Nursery World - Opinion: In my view - Getting off to a better start

There are more than 700,000 children and young people living in Wales - which is nearly a third of its population - and from this week, it's my responsibility to speak up for them, to promote their rights and to help strengthen and improve the systems in place to protect them.

As I look ahead at the seven years I have in office, the challenges I face are daunting - child poverty, the rights of asylum-seeking children, and youth justice are just three areas I've already identified as areas of concern.

What drives me forward is the recognition that not all children get the start in life we would hope and expect. It should shame us all in Wales that one in four of our children are living in poverty. So when I think about my challenges, they are nothing compared with the challenges that so many of our children and young people face every day.

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