III
Question 16
95.See annex.
Question 17 (a)
96.See annex.
Question 17 (b)
97.We have no statistical information about children and young people with substance abuse or addiction problems. But in recent years there has been a trend where ever fewer young people are using various forms of intoxicants (Ungdata 2017).
98.Self-reported data shows there has been a fall in the number of young people (15–16) who say they have drunk alcohol in the last 30 days (from 36 per cent in 2011 to 24 per cent in 2015) (ESPAD 2015).
99.Population surveys on intoxicants and tobacco in the 16–79 age group (Norwegian Institute of Public Health) report stable figures for the consumption of alcohol from 2013 to 2016. Meanwhile, the estimated average alcohol consumption figure was highest for the 16–24 age group.
100.The proportion of 15–16 year olds who say they have used cannabis in the last 30 days was 2 per cent in 2015, a 2 percentage point drop since 1999. In the last 2–3 years, around 4 per cent of the 16–64 age group say they have used cannabis in the last 12 months and just under 2 per cent in the last 4 weeks.
101.The use of other illegal intoxicants in the period 1995–2015 has been around 1 per cent among Norwegians aged 15–16 (used at least once), while it was 5 per cent among 15–16 year olds in Europe. In 2015, 4 per cent of 15–16 year olds in Europe say that they have ever used new psychoactive drugs (e.g. synthetic cannabis). The corresponding figure for Norway was 1 per cent.
Question 17 (c)
102.We have no response to this. The scope is limited but because of unreliable data it is difficult to estimate the number.
Question 17 (d)
Children who have been treated with psychostimulant drugs for symptoms of ADHD/ADD
|
Age |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
|
0 – 4 |
Under 5 |
5 |
Under 5 |
|
5 – 9 |
2 439 |
2 486 |
2 558 |
|
10 – 14 |
8 393 |
8 406 |
8 550 |
|
15 – 19 |
7 390 |
7 480 |
7 573 |
Source : Norwegian Prescription Database
Question 18 (a)
103.More than 9,000 children were under public care at the end of 2016. The numbers of children by age and type of domicile in 2015 and 2016 were as follows:
Children living in alternative-care settings by age for the period 2015–2016
|
Child welfare service institutions |
Foster homes |
Emergency placement homes |
Homes with supervision |
|||||
|
Age/year |
2015 |
2016 |
2015 |
2016 |
2015 |
2016 |
2015 |
2016 |
|
0 – 2 |
0 |
0 |
456 |
449 |
26 |
18 |
0 |
|
|
3 – 5 |
1 |
3 |
933 |
925 |
56 |
36 |
0 |
|
|
6 – 12 |
62 |
61 |
3 423 |
3 568 |
208 |
170 |
0 |
|
|
13 – 17 |
389 |
385 |
3 222 |
3 338 |
57 |
72 |
9 |
10 |
|
Total |
452 |
449 |
8 043 |
8 280 |
347 |
296 |
9 |
10 |
104.The proportion of boys and girls under public care has remained stable at 53 per cent and 47 per cent, respectively, in the period 2014–2016. We do not have statistics that show the gender distribution by various types of domicile.
105.Norway does not have statistics on how many children under public care who suffers from disabilities. Nor are there official statistics on the socio-economic backgrounds of children under public care. A recent Norwegian research project surveyed the socio-economic background of the parents of children under public care (N=707). The survey was not limited to children under public care. The figures are classified according to the European Socio-Economic Classification, which is based on vocational affiliation:
Children in care by parents’ background
|
Mother |
Father |
Parents |
|
|
Service class |
13 |
14 |
18 |
|
Middle class |
11 |
10 |
12 |
|
Working class |
47 |
61 |
50 |
|
Unemployed |
29 |
15 |
20 |
|
Total |
100 |
100 |
100 |
|
N |
664 |
572 |
707 |
Distribution of children under public care by national background in the period 2014–2016
|
National background |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
|
Non-immigrant background |
7 276 |
7 449 |
7 492 |
|
EU28/EEA, Switzerland, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand |
159 |
188 |
211 |
|
Asia, Africa, Latin America, Oceania except Australia and New Zealand, and Europe except EU28/EEA |
1 104 |
1 267 |
1 346 |
106.A Norwegian research report from 2017 reports on care measures by national background per 1,000 children in 2014. The figures show that children with national backgrounds from Latin America and Africa are overrepresented among children subject to care measures, while children from the EU/EEA, North America and Oceania are under-represented in relation to the majority population in the proportion of care orders. Care measures are more frequent in families with very low socio-economic status. This correlation is strongest in the majority population but is also evident in parts of the immigrant population since families with very low socio-economic status are over-represented in this group. This does not apply to groups with a national background from the EU/EEA, North America and Oceania, who are largely foreign workers with relatively good incomes and links to the labour market.
