Public Policy & Advocacy
Public policy and advocacy are the work that organisations and governments do to improve welfare and public life. Thirtyone:eight are actively involved in public policy and advocacy because our vision is for a world where every child and adult can feel, and be, safe.
Our name comes from Proverbs 31:8 “speak out on behalf of the voiceless, and for the rights of those who are vulnerable.” This is our mandate.
We want to ensure there’s no limitation on being heard and that our members are represented well. Through our public policy and advocacy work, we aim to create space for our members to engage with politicians, faith leaders, safeguarding professionals and other experts.
"We are committed to working with faith communities to raise standards, close loopholes, and ensure that every child – regardless of their faith or background – is safe, heard, and protected.”
– Jess Phillips MP and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls
Why get involved with public policy and advocacy?
Being engaged with this type of work means we’re able to bring key groups together. Those whose work overlaps, but they may not necessarily be working together, or even understand each other’s contexts. By working with policy makers, we’re able to ensure the voice and workings of the faith communities, and victim-survivors are understood and represented in key decision-making, for example when laws are created or altered.
We've got many years of expertise and understanding of the complexities that can exist when working on safeguarding in faith and charity contexts. That experience means we understand the different perspectives in public policy and how to work within them. It also means we can work in an accountable and transparent way, helping to shape good quality, well-researched and evidence-led public policy that creates safer spaces for everyone.
"The work of the APPG and Thirtyone:eight helped inform our thinking as we consider the protections afforded to children and young people by the criminal law.”
- The Ministry of Justice
Benefits of public policy and advocacy
Essentially, public policy guides the law, best practice guidance and standards for our safeguarding practice, impacting much of our members’ work. It’s important that the context in which our members work is understood by government and policymakers, so that the guidance they make into law is both practical and meaningful.
On the ground in our day-to-day roles it can sometimes feel like there is a disconnect between what we do in our charities, churches and organisations, and what goes on in Government. But the legislation and policies put in place by the Government guide and equip us in our safeguarding roles and responsibilities.
Thirtyone:eight facilitate the role of ensuring our members are not only represented in discussions about law and safeguarding at a government level, but that we also support our members to ensure they are legally compliant in their safeguarding, and are aware of how any legislation changes may impact them.
“When we look at the life of Jesus, he didn’t just teach – he took action. It’s time for us to move from talking about safeguarding to taking action that reflects our calling to love, protect, and care for others.”
- Peter Wright, Head of Strategic Communications at Thirtyone:eight.
What work are we involved in?
1. Our Manifesto
We work directly with the four Governments across the UK to build relationships, advocate and influence the legislation and guidance. To do this, we work alongside parliamentarians and partners across the UK to strengthen the key arguments and highlight areas for change.
Among a number of asks, our key priorities can be found in our manifesto. They are:
IICSA
The implementation of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) recommendations in England and Wales.
Find out more.
Regulated Activity
A review of the current definition of regulated activity for England and Wales to provide better clarity for eligibility, duty to refer, mandatory reporting and position of trust duties.
Find out more.
Mandatory Reporting
The introduction of Mandatory Reporting in the UK.
Find out more.
Reasonable Punishment/Chastisement
To outlaw reasonable punishment in Northern Ireland and reasonable chastisement in England.
Find out more.
Grooming Definition
The introduction of a statutory definition of grooming for all four UK nations.
Find out more.
Positions of Trust
The introduction position of trust legislation in Scotland and Northern Ireland to consider all environments where 16- and 17-year-olds engage with adults who have a position of responsibility over them.
Find out more.
2. All-Party Parliamentary Group for Safeguarding in Faith Communities
A key area of responsibility in England is managing the Secretariat for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Safeguarding in Faith Communities.
The APPG has engagement from parliamentarians from both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, charity partners and survivors of abuse. The main goal of the APPG is to bring parity to the safeguarding sector and to level the playing field for faith communities in terms of safeguarding legislation and practice.
A key focus for the APPG currently is the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), and Mandatory Reporting.
How can members get more involved in public policy and advocacy?
A good starting point if you would like to start engaging with public policy is to regularly read Thirtyone:eight’s news and blogs. This is a good way of keeping up to date on what is going on across the UK. It’s worth checking your Thirtyone:eight membership emails regularly, as well as if there are any legislation updates, we would share them with you this way.
If you want to be more active in your public policy work, you can respond to Government consultations on areas that are relevant to your context. All the UK Governments provide regular emails on consultations to which you can subscribe and filter the areas relevant to your organisation. Thirtyone:eight will also highlight relevant consultations for the sector on our social media, via our membership emails and blogs.
Another way you could advocate for change is by writing to your local Member of Parliament (MP), Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP), Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) or Member of the Senedd (MS) to highlight areas of practice that require change and your views on what helpful change would look like. If you are not sure what issues to start with then you could start by reading our manifesto which details our key asks of the Governments across the UK.
If you have any further queries about Thirtyone:eight’s public policy work, then you can email [email protected].
