National Children's Bureau

07/10/2026

🏆 Applications are open for the 2027 Art Competition! 🏆

What does joy look like to you? Could you capture that feeling and transfer it onto canvas? Or mould it into a sculpture? Or use it to inspire a poem, film or photograph?

'Celebrating Joy' is the theme of next year’s Youth Voice Matters annual conference and we are inviting you to get creative and show us the different ways to find, share and celebrate joy. This conference brings young people together to develop their participation skills and recognise the impact they can have when using their voice to create change.

The Art Competition is open to disabled children and young people, and those with special educational needs aged 11-25, with prizes to be won.

All submitted artwork will be showcased at Youth Voice Matters 2027 on Thursday 18 February 2027 and uploaded to the Council for Disabled Children website after the conference.

There are three sub-themes under which you can submit work for the exhibition:

• Community – how do you find joy in community?
• Connection – how do you find joy in connection?
• Communication – how to you find joy in communication?
There are lots of prizes to be won!

How to get involved:

Get creative!

Create your artwork and in whichever format you like (this could be written, drawn, painted, collage, sculpture, photographs, videos, using spoken word, a digital piece or any other format. The only requirement is that you can submit a digital file that displays the piece (audio file, video file, image, word doc, PDF, etc) and that you do not use AI to create your piece. Please use only your first name on your submission, so you can find your artwork in the YVM display!

Submit your artwork:

You can upload your artwork using the form here (Deadline Monday 30 November): https://lnkd.in/e7VdY7GA If the file size is too large to upload, you can email your submission to [email protected].

06/10/2026

Today we’re proud to launch the third of four Insight Reports based on evidence and learning from : 'Parents as Partners: Supporting parenting skills, knowledge and confidence.'

It presents ten years of evidence from across the five A Better Start (ABS) partnerships, focusing on holistic approaches to working with parents as partners, to improve outcomes for their babies and young children.

Parents play a critical role in the development of babies and young children. Support for parents can be based on manualised, evidence-based programmes and interventions, or more organically developed parenting support that is evidence-based but more flexible, to support skills development for groups of parents as needs emerge.

ABS offered programmes from a combination of professionals, peers and community that included both evidence-based manualised interventions and organically developed parenting skills development for groups of parents as needs emerged, with support ranging from oral health and infant feeding to financial wellbeing and work skills support.

Key learnings about what worked in practice:

• Focusing on the issues that matter most to parents
• Designing services around parent feedback
• Building trust through community and peer support
• Co-producing programmes with parents to improve support, while also developing parents' own confidence and leadership skills.

Download and read the full report: https://buff.ly/rWaKk9t

A Better Start is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund

01/10/2026

On this day in 1963, we formally opened for business as the National Bureau for Co-operation in Child Care, and on 25 November 1970 officially became the National Children’s Bureau.

At the National Children’s Bureau, we are committed to ensuring young people's voices are at the heart of decisions that affect their lives. We believe that young people's voices should be heard, valued and acted upon.

For more than 60 years, NCB has championed the rights and amplified the voice of children and young people in the UK. We interrogate policy and uncover evidence, blending in lived and learnt experience to shape future legislation and develop more effective, life-course approaches to supporting children, young people and families.

30/09/2026

📢 Free webinar! 📢

The Best Start in Maths | Thursday 15 October, 16:00-17:00.

All young children deserve the best start in maths and the Early Childhood Unit at NCB is delighted to support this free webinar from the Early Childhood Maths Group (ECMG).
Celebrating 10 years of the ECMG, members will share practical ideas for supporting mathematical learning in early years settings and at home.
Scan the QR code to book your place today!

29/09/2026

What can we learn about inequalities in children's mental health support?

In a joint blog, colleagues from NCB and the University of Cambridge reflect on emerging findings from the COACHES study, which analysed over 100,000 CAMHS referrals involving children and young people with social care involvement.

The preliminary findings suggest significant inequalities in access to psychosocial interventions for Black and Global Majority children and young people, despite evidence that these interventions are associated with improved mental health outcomes.