Question 18 (b)
107.See annex.
Question 18 (c)
Victims of sexual offences 2016 by age
|
Age |
Number of victims |
|
0 – 9 |
1 117 |
|
10 – 19 |
2 770 |
|
20 – 29 |
862 |
|
30 – 39 |
308 |
|
40 – 49 |
185 |
|
50 – 59 |
61 |
|
60 – 69 |
28 |
|
70 – 79 |
6 |
|
80 and over |
11 |
|
Age not given |
89 |
Question 19 (a)
108.As per 31 December 2016, 14,010 children aged 0–17, irrespective of service and diagnosis, lived with their family. Here, we cannot say that this concerns children with disabilities or whether there are other reasons why they are receiving services, but we can say that this is the number aged 0–17 who live at home and simultaneously receive municipal health and care services in one form or another whether it be care benefit, health services in the home, support contact, respite or other service.
Question 19 (b)
109.As per 31 December 2016, 120 children younger than 18 were registered as having been admitted to a long-term stay in an institution and 1,333 children under 18 had respite stays in institutions/homes. We have no information about diagnoses.
110.The following are considered institutions: a) institution with round the clock health and care services for children and young people under 18 who live outside their parents’ home due to a need for services (children’s homes), including respite homes; b) institutions with round the clock health and care services for people addicted to intoxicants; c) retirement homes; and d) nursing homes.
Question 19 (c)
111.No comprehensive data based on type of disability exists for primary and lower secondary education. What we can state is the number of primary school and lower secondary school pupils with individual decisions concerning sign language instruction, cf. section 2-6 of the Education Act and the number of primary and lower secondary pupils with individual decisions concerning Braille, cf. section 3-9 of the Education Act. We also have general statistics on the number of primary and lower secondary pupils who are asylum seekers, including former asylum seekers still awaiting settlement. Scope of disabilities unknown.
School year 2017/18
112.49,713 primary and lower secondary school pupils were subject to decisions concerning special education needs. This represents 7.9 per cent of pupils. 3,993 of these are in a dedicated special needs education department, which represents 0.66 per cent of the total number of primary and lower secondary pupils in this school year.
113.Of the 49,713 pupils, 19,972 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in ordinary classes (40.2 per cent). 4,0 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in groups of six pupils or more (8.1 per cent), 19,295 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in groups of two to five pupils (38.8 per cent), and 6,402 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily alone (12.9 per cent).
Pupils receiving special needs education based on individual decision, by year and gender
|
Year |
Boys |
Girls |
|
1 |
1 729 |
687 |
|
2 |
2 048 |
807 |
|
3 |
2 654 |
1 082 |
|
4 |
3 208 |
1 378 |
|
5 |
3 569 |
1 647 |
|
6 |
4 102 |
1 965 |
|
7 |
4 125 |
2 038 |
|
8 |
3 904 |
2 082 |
|
9 |
4 047 |
2 086 |
|
10 |
4 265 |
2 290 |
114.265 pupils are subject to individual decisions concerning sign language instruction, cf. section 2-6 of the Education Act. 69 primary and lower secondary pupils are subject to individual decisions concerning Braille instruction, cf. section 3-9 of the Education Act.
115.Number of asylum seekers, incl. former asylum seekers still awaiting settlement: 820 boys and 592 girls.
116.Number of compulsory school aged pupils receiving home schooling pursuant to the Education Act, section 2-13: 151.
117.Number of pupils who failed to start compulsory education and are still not receiving schooling as per 1 October: 229.
School year 2016/17
118.49,366 primary and lower secondary school pupils were subject to decisions concerning special education needs. This represents 7.84 per cent of pupils. 3,986 of these are in a dedicated special needs education department, which represents 0.63 per cent of the total number of primary and lower secondary pupils in this school year.
119.Of the 49,366 pupils, 18,356 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in ordinary classes (37.2 per cent). 4,202 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in groups of six pupils or more (8.5 per cent), 20,616 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in groups of two to five pupils (41.8 per cent), and 6,192 receive special needs education lessons primarily alone (12.5 per cent).
Pupils receiving special needs education based on individual decision, by year and gender
|
Year |
Boys |
Girls |
|
1 |
1 691 |
700 |
|
2 |
2 131 |
803 |
|
3 |
2 549 |
1 023 |
|
4 |
3 021 |
1 328 |
|
5 |
3 653 |
1 687 |
|
6 |
3 909 |
1 856 |
|
7 |
4 137 |
2 091 |
|
8 |
3 947 |
2 006 |
|
9 |
4 001 |
2 129 |
|
10 |
4 415 |
2 286 |
120.284 pupils are subject to individual decisions concerning sign language instruction, cf. section 2-6 of the Education Act.
