Child Care and Protection Policies

Child care and protection policies regulate the care of children, including the type of support and assistance to be offered, good practice guidelines for the implementation of services, standards for care, and adequate provisions for implementation. They relate to the care a child receives at and away from home.

States and all organisations with child care programmes should have child care policies which are in line with national legislation and international law, e.g. the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). In line with the CRC, emphasis should be placed on the child’s best interests, with support to families prioritised in order to prevent family separation. Good gatekeeping mechanisms are essential in ensuring families receive the services they need and are entitled to, and to guard against inappropriate placement into poor care arrangements.

Home-based care, day care, and other family support services are mechanisms for assisting families in providing for the child’s development and, when used appropriately, can prevent child separation. When a child is unable to remain at home, alternative forms of community based care should be prioritised, such as formal kinship care or foster care. The use of institutions should be highlighted as a last and temporary measure. All support and care provisions should outline the referral and admission process, the use of care plans, regular reviews, rehabilitation, and aftercare procedures.

Child protection legislation which recognises that abuse can be physical, emotional, sexual, or neglect, and may be carried out by parents, caretakers, children and other adults is required. All agencies working with children should have written child protection policies which respect the rights of the child. Policies should outline behaviours and actions which are unacceptable, provide standards for the appropriate care of children, and clear guidelines on what procedures to follow and by whom, including reporting mechanisms for suspected abuse to an assigned authority for investigation.

Child care and protection policies require resources and monitoring of standards to ensure their appropriate implementation. Adequate provision and training of child care and social work staff is required to deliver family support services and alternatives forms of child care. All staff working with children should be trained and supervised in providing appropriate care for children, identifying abuse, and responding appropriately.

The literature in this section contains country reports and examples of national and organisational child care and protection policies.

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Ley 27364: Programa de acompañamiento para el egreso de jóvenes sin cuidados parentales

Gobierno de la República Argentina, 26 Jun 2017

La presente ley tiene por objeto la creación del Programa de Acompañamiento para el Egreso de Adolescentes y Jóvenes sin Cuidados Parentales a fin de garantizar su plena inclusión social y su máximo desarrollo personal y social.

Improving the effectiveness of the child protection system: Overview

Donna Molloy, Steve Barton and Lucy Brims - Early Intervention Foundation, 23 Jun 2017

This overview report provides a summary of key findings and lessons from five detailed research papers investigating what has proven to improve outcomes for children in the child protection system, what programs and services are delivered locally in the child protection system, and what is known about the overall effectiveness of the child protection system.

Country Care Review: Lebanon

Better Care Network , 22 Jun 2017

This country care review includes the care-related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child during the seventy-fifth session (15 May 2017 - 2 Jun 2017) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Ending VAC in All Care Settings: Global developments, persisting challenges and how the African region can advance progress

Kathryn Leslie - Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, 22 Jun 2017

This presentation provides an overview of recent efforts and developments to end violence against children in all care settings around the world. Persisting global challenges and opportunities at the national, regional and global levels to end violence against children are also identified.

Country Care Review: Qatar

Better Care Network, 22 Jun 2017

Minimum Standards on Comprehensive Services for Children and Young People in the East African Community

Rebecca Theuri & Isabel de Bruin Cardoso - Save the Children & Maestral International/East African Community, 22 Jun 2017

This presentation provides a background on the East African Community (EAC) Child Policy (2016) and describes the minimum standards and corresponding framework and strategies for providing services to children and young people within the East African Community.

Child Marriage and Violence against Children

Ruth Koshal - Girls Not Brides, 21 Jun 2017

This Girls Not Brides presentation provides an overview of child marriage, its impact and relationship to violence against children and alternative care, offering recommendations for research, policy, and practice at global, regional, and national levels when it comes to preventing child marriage and responding to those impacted.

Geoffrey Oyat - Save the Children, 21 Jun 2017

This presentation describes the findings from a 2015 Save the Children study on kinship care in Ethiopia, Kenya and Zanzibar.

Status of INSPIRE Implementation in Uganda

James Kaboggoza - Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development Uganda, 21 Jun 2017

This presentation provides an overview of the implementation of the INSPIRE child protection framework in Uganda.

Strengthening the care workforce in how to prevent and respond to VAC and care

Beatrice Ongalo – SOS Children’s Villages, 21 Jun 2017

This presentation describes the issue of violence against children in alternative care settings in East and Southern Africa and offers recommendations on how to strengthen the care workforce to ensure it is equipped to prevent and respond to violence against children in alternative care.