The blog reveals what the data tells us, highlights the wider evidence on racial inequalities in mental health services, and explores why understanding both historical and contemporary factors is essential if all children and young people are to have access to the support they need, when they need it.

Read the blog: https://buff.ly/0yok8lc

28/09/2026

We're launching Bitesize Guides - resources for young people to help them understand more about topics, decisions and processes that impact their lives!

Following the recent change of Prime Minister, we created our first guide on how political party leaders and prime ministers are chosen.

Check it out!

https://buff.ly/ahWteC6

And keep a lookout for more guides coming soon....

25/09/2026

🎭️ Happy birthday! Wicked the Musical, has been a hit with schools for 20 years! 🎭️

Can anyone have a TV in the house and not have seen the film The Wizard of Oz?

🎼 ❓️ The musical Wicked takes that story and gives it a fascinating twist: was the Wicked Witch of the West really wicked or the innocent victim of a friendship turned sour?

Wicked explores themes of self-esteem, discrimination, identity, fake news, friendship, and yes, bullying.

🔟 For over a decade we’ve worked with Wicked Active Learning to offer a special resource designed to get pupils talking about bullying, using the Wicked plot to ignite conversations.

🎉 🎉 This weekend, Wicked is celebrating its 20th anniversary. And we want to say a special thank you to the producers, creatives, production team, casts, and everyone else involved in making it such an enduring hit.

❤️ And let’s also give a round of applause to the pupils, students, schools, other settings, and home learners who have enthusiastically engaged with this wonderful show. ❤️

🌐 👉️ Find out more about how Wicked supports conversations about bullying, and can contribute to different programmes of study for English, Drama, Music, PSHE, and much more at: https://buff.ly/nrrB80u

🌐 👉️ You can read our blog celebrating our partnership with Wicked the Musical here: https://buff.ly/rsm7Px5

Wicked UK

25/09/2026

We’re pleased to have partnered with Dingley's Promise to share funded Early Years SEND CPD courses for educators across England! Funded by the Department for Education, these flexible online courses give educators the practical tools, strategies, and knowledge to strengthen inclusive practice and build confidence in supporting children with SEND.

Every child deserves the opportunity to feel included, understood and supported in their early years.

But creating truly inclusive environments takes more than good intentions - educators need the knowledge, confidence and practical tools to recognise and respond to children’s individual needs.

Our new DfE-funded Early Years SEND CPD programme has been designed to help make this possible, giving educators across England access to practical training at no cost to themselves or their settings.

We’re proud to be leading this work alongside sector specialists and to be part of a wider investment in supporting children with SEND.

Our press release shares more about the programme, alongside comments from Catherine Mole MBE and Minister for Early Education Paul Waugh.

Read the full announcement: https://buff.ly/ftdzADt

Dingley's Promise Dingley's Promise Training

22/09/2026

📣 ✨Deadline extended to 7 October for the School Staff Awards 📣 ✨

The Anti-Bullying Alliance School Staff Award for 2026 gives pupils across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland the chance to celebrate special school staff members who make all the difference when someone is being bullied.

Pupils can nominate teachers and school staff who have gone above and beyond to prevent and respond to bullying in school. Winners will be selected by a panel of children and young people.

The deadline for nominations is 17:00 on Wednesday 7 October 2026. Fill out the nomination form online 👉️ https://buff.ly/rDHjzxW

22/09/2026

📣 ✨Deadline extended to 7 October for the School Staff Awards!📣 ✨

The Anti-Bullying Alliance School Staff Award for 2026 gives pupils across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland the chance to celebrate special school staff members who make all the difference when someone is being bullied.

Pupils can nominate teachers and school staff who have gone above and beyond to prevent and respond to bullying in school. Winners will be selected by a panel of children and young people.

The deadline for nominations is 17:00 on Wednesday 7 October 2026. Fill out the nomination form online 👉️ https://buff.ly/rDHjzxW