121.75 primary and lower secondary pupils are subject to individual decisions concerning Braille instruction, cf. section 3-9 of the Education Act.
122.Number of asylum seekers, incl. former asylum seekers still awaiting settlement: 2,023 boys and 1,038 girls.
123.Number of compulsory school aged pupils receiving home schooling pursuant to the Education Act, section 2-13: 179.
124.Number of pupils who failed to start compulsory education and are still not receiving schooling as per 1 October: 207.
School year 2015/16
125.49,258 primary and lower secondary school pupils were subject to decisions concerning special education needs. This represents 7.9 per cent of pupils. 3,966 of these are in a dedicated special needs education department, which represents 0.63 per cent of the total number of primary and lower secondary pupils in this school year.
126.Of the 49,258 pupils, 17,018 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in ordinary classes (34.5 per cent). 4,350 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in groups of six pupils or more (8.8 per cent), 21,669 pupils receive special needs education lessons primarily in groups of two to five pupils (44 per cent), and 6,221 receive special needs education lessons primarily alone (12.6 per cent).
Pupils receiving special needs education based on individual decision, by year and gender
|
Year |
Boys |
Girls |
|
1 |
1 756 |
719 |
|
2 |
1 974 |
780 |
|
3 |
2 423 |
1 000 |
|
4 |
3 129 |
1 336 |
|
5 |
3 434 |
1 624 |
|
6 |
3 861 |
1 909 |
|
7 |
4 135 |
2 071 |
|
8 |
3 956 |
2 033 |
|
9 |
4 191 |
2 132 |
|
10 |
4 392 |
2 403 |
127.254 pupils are subject to individual decisions concerning sign language instruction, cf. section 2-6 of the Education Act.
128.76 primary and lower secondary pupils are subject to individual decisions concerning Braille instruction, cf. section 3-9 of the Education Act.
129.Number of asylum seekers, incl. former asylum seekers still awaiting settlement: 937 boys and 564 girls.
130.Number of compulsory school aged pupils receiving home schooling pursuant to the Education Act, section 2-13: 119.
131.Number of pupils who failed to start compulsory education and are still not receiving schooling as per 1 October: 192.
Question 19 (d) and (e)
132.According to Utdanningsspeilet, the proportion receiving special needs education in upper secondary education was 3 per cent in 2016 and 3.3 per cent in 2015. The scope of segregated units here is unknown.
133.As in primary and lower secondary education, pupils who do not achieve a satisfactory outcome from ordinary teaching are entitled to special needs education in upper secondary education as well. In upper secondary education, pupils can receive special needs education within an ordinary or an adapted education pathway in a school or while training in a company.
134.4,900 pupils in upper secondary education receive special needs education. In the school year 2016/17, 2.5 per cent of pupils in upper secondary education were subject to decisions concerning special education needs as per 1 October 2016. These were both pupils with a goal of achieving full competency and ordinary certification and pupils with a goal of achieving competency at a level lower than full vocational or university and college admission certification, so-called planned basic competency. The figures indicate there is less special needs education in upper secondary education than in compulsory education where 7.9 per cent of pupils were subject to decisions concerning special needs education.
Question 19 (f)
135.There are statistics on how many primary and lower secondary school pupils receive home schooling and the number of primary and lower secondary pupils who failed to start compulsory schooling. Scope of disabilities unknown.
136.17 per cent of young people aged 16–25 have neither completed nor are taking upper secondary education. About half of these are in work, half are not. We have no statistics concerning the proportion with disabilities.
Question 19 (g)
137.Norway has no official statistics in this area. Child welfare services’ statistics state the number of children receiving measures because they lack caregivers. They do not state whether the children have disabilities.
Question 20 (a)
138.Number of children under arrest in the period 2014–2016
Number of children under arrest in the period 2014–2016 *
|
Year |
14 years old |
15 years old |
16 years old |
17 years old |
||||||||
|
Boys |
Girls |
Unknown |
Boys |
Girls |
Unknown |
Boys |
Girls |
Unknown |
Boys |
Girls |
Unknown |
|
|
2014 |
4 |
2 |
1 |
49 |
9 |
7 |
120 |
14 |
21 |
318 |
28 |
21 |
|
2015 |
9 |
1 |
2 |
30 |
10 |
4 |
107 |
11 |
19 |
250 |
32 |
24 |
|
2016 |
16 |
0 |
11 |
7 |
8 |
55 |
8 |
21 |
147 |
17 |
25 |
* The table shows the number of instances of detention, not the number of people. The same person may therefore be registered multiple times in different cases. There may also be incorrect records in police districts and possible doubts about a prisoner ’ s age. In cases of doubt, the age registered is normally the age given. This may mean that people who are older than 18 are registered as minors.
