Lots of prospective volunteers when hearing about this issue for the first time understandably ask the question, ‘can’t I volunteer in a good orphanage?’ Although there is definitely a spectrum when it comes to quality in orphanages, it is extremely important to remember that there is no such thing as a ‘good’ orphanage for children. 

Regardless of how wonderful an orphanage appears, how clean it is, how friendly and qualified the staff seem, how put-together and happy the children look, even if it is a registered charity or NGO, at the end of the day it is still an orphanage and thus cannot provide the same one-to-one, constant support and care that a family can. 

Orphanages, as a model of care, are fundamentally flawed. That is why the United Kingdom, United States, Australia and many other countries across the world no longer place children in orphanages, but instead operate a family-based care system. Why do children in other countries deserve any less?

Often people volunteer during their spring break or summer vacation, which means the time they have to give is restricted. However, when hearing about the damage caused to children by short-term volunteer placements, some people decide to try and volunteer for longer in the hope that it will cause less harm. Regardless of whether you volunteer in an orphanage for 3 hours, 3 days, 3 weeks or 3 months, you will still be contributing to the growth of a global industry profiting off the exploitation of children. Read how you can spend your summer supporting children abroad in a better way.

Volunteering abroad is rarely a cheap thing to do. As well as covering the costs of your flights and insurance, you also have to pay what’s called a ‘program fee’, which covers things like accommodation, food and support throughout the duration of your trip. 

Although you, as a volunteer, are not getting paid for the work you do, volunteer trips are by no means free to run and so you should expect to have to pay something in order to participate.

There is a common misconception that the amount of money you pay has a bearing on how ethical the program is. Unfortunately this isn’t true. Regardless of whether the program you apply for is affordable, hugely expensive or government-funded, you still need to consider how the program itself is designed. See our volunteer checklist for further guidance.

Governments across the world have agreed to move away from orphanage care in the knowledge that it is not the best option for children. However, efforts to move away from the use of orphanages are being undermined by well-intentioned Westerners continuing to support them by volunteering or donating. People are more likely to give to an orphanage than they are to a family-based care initiative, which only means that more children are unnecessarily separated from their families. Some orphanage owners even purposefully exploit the children in their care by keeping them malnourished and dirty in order to leverage more donations from unsuspecting volunteers and tourists. Volunteering and donating are both great things to do, but make sure you’re supporting an organisation that is working to keep families together and not an orphanage. 

If you travel to places such as Cambodia, Tanzania or Nepal you may find yourself being offered the opportunity to visit an orphanage to watch a performance or play with children for a few hours. It’s common to see these trips being advertised in hostels, hotels, restaurants and even by your taxi or tuk tuk driver. But children should never be tourist attractions. Orphanages that facilitate these types of visits are typically seeking to profit from well-meaning tourists and commodifying children in the process. It’s important to remember that often the individuals or businesses promoting these orphanage visits are getting a cut of the profits. Just by visiting you are supporting the continuation of institutional models of care children. Visiting is just as harmful as volunteering.

Often when people hear about the harms of orphanages, and volunteering in orphanages, they may ask whether there are exceptions to that rule. Are there certain countries where orphanages are needed-because there are no other options? Are there certain children who need to be in orphanages- because would be destitute otherwise?

Sometimes operators of orphanages may argue that their orphanage is different- all the children are orphaned, or abandoned and will be on the streets if the orphanage didn’t exist. Should you continue to volunteer in and support these orphanages? Put simply the answer is no.

These types of claims are almost never true. Volunteering in orphanages is never in children’s best interests. Yes- some children can’t remain with their families and need alternative care, but that doesn’t mean they don’t deserve to grow up in a family. Orphanages, no matter what they claim are not families and are not able to replace the role of a family in a child’s life. Instead of orphanages, we need to invest in family-based care options like foster care and kinship care. If we continue to support orphanages, claiming there are no other options, there will never be other options. Orphanages create orphans. Change starts with redirecting support- away from institutions- towards family-based care. We invite you to be part of that change.

Many orphanages exist and resist change because of support from well-meaning donors and volunteers. Children who grow up in them are already being harmed through child institutionalisation. While it’s hard to hear, continuing to support an orphanage doesn’t protect children from harm- it perpetuates it. That said, there are responsible ways to withdraw your support and protect children in the process:

1. Offer to support transition: if the orphanage is in the process of transitioning to family-based care or family and community services that support children to live with their families or is willing to transition, this is great! We encourage you to support them to make this transition and contribute towards the cost of children being reunified with family or placed in family-based care.
2. Connect with child protection organisations: If the orphanage is willing to transition and needs professional support- connect them with in-country organisations that offer technical support services. You can search for organisations by country on the BCN directory or organisations. If you are withdrawing support and are concerned about the children’s welfare, you can also inform child protection services or NGOs who are best placed to respond, intervene, and ensure the children are safe and supported if necessary.
3. Give notice: When stopping your support of an orphanage, inform them of the reasons why, and give them a time frame (3-6 months for example). This allows them to make arrangements, which may even involve starting the reintegration process for children who can return to their families. If done well, this is a great outcome that is often triggered by donors withdrawing support.
4. Re-invest in family-based care or family and community services: Be part of the long-term solution. If you are withdrawing support from an orphanage, identify an organisation who is providing family-based care, supporting the reintegration of children back into families, or strengthening families, and invest in their programs instead.