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having regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in particular Articles 14, 24, 32 and 33 thereof,

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having regard to the European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR) and its Action Plan (1), with its 2030 headline targets and the EU social scoreboard,

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having regard to the Porto declaration of 8 May 2021 and the renewed commitments at the 2023 Porto Social Forum,

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having regard to the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted in New York in September 2015,

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having regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), adopted in New York on 20 November 1989,

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having regard to the UN Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, adopted in New York on 16 December 1966,

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having regard to the European Social Charter, adopted in Turin in 1961,

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having regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, adopted in New York on 13 December 2006,

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having regard to the United Nations resolution of 18 December 2019 on the rights of the child,

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having regard to Directive (EU) 2019/1158 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on work-life balance for parents and carers (2),

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having regard to Commission recommendation (EU) 2013/112 of 20 February 2013 entitled ‘Investing in children: Breaking the cycle of disadvantage’  (3),

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having regard to the Council Recommendation of 22 May 2019 on high-quality early childhood education and care systems (4),

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having regard to the Commission communication of 7 September 2022 on the European care strategy (COM(2022)0440), the Council recommendation of 8 December 2022 on early childhood education and care: the Barcelona targets for 2030 (5) and the Council recommendation of 8 December 2022 on access to affordable high-quality long-term care (6),

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having regard to the UNICEF research centre report of 2014 entitled ‘Children of the Recession: The impact of the economic crisis on child well-being in rich countries’,

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having regard to its resolution of 24 November 2015 on reducing inequalities with a special focus on child poverty (7),

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having regard to its resolution of 21 January 2021 on access to decent and affordable housing for all (8),

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having regard to the its resolution of 29 April 2021 on the European Child Guarantee (9),

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having regard to its resolution of 7 April 2022 on the EU’s protection of children and young people fleeing the war in Ukraine (10),

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having regard to its resolution of 5 July 2022 towards a common European action on care (11),

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having regard to its resolution of 5 October 2022 on the EU’s response to the increase in energy prices in Europe (12),

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having regard to the Eurydice Brief of 2019 entitled ‘Key data on early childhood education and care in Europe’,

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having regard to the UNICEF report of 2020 entitled ‘Innocenti Report Card 16 – Worlds of Influence – Understanding what shapes child well-being in rich countries’,

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having regard to UNICEF’s annual report of 2021 entitled ‘Protecting child rights in a time of crises’,

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having regard to UNICEF’s annual report of 2021 entitled ‘Where do rich countries stand on childcare?’,

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having regard to the Commission communication of 24 March 2021 entitled ‘EU strategy on the rights of the child’ (COM(2021)0142),

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having regard to the final Commission report of March 2020 entitled ‘Feasibility Study for a Child Guarantee’,

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having regard to the Council Recommendation (EU) 2021/1004 of 14 June 2021 establishing a European Child Guarantee (13),

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having regard to the Commission communication of 7 June 2023 on a comprehensive approach to mental health (COM(2023)0298),

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having regard to the Commission communication of 5 March 2020 entitled ‘A Union of Equality: Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025’ (COM(2020)0152),

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having regard to the Commission communication of 7 October 2020 entitled ‘A Union of Equality: EU Roma strategic framework for equality, inclusion and participation’ (COM(2020)0620),

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having regard to the Commission communication of 3 March 2021 entitled ‘Union of Equality: Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2021-2030’ (COM(2021)0101),

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having regard to the Council Recommendation of 30 January 2023 on adequate minimum income ensuring active inclusion (14),

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having regard to the Eurochild report (2022) entitled ‘(In)visible children – Eurochild 2022 report on children in need across Europe’,

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having regard to the Save the Children report of 2023 entitled ‘Guaranteeing Children’s Future – How COVID-19, cost-of-living and climate crises affect children in poverty and what governments in Europe need to do’,

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having regard to the report of the International Labour Organization (ILO) – UNICEF of 2021 entitled ‘Child Labour: Global estimates 2020, trends and the road forward’,

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having regard to the ILO – UNICEF report of 2023 entitled ‘More than a billion reasons: The urgent need to build universal social protection for children’,

