The Queen, who is patron of The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, hosted the event to mark its 50th anniversary.
Professor Rowland, as a Fellow of the Trust, was introduced to Her Majesty the Queen, His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh and His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent, as well as to one of Sir Winston Churchill’s grandsons and members of the House of Lords who were in attendance at the Reception.
Andrew’s Fellowship report – Living on a Railway Line – was launched by the University of Salford at an event at MediaCityUK on 20 October 2014 in advance of the 25th anniversary of the signing of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
A quarter of a century later, Andrew believes that there are still laws, policies and procedures in the UK and internationally which fall way short of properly protecting children.
His report contains key recommendations for the UK designed to build strong and healthy communities with children at their hearts.
Themes that are covered in his report include better training to recognise and respond to cases of potential child sexual exploitation, the need to prohibit physical punishment of children, advocating on behalf of children and young people and mandatory reporting of child abuse.
Andrew’s recommendations surrounding professional education about child abuse and neglect have already resulted in an event, co-hosted by Andrew and a Member of Parliament, aimed at empowering practice and inspiring innovation amongst front-line practitioners which he hopes will result in better identification of children at risk of child sexual exploitation.
Speaking after the Reception, Professor Rowland said: “Being invited to Buckingham Palace and having the opportunity to discuss my Living on a Railway Line report with Her Majesty the Queen, His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh and His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent was a great honour and a truly wonderful experience that I will never forget.
“My report is aimed at improving the protection of children in the UK and beyond. Coincidentally, the Reception was held on National Child Sexual Exploitation Awareness Day and this is a good opportunity for us all to remember that it is communities that are best able to protect children from exploitation and other forms of abuse. We can all do more to protect the most vulnerable members of our society.
“Children are the future of our global society and that society will only prosper in the future if the children of today are better protected. Every child should have every chance of good health, every chance of happiness and every chance of protection from harm.
“As Sir Winston Churchill, himself, said, ‘what is the use of living, if it be not to strive for noble causes and to make this muddled world a better place for those who will live in it after we are gone?’.”
