Keith Towler, the Children’s Commissioner for Wales, will be launching his redesigned
website today (2 March 2009) to coincide with his first anniversary as the country’s
‘children’s champion’.

The new site (www.childcomwales.org.uk), to be unveiled at Hafod Primary School in
Swansea, comes complete with a new enhanced service that enables children and
young people to share their views and opinions with the Commissioner’s office.

Children and young people will be able to have their say on what matters to them by
taking part in Backchat (www.childcomwales.org.uk/backchat), information which the
Commissioner will then share with decision makers to help improve things for children
and young people across Wales.

Other features include an interactive game about the United Nations Convention on the
Rights of the Child, all the latest news and developments from the Commissioner’s office
including all its publications, as well as the Commissioner’s blog.

Designed by Cardiff-based award-winning web development agency, Imaginet, the new
site has been developed with the help of hundreds of children and young people from
across Wales, and as Keith Towler, the Children’s Commissioner, said ahead of the
launch:

“I wanted to create a site that was interactive, user-friendly and a safe environment for
children and young people. This site carries information about my role, about children’s
rights and has the latest news and developments from my office – resources which
should appeal to all ages.

“I also wanted to take information to young people where they see it and to reach out to
them in a dynamic and safe way. Young people will now be able to interact with my
office via Bebo, where they will be able to complete Backchat at their leisure and
encourage their friends to do the same.

“This is not a static site; it will continue to evolve with new features and enhancements
being added to the site throughout the year. Just log on and take a look for yourself.”

The new site can be found at www.childcomwales.org.uk