Today is Children’s Rights Day.
This week is also Children’s Rights Week, whose theme this year – the right of the child to belong – has two meanings: the right to belong and to be included in the community and society, and the right not only to be seen but also to be heard.

Unicef’s Child-Friendly Municipality, the City of Kotka is celebrating the week by publishing the thoughts and reflections of the city’s trustees and various areas of responsibility on the rights of the child and the work of the Child-Friendly Municipality.
In the fourth part of the article series, the city’s children’s cultural centre Laivuri is featured.

“Kotka Children’s Cultural Centre Laivuri offers a wide range of free cultural experiences and promotes children’s right to art and culture. The activities comply with the quality criteria of the Finnish Children’s Cultural Association and support the principles of child-friendliness.

The services of the Children’s Cultural Centre are free of charge, allowing all children to participate, regardless of their family’s financial situation. Accessibility is constantly being improved, for example by adding accessibility to an old, protected building and by taking culture to different parts of the city.

The Centre’s activities reach 90 000-130 000 customer encounters every year. This is a significant proportion in relation to the number of children and families in the region. The number of client encounters indicates that people spend more than one time a year with culture.

Weekly clubs, such as the Farsi language club, multimedia and animation groups and theatre club, give children the opportunity to develop their creativity and participate in cultural activities.

The Children’s Cultural Centre offers children and young people the opportunity to participate in and contribute to a wide range of cultural activities. Through clubs and workshops, for example, they can express themselves and be an integral part of the community.

The Centre actively collaborates with local cultural institutions, such as the Kotka City Theatre and the Kymi Symphony Orchestra, which enriches children’s cultural experiences and strengthens their sense of community.

The Culture Path cultural education programme offers children and young people a comprehensive cultural education experience from primary to secondary school. It includes visits to art institutions and visits to artists. Free public transport during the school day supports participation.

There are also major public events in Kotka. Events such as Children’s Maritime Days and Children’s Culture Weeks bring culture close to thousands of children and families.

Cooperation with local cultural institutions enriches the cultural offer of the region and strengthens the cultural experience of children and families.

There is a lot of collaboration across sectors. Flexible and multidisciplinary, allowing easy cooperation between different actors.

All in all, the Children’s Cultural Centre Laivuri works daily to promote equal opportunities for participation by providing quality cultural services and strengthening children’s inclusion and well-being in Kotka”.

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