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having regard to the Commission communication of 11 May 2022 entitled ‘A Digital Decade for children and youth: the new European strategy for a better internet for kids’ (COM(2022)0212),

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having regard to Rule 54 of its Rules of Procedure,

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having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality,

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having regard to the report of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A9-0360/2023),

A.

whereas the quality of environments where children are born and their living spaces have a decisive impact on the quality of their life, equal opportunities to grow healthily, their overall development and the realisation of their potential; whereas UNICEF’s First 1 000 Days campaign maintains that a child’s brain develops at an unprecedented rate in the first years of life, providing a unique opportunity for the child’s physical, mental, cognitive, social and emotional development; whereas each child is unique and should be treated with respect for their particularities, pace of development, areas of interest and needs; whereas the best interests of the child should be the guiding principle for all actions impacting children, as stated in the UNCRC;

B.

whereas exposure to abuse and neglect negatively affects a child’s development; whereas inequalities established at a very young age negatively influence children’s opportunities, well-being and health; whereas these inequalities may have life-long repercussions in their adulthood and can prevent them from realising their full potential; whereas preventing inequalities is the best policy for reducing inequalities in the long term;

C.

whereas a lack of accessible, quality, child-centred services and support for families increases the risk of child poverty and social exclusion; whereas families experience multiple and interdependent challenges that no single service or organisation can resolve, which requires a continuity of services and proper inter-service coordination to prepare and facilitate the transitions that children face;

D.

whereas in 2022, more than 19,995 million children (24,7 %, or one in four children) were at risk of poverty and social exclusion in the EU; whereas, despite some differences, no Member State is free of child poverty and social exclusion; whereas in some Member States this risk exceeds 30 %; whereas recent figures show an increase in this indicator in the last four years; whereas, as recently as in 2022, charitable organisations recorded an increase in requests for support from social services (15);

E.

whereas in 2022, the percentage of children (under the age of 18) in the EU who were at risk of poverty or social exclusion was greater than that of adults, at 21,6 %; whereas children were at greater risk of poverty or social exclusion than adults in 18 of the 27 EU Member States in 2022; whereas over one fifth (22,4 %) of the EU population living in households with dependent children was at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2022; whereas in 2022, 61,9 % of children whose parents’ level of education was low were at risk of poverty and social exclusion, compared with 10,2 % of children whose parents’ level of education was high (16);

F.

whereas child poverty is a multidimensional phenomenon stemming from household poverty, meaning that low-income and lower-education families, single-parent families – mostly made up of women and their children – large disadvantaged families, families living in disadvantaged regions, families from different ethnic minorities and families with children or parents with disabilities are at greater risk of poverty and social exclusion and have a higher probability of intergenerational transmission of poverty; whereas the redistribution of wealth (through wages and social transfers) has a decisive impact on social inequality, the risk of poverty and social exclusion, and, consequently, on the risk of child poverty; whereas this phenomenon requires a multidimensional response to prevent inequalities from mutually reinforcing each other, with combined universal and targeted measures; whereas these necessarily include the creation of jobs and should ensure employment quality and stability and guarantee and strengthen social rights, anti-discrimination measures and family and child benefits; whereas national child allowances are an essential measure to help families in need and to ensure universal access to quality and affordable public services;

G.

whereas in 2022, 16,8 % of the EU population lived in overcrowded households and 9,3 % were unable to keep their home adequately warm; whereas 8,3 % of the EU population spent 40 % or more of their household disposable income on housing;

H.

whereas in 2022, 56 % of people living in single-adult households with dependent children in the EU were unable to meet unexpected financial expenses; whereas, in 2020, single-parent families, especially families headed by single mothers, are at greater risk of poverty and social exclusion (42,1 % compared to 29,6 % in family units with two adults and three or more children (17)); whereas this is related to the feminisation of poverty, women’s over-representation in precarious and poorly paid work and as part-time workers, their overload of care responsibilities and the pay gap between men and women; whereas the difference in the employment rate of men and women without children stands at 1 %; whereas for those who have a child younger than six the rate stands at 21 % and climbs to 37 % for those with three children (18);

