1. Economic and Social Rights in England

2. Just Fair: Objectives Just Fair is an NGO and registered charity working to combat poverty and inequality, and secure social justice, in the UK through human rights. In particular, we seek to advance the protection of Economic and Social Rights (ESR), including the rights to housing, employment, education, social security and an adequate standard of living, for everyone in the UK. We work especially hard to protect the rights of the most disadvantaged and excluded individuals and groups including, migrants and asylum seekers, Romas and Gypsys, homeless people and children in poverty.

3. Just Fair: History Just Fair adopted its mission to monitor and advance the realisation of ESR in January 2011 at the Just Fair roundtable discussion on "ESC Rights in the UK. Combating Social Injustice in an Age of Austerity”. On this occasion, thirty seven of the nation's leading civil society organisations, lawyers, activists and academics called for “a coalition for the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) to coordinate ICESCR shadow reporting, call for UK compliance with the ICESCR 2009 Concluding Observations and work for the adoption of a UK [Human Rights] Action Plan.”

4. England ESR Monitoring Consortium: Mobilising Civil Society Following another meeting of civil society organisations and experts on November 11th 2011 Just Fair acting as Consortium coordinator launched the 'England ICESCR Monitoring Consortium’. In response, more than sixty civil society organisations have submitted ‘expressions of interest’ in joining the Consortium, including Age UK, BIHR, Child Poverty Action Group, Crisis, and MIND, as well as Refugee Council, Runnymede Trust and UNICEF UK.

5. Advocacy: A Rights Based Approach A rights-based approach enables a shift in perspective from ‘needs’ and ‘charity’ to socially and legally guaranteed entitlements and duty: states have legal obligations for which they can be held accountable. For the first time in England, we will adopt a coordinated Economic and Social Rights-based approach to influencing change.

6. Advocacy: A Rights Based Approach In particular, we will: – Publish an annual ESR Monitoring Report, which will examine UK Government compliance with legal ICESCR duties; – Develop a coordinated English Civil Society Parallel Report during the 2014 CESCR review of UK compliance with ICESCR; – Urge Government and Parliament to adopt an ‘ESR Action Plan’ for England in 2015, which will provide a concrete framework for securing ESR (as recommended by CESCR).

7. Advocacy: Alliance Building The Consortium will, for the first time, gather the collective expertise and advocacy power of England's most influential national charities and community groups in order to secure the implementation of a range of ESR recommendations put forth by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) during its 2009 UK review, and by Consortium members during annual consultations (2013 onwards).

8. Advocacy: Alliance Building Recommendations may include: – Adequate standard of living: Stick to the 2020 child poverty targets; and, as a minimum, provide all homeless people with the right to shelter; – Health: Uphold the right of vulnerable migrants to access health-care regardless of their ability to pay; and develop and implement an integrated strategy on violence against women; – Education: ensure that all children living in poverty, including those in working families, are entitled to receive a free school meal.

9. Advocacy: Alliance Building In particular, the Consortium will advocate for the implementation of these recommendations via: – An annual Roundtable ‘Monitoring Report Review’ meeting with Government departments, through the Ministry of Justice (ICESCR ‘Duty Bearer’); – A Monitoring Report Launch event in the Houses of Parliament with key ESR Ambassadors, (including media, politicians and leading public figures)

10. Advocacy: Giving Voice to the Voiceless We agree with the Poverty Truth Commission that "poverty will never be truly addressed until those who experience it first-hand are at the heart of the process.“ To this end, groups representing some of England’s most disadvantaged and excluded communities have been invited to join the Consortium and influence change through a series of Human Rights and Poverty Truth Commissions mentored by, and based on the successful model of, the Poverty Truth Commission (Scotland). From 2013 to 2015, the first Truth Commission will be piloted in Merseyside and London.

11. Just Fair: Politics and the Media Just Fair established a number of relationships with key political figures by organising a groundbreaking conference on the topic of ‘Fairness, Justice and Human Rights: Realising Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the UK’ at the Law Society of England and Wales (LSEW) on the 21st and 22nd of October 2011 in partnership with the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the LSEW and the Human Rights Centre (University of Essex).

12. Just Fair: Politics and the Media Key politicians and public figures included, – Andy Slaughter MP (Shadow Justice Minister); – Justice Albie Sachs (South African Constitutional Court); – Lady Justice Arden (Court of Appeal); – Kate Green MP (Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Poverty); – Anne McGuire MP (All-Party Parliamentary Disability Group); – Baroness Lister (Joint Committee on Human Rights)

13. Just Fair: Politics and the Media Kate Green MP and Baroness Lister are now both Patrons of Just Fair. Through our Patrons, we seek to invite a number of leading public figures from the media, politics and academia to become ESR Ambassadors... ESR Ambassadors will: – Act as spokespersons for the ESR Consortium; – Call for implementation of the ESR Recommendations at Monitoring Report launch – Present Consortium briefings to the media and Government.

14. Economic and Social Rights in England