Children’s Rights Queensland wins Education Initiative Award at Child Protection Week Awards

Children’s Rights Queensland (CRQ) is honoured to have received the Education Initiative Award at the Queensland Child Protection Week Awards 2025.

This recognition celebrates CRQ’s Children’s Book Program, which was designed to help children understand their rights, feel safe and valued, and help recognise when their rights are not being met.

Celebrating Children’s Voices

What makes this program unique is that the books are shaped by children themselves. From the artworks that inspired illustrations, to the TypeRights font, based on children's drawings, their voices and creativity are at the heart of every resource.

So far, CRQ has produced four books and distributed more than 20,000 copies across Queensland, including over 7,000 delivered directly to children in care and temporary accommodation. Two new books will be released later this year, expanding the reach and impact even further.

Projects such as I Am Me (co-created with Aunty Sharron Mirii Bell, with over 130,000 YouTube views of the accompanying song) and The Big Book of Rights (co-designed with 200 children) are helping to foster rights-respecting environments in schools, families, and communities across Queensland.


Left to right: Carla Steadman (Creative Outpost), Dan Marais, Dannika Patterson, Michaela Singer, Sharron mirii Bell attend the Awards ceremony at Queensland Parliament House.

Collaboration and Community

This achievement reflects the contributions of many people and organisations who share CRQ’s vision.

• Dannika Patterson, author of The Big Book of Rights, which captured the voices of over 200 Queensland children
  
  
• Aunty Sharron Mirii Bell, author of I Am Me and a guiding cultural voice throughout the program
  
  

• Illustrator Amanda Letcher and Carla Steadman from Creative Outpost,

• Dan Marais, Jess Midgley (Indigenous Insights), Michaela Singer, Marie Stuart, and the CRQ team for their creativity, care, and commitment

• The Queensland Family and Child Commission and Principal Commissioner Luke Twyford, whose belief and support have been instrumental

• CRQ’s ambassadors, families, and communities across Queensland, who continue to share these resources and inspire us with stories of their impact

Left to Right: Aunty Sharron mirii Bell (Author), Dan Marais (CRQ President) and Dannika Patterson (Author) at Parliament House.

A Commitment to Children’s Rights

This award highlights the power of rights education in building safe, informed environments for children. It also strengthens CRQ’s commitment to continue creating resources that:

• spark conversations about children’s rights

• amplify the voices of children and First Nations people

• nurture safe and respectful environments

• ensure every child grows up in a world where their rights, as outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), are known, respected, and protected

Children’s Rights Queensland is deeply grateful for this recognition and looks forward to continuing the work of empowering communities to uphold and celebrate children’s rights.

Click here to discover our children's books.