I.

whereas children who grow up in poverty and social exclusion find it harder to succeed at school, remain healthy and reach their full potential later in life; whereas social investment in children’s early years generates significant social-economical returns, contributes to breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty, and, as such, should not be considered a cost; whereas the economic impact of childhood poverty and socio-economic disadvantages, as well as their repercussions on working adults, is estimated at 3,4 % of EU countries’ gross domestic product each year;

J.

whereas poverty and social exclusion are related to the migration, minority or disability status of children and their parents; whereas migrant children are over-represented in the group at risk of poverty; whereas not having a nationality or identity documents makes it difficult for stateless children to access some of the most fundamental rights, such as birth registration, education, healthcare, social security and housing, and exposes them to greater risks of abuse and exploitation; whereas in April 2023, as a consequence of the Russian invasion, almost 4 million non-EU citizens fled Ukraine to an EU Member State;

K.

whereas almost 83 % of Roma (19) children in the EU live in a household that is at risk of poverty; whereas one in five Roma children lived in a household without indoor tap water in 2021; whereas the proportion of Roma children experiencing severe material deprivation strongly exceeds the share of vulnerable children in the general population; whereas in 2022, six out of 10 Roma children did not have access to quality early-childhood services and four out of 10 Roma families with children under six did not receive any kind of subsidy or similar support;

L.

whereas the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rising cost of living and the war in Ukraine have exacerbated the economic and social vulnerabilities of children and their families, especially the low- and middle-income households that have been most affected by the pandemic and previous crises; whereas current global social and economic volatility, as well as the risks generated by climate change, increase the possibility of new crises; whereas counter-cyclical responses to recent crises have proved to be more effective in tackling poverty and social exclusion than the fiscal consolidation measures based on austerity and spending cuts advocated in the 2008-2013 crisis;

M.

whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the difficulties faced by children, due to the disruption of daily life and social contacts, the closure of schools, the reduced capacity to provide protection from domestic violence, abuse and neglect during lockdown and the disruption of basic social services; whereas these difficulties impacted more children in vulnerable situations who did not have the equipment, internet coverage or even electricity for online schooling and might have lost their one daily warm meal or their access to heating;

N.

whereas the EPSR Action Plan, adopted in 2021, aims to reduce the number of children at risk of poverty and social exclusion by at least 5 million by 2030; whereas Member States have adopted national poverty reduction targets; whereas achieving this target would mean around 15 million children in the EU would still be at risk of poverty and social exclusion by that time; whereas, without adequate measures, this number is projected to further increase with the emergence of new complex and intertwined social crises;

O.

whereas eradicating child poverty is an indispensable stepping stone in constructing a just, equal and social Europe for current and future generations; whereas socio-economic status should never be a barrier to children’s access to essential services; whereas increased support is needed to ensure that children and families have access to essential services;

P.

whereas EU financing enables investment at national level to combat child poverty and promote social inclusion; whereas, in addition to the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+), other sources can be directly or indirectly used to finance programmes that have an impact on the lives of children and their families in all sorts of ways;

Q.

whereas all children, parents, families and carers should be protected from discrimination, such as discrimination on the grounds of sex, language, sexual and/or gender identity, religion or belief, political or ideological beliefs, national, racial, ethnic or social origin, belonging to a national minority, socio-economic situation, disability and other special needs, age or any other status;

R.

whereas families are increasingly diverse; whereas child support and family policies do not always reflect and are not sufficiently adapted to family diversity and family living arrangements (e.g. families with unmarried parents, children of separated parents living in two households or children living in a large blended family, foster families and rainbow families), to the detriment of families’ living standards, access to social protection programmes and benefits and their resilience to crises; whereas the EU and the Member States must guarantee the legal, economic and social protection of families;

S.

