This report, commissioned by Plan International, and supported by Consortium for Street Children (CSC) through collaboration and information, and written by GCPS, provides an analysis of the situation of street involved children, how their issues are currently addressed within legislative and policy frameworks, and highlights programmatic initiatives being implemented by International and local NGOs. Its aim is to inform and provide suggestions for improved practice by NGOs working with street involved children. This analysis has been informed by a review of development literature, legislative instruments at international and regional level, and information from International and local NGOs drawn from a survey and interviews. This report is designed to complement a paper that maps and examines the gaps in the literature on street children from 2000 to 2010, by Dr. Sarah Thomas de Benítez.
The report begins with an explanation of why this research was conducted. It continues with the following main chapters, each of which end with a concluding section that pulls together the main points of the chapter.
- Chapters 2, 3 and 4 discuss who street involved children are, how they come to be there and what they experience whilst involved with the street.
- Chapter 5 analyses the legal frameworks which are pertinent to street involved children
- Chapter 6 describes approaches to policy and programme work with street involved children.
- Chapters 7 and 8 examine the prevention and response to street involvement by children.
In Chapter 8 the main conclusions and recommendations of the report are brought together under the following main headings.
- 8.1. Inform programmes through in-depth understanding of street involvement and an evidence base for programme effectiveness
- 8.2. Improve the use of a flexible individual case management approach
- 8.3. Place street involved children more firmly on international and national development agendas
- 8.4. Build the capacity of different actors concerned with the prevention and response to street involvement
- 8.5. Integrate the response to street involved children within national child protection systems
- 8.6. Improve co-ordination and collaboration
©Global Child Protection Services, Consortium for Street Children, Plan
