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United Nations Rights of the Child

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Submitted By fleur46
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Equality of opportunity in the early years involves enabling all children to access education regardless of their cultural, religious and socioeconomic background. In the United Kingdom, equal opportunities are advanced by legislation such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), the Equality Act 2010 and the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). This essay will explore the commitment the United Kingdom has made to the UNCRC and the ways in which equal opportunities can be implemented in an early years setting in England.

Equal opportunities can be broadly defined as how fairly individuals gain access to goods, services, jobs and opportunities (Haringey Council, 2005). In the United Kingdom, the Equality Act 2010 prohibits people being discriminated against on the basis of several protected characteristics. These protected characteristics include a person’s age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, race, religion, sex and sexual orientation (HM Government, 2014a). The Equality Act 2010 strives to reduce discrimination and disadvantage so that all people reach their full potential (HM Government, 2014a).

In the United Kingdom, early years providers are bound by the Equality Act 2010 and the EYFS to uphold equal opportunities for children and employees (DoE, 2014a). The EYFS stipulates that schools implement an equal opportunities policy so that every child is included and supported (DoE, 2014a). It is unlawful for a school to victimise, exclude or harass a child at the stage of admissions or by the way it provides education or access to any facility. Early years providers are also prohibited to discriminate against a child based on whom the child is associated with. For example, it is illegal for a school to refuse to admit a child whose parents are lesbians. Furthermore, the

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