whereas on 14 June 2021, the Council adopted its Recommendation on a European Child Guarantee, in order to ensure that children in need have access to key services, for example, free care services and education for early childhood, free education (including additional activities in schools and at least one healthy meal per school day), free healthcare, healthy nutrition and adequate housing; whereas this instrument represents an opportunity to reduce poverty and inequalities and promote the social inclusion of children; whereas the European Child Guarantee established that children in vulnerable situations should be targeted as a priority (20); whereas all Member States, in order to demonstrate their commitment to an integrated policy aimed at breaking the vicious circle of poverty, are required to allocate an appropriate amount of their ESF+ resources for the implementation of the Child Guarantee national plans; whereas, in October 2023, three Member States had still not submitted their national action plans;

T.

whereas, under the UNCRC, to which all the Member States are signatories, all children should be given the right to education, healthcare services, housing and protection, to take part in decisions that affect them, to leisure and free time, to a balanced diet and to receive care in a family environment;

U.

whereas the Council adopted the Recommendation on the revision of the Barcelona targets on early childhood education and care which includes a proposal to introduce a legal entitlement to early childhood education and care;

V.

whereas in the EU in 2022, only 35,7 % (21) of children under the age of three had access to a formal early childhood education and care (ECEC) system, while this value goes up to 88 % for children between the age of three and the minimum compulsory age to start primary school; whereas only seven EU Member States guarantee a place in an ECEC system for every child from the age of six months; whereas several Member States guarantee a funded place in the childcare system only from the age of three; whereas the availability of free ECEC increases considerably from the age of three and this trend continues at each year of age, becoming almost universal in the whole of Europe in the final year before compulsory primary education starts (22); whereas in Europe the majority of families have to pay tuition fees to access ECEC services for children under three; whereas the lack of access to these services – often due to the interplay of scarce availability and elevated, hidden and out-of-pocket costs – affects families from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds, single-parent families and families from less developed regions and territories, which increases the risk of children’s early social exclusion; whereas, even in countries where the average level of availability of ECEC services is high, the participation of children at risk of poverty and social exclusion in ECEC is hampered by a lack of childcare facilities;

W.

whereas ECEC has a decisive impact on health and the cognitive and social-emotional development of children; whereas working parents who do not have access to a childcare facility are often forced to leave children in informal care, including in uncertified care networks; whereas high-quality inclusive ECEC ensures equal educational opportunities for those children and fosters the integration of parents, especially mothers, into the labour market; whereas an inclusive education addresses the broad range of needs among all pupils by bolstering participation in terms of learning, cultural interactions and sense of community; whereas such services must have adequate financial and human resources to identify and support children experiencing particular difficulties;

X.

whereas spending on education, especially as regards school materials and transportation, is essentially borne by households in most countries and is one of the main reasons for dropping out of school; whereas the EU average rate of early school dropouts stands at 10 % (23), but this value is higher for specific groups, such as Roma children and children with disabilities;

Y.

whereas in 2021, 3,6 % of children in the EU below the age of 16 had unmet medical needs and 4,4 % of children reported a disability (24); whereas even in countries where the right to health is enshrined in law, inequalities persist and many families do not have access or timely access to adequate healthcare and have extremely limited access to essential services such as consultations with family doctors and nurses, mental health and psychosocial support or dental care, especially because of inadequate public services; whereas children born into a situation of poverty and social exclusion are at greater risk of having more health problems; whereas the disparity in the EU between urban and rural areas and more developed and less developed regions for access to quality health services and facilities is widening (25);

Z.

whereas sexual health is fundamental to the overall health and well-being of individuals, couples and families; whereas some Member States are attempting to further limit access to sexual and reproductive health and rights through highly restrictive laws that put at risk the health of women during pregnancy and childbirth, as well as the health of children;

AA.

whereas vaccination is the main tool to prevent serious, contagious and sometimes deadly diseases; whereas vaccination rates against measles – an indicator of child general vaccination schemes – have fallen in 14 out of 35 OECD countries (26);

AB.

whereas mental health well-being for children is key, as it allows them to reach developmental milestones, learn ways of coping with problems and acquire social and emotional skills; whereas adverse childhood experiences, discrimination, inadequate access to services and unstable environments are some of the main causes of mental health problems developing in early age; whereas far-reaching crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic put at risk the mental health and well-being of entire generations of children; whereas the prevalence of mental health problems is three times higher among children from low-income families (27);

