In the project “Applying Safe Behaviours”, SOS Children’s Villages is working to enable children, young people and professionals to prevent and appropriately respond to peer violence amongst children and young people in alternative care and vulnerable families.
“Applying Safe Behaviours: Preventing and Responding to Peer Violence Amongst Children Without or At Risk of Losing Parental Care” is a two-year project (2021-2023) co-funded by the Rights, Equality and Citizenship (REC) Programme of the European Union.
Through the project, we aim to make children and young people active agents in creating a safe environment for themselves and their peers, and to enable professionals who work with and care for children and young people to respond appropriately to peer violence amongst them.
The project is run in cooperation with SOS Children’s Villages’ member associations in Belgium, France, Italy, Romania and Spain.
Why do children and young people need “Safe Behaviours”?
Children and young people without parental care and in vulnerable families often have a history of abuse, neglect or toxic stress, emotional, social or behavioural challenges, or have witnessed or experienced violence in the family.
As a result of these adverse experiences, children and young people without parental care are more vulnerable to becoming victims of violence from their peers, or carrying out violence towards their peers.
Peer violence is one of the most common ways that children and young people experience violence, and children in care have consistently raised the issue of peer violence and bullying as a significant problem affecting their lives. Research in Italy found that 6 out of 10 young people have experienced peer violence in the form of bullying and/or cyberbullying.
Unfortunately, despite the prevalence of peer violence against children and young people without parental care, professionals who care for and work with them often experience challenges in responding effectively.
For children and young people who have experienced peer violence, it is crucial that both they themselves and the adults around them are equipped and enabled to respond to such situations.
Applying a “Safe Behaviours” approach
By training and informing children, young people, and professionals on peer violence, we aim to provide them with the knowledge and tools needed to understand the issue and act against it.
Children and young people will be able to apply a Safe Behaviours approach in their lives, resulting in a safer environment for them and their peers, and professionals who care for and work with them will have an improved capacity to prevent, identify and respond appropriately to peer violence.
The “Safe Behaviours” methodology focuses on children’s right to feel safe at all times, the development of self-confidence and resilience, as well as the importance of acceptance and understanding. It promotes a child- and youth-centred approach to both the prevention of and response to peer violence, which is also reflected in the meaningful participation of children and young people throughout the project.