Question 20 (b) and (c)
Total overview of people under 18 who have been in pretrial detention or served a prison sentence *
|
Year |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
|
Number |
84 |
75 |
71 |
29 |
28 |
25 |
28 |
* The Norwegian Directorate of Correctional Services only has figures on prisoners who have either been in pretrial detention or serving a prison sentence. There are no separate figures for these two groups and the figures therefore encompass both groups.
People younger than 18 who have been imprisoned in institutions for minors
|
Year |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
|
Number |
11 |
17 |
12 |
11 |
8 |
10 |
19 |
People younger than 18 who have been imprisoned in institutions where they are not separated from adults
|
Year |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
|
Number |
73 |
68 |
59 |
18 |
20 |
15 |
9 |
Question 20 (d)
The number of cases where alternative sanctions, juvenile sanction and youth supervision have been used for people aged 15–18 at the time of the offence
|
Year |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
|
Number |
168 |
294 |
363 |
139.In 2016, the gender ratio was 87 per cent boys and 13 per cent girls. The summaries below show geographical distribution and distribution by type of offence for cases in 2016.
|
Region |
Number |
|
Finnmark |
1 |
|
Salten and Helgeland |
3 |
|
Trøndelag |
19 |
|
Agder |
6 |
|
Buskerud |
3 |
|
Haugaland and Sunnhordaland |
6 |
|
Hedmark |
5 |
|
Hordaland |
3 |
|
Midtre Hålogaland |
3 |
|
Nordmøre and Romsdal |
1 |
|
Oppland |
1 |
|
Oslo and Akershus |
16 |
|
Sogn og Fjordane |
4 |
|
Sunnmøre |
3 |
|
Sør -Rogaland |
14 |
|
Type of offence |
Per cent |
|
Drugs |
26 |
|
Violence |
21 |
|
Threats |
11 |
|
Other offences |
10 |
|
Other offences for gain |
7 |
|
Sexual offences |
5 |
|
Robbery |
4 |
Number of people under 18 who have served community sentences in 2016 and 2017 (as per 14 December 2017)
|
Year/Age |
15 |
16 |
17 |
|
2016 |
0 |
4 |
27 |
|
2017 |
1 |
12 |
29 |
Question 21
Update on kindergartens
140.Point 226 states that “90 per cent of children aged 1–5 attend kindergarten.” These were 2015 figures, in 2016 the proportion rose to 91 per cent.
141.Point 228 on special educational assistance states that “In 2015, around 2.8 per cent of all children in kindergartens received such help.” In 2016, the proportion rose to 2.9 per cent.
Update on social housing work
142.Point 222 in Norway’s fifth and sixth reports, states that “Statistics Norway estimates that around 3.2 per cent of the population is disadvantaged in the housing market (2015), equivalent to around 158,000 people.” This is an increase from 2.5 per cent in the State Report. Single parents, immigrants and large families with children are more exposed than other groups in the housing market.
143.In connection with point 222, we would also like to provide updated statistics on disadvantaged people in the housing market:
144.“While the number and proportion of disadvantaged people in the housing market has increased, the number and proportion of homeless people has fallen. The results of a 2016 survey of homelessness in Norway were published in 2017. The survey is conducted every 4 years and the last count was in 2012. The number and proportion of homeless people are down in the most recent survey. In particular, the number of homeless children has fallen from 679 in 2012 to 229 in 2016. Overall, the number of homeless people fell from around 6,250 to around 3,900 in the period, while the proportion dropped from 1.26 to 0.75 per 1,000 people.”
145.The trend for number/proportion of children living in low income families (described in point 216 of the report) has risen slightly. A total of 98,200 children younger than 18 live in families with persistent low income in 2015. This represents around 10 per cent of all children in this age group. In 2015, immigrant children accounted for 53.4 per cent of all children in households with persistent low income.
Updated statistics on immigrant children and displaced children seeking refuge
146.The total number of unaccompanied minor asylum seekers (UMA) in reception centres have decreased compared to the 3909 UMAs (under 18 years old) that was registered in reception centres by the end of 2015. By the end of 2016 there was 1483 UMAs living in reception centres. By the end of 2017, only 309 UMAs lived in reception centres.
Question 22
147.In addition to the responses provided above, we would also like to point out the following. In 2017, the Government circulated the following proposed amendments to the Kindergarten Act for consultation, which affect children in kindergarten and it may be relevant to mention:
A statutory minimum requirement for core staff (a staffing standard) in kindergartens;
Stricter requirements concerning pedagogical staffing in kindergartens (stricter pedagogue standard — regulatory amendment);
Statutory duty for kindergarten and school owners to cooperate on children’s transition from kindergarten to school and after-school programmes;
Requirement concerning Norwegian language skills to work as an assistant or head teacher/pedagogical leader in kindergartens;
Clarification of the right to a kindergarten offer for children with a need for alternative and supplementary communication.