AC.

whereas the World Health Organization (WHO) emphasises that breastfeeding is one of the most effective ways to ensure children’s long-term health and survival and recommends that infants should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of their lives; whereas, however, globally, only two out of five infants have access to breastfeeding (28);

AD.

whereas children with disabilities and children born to parents with disabilities are still exposed to discrimination and violation of their rights through persistent barriers in all areas of life, namely inadequate access to childcare facilities, nutrition that meets their needs and opportunities to attend and participate in inclusive educational activities and a lack of inclusion in standard schools, healthcare and spaces that do not adequately respond to their mobility and psychosocial needs; whereas these barriers and lack of accessible quality care and support services for persons with disabilities and other persons in need of care and support are particularly manifest in times of crises, leading to an additional burden on informal, especially family carers, the majority of whom are women;

AE.

whereas poverty is an important risk marker for entry into alternative care as it increases the vulnerability of children and their families and may lead to a situation where parents can no longer provide adequate care for their children; whereas an estimated 345 000 children in the EU still live in institutions (29) and 758 018 children were in alternative care in 2021 (30); whereas child protection measures, including deinstitutionalisation, are also essential for children to achieve their rights and reach their full potential; whereas institutions need qualified staff to ensure qualified educational opportunities and to tackle abuses and child exploitation;

AF.

whereas all children have the right to be protected from abuse, violence and neglect; whereas research proves that the risk of abuse, violence and neglect increases in cases of financial pressures on families and a lack of adequate social services;

AG.

whereas, in Europe, one in five children is a victim of some form of abuse or sexual violence, and most abuse occurs within families and/or care-related institutions; whereas children represent around a quarter of victims of trafficking in the EU, the majority of whom are girls abducted for purposes of sexual exploitation (31);

AH.

whereas peer violence and bullying are a serious problem that harms relations among children, especially in schools, and is detrimental to the mental health of children and young people; whereas 23 % of students have reported suffering harassment at school at least once a month (32);

AI.

whereas the risks of pervasive digital technologies for the health and well-being of children and their families should not be underestimated; whereas children have the right to be protected from the marketing and advertising practices of commercial operators, including in digital spaces; whereas the design of current online products and services exposes children from an early age to addictive online content; whereas children lack the basic necessary skills and know-how to consume information in a safe and trusted manner; whereas this has consequences on children’s mental health, including sleep deprivation, anxiety, depression, lack of attention and, ultimately, brain development in the long term; whereas increased internet use can put children at greater risk of online harm such as sexual exploitation, cyber stalking and cyberbullying; whereas a third of girls and 20 % of boys have encountered disturbing content once a month in the past year; whereas 15 % of LGBTQI+ respondents aged 15-17 have suffered online harassment because of their sexual orientation or gender (33);

AJ.

whereas only one in four children consider that their rights are respected by society in general (34); whereas children have difficulties in gaining access to justice, as the structure of judicial proceedings is not adapted to their needs;

AK.

whereas 3,6 million children on the European continent are engaged in work (35), mainly in agriculture and construction; whereas it is essential to adopt measures to eradicate child labour in the European Union and to prevent the emergence of new cases of child labour, especially in the context of crises;

AL.

whereas environmental problems such as pollution, contaminated land and unsafe drinking water pose a threat to the health of all children, with a disproportionate impact on those living in poverty and vulnerable conditions; whereas the right to a safe, secure and clean environment for children and the right to a future free of environmental pollution and protection from the negative impact of climate change could be enhanced by a better, child-sensitive implementation of the current environmental acquis in the Member States;

AM.

whereas play is the natural and the most effective way for children to learn about themselves and their social and natural environment and to express themselves in a symbolic way; whereas this forms an essential basis for their cognitive and emotional development, functional autonomy, lifestyle habits, interaction with others and conflict management; whereas children’s participation in society, cultural life, recreation, leisure and sport directly contributes to their well-being and helps them to thrive;

AN.

whereas financial constraints hamper the participation of children from disadvantaged families in non-formal educational and extracurricular activities, which amplifies social inequalities in the early years;