Children Living or Working on the Street

Children living and working on the street are some of the most excluded and unprotected in the world. While some are homeless with their families, or return home at night after working on the street, many others are without parental care or a home and have no viable alternatives. This may be the result of family disintegration, conflict, poverty, HIV/AIDS, abuse or neglect. Life on the street exposes children to a myriad of risks and robs them of the safety and comfort that a family environment can offer.

Children living and working on the streets are highly vulnerable to abuse, exploitation, addictions, and crime, and lack access to everyday essential services such as health and education. Their situation is made more difficult as a result of social perceptions of street children. Street children are frequently targeted by the police, beaten, held and charged without due process. Government policies, institutions, and communities may exclude or marginalise children on the street, and deny their basic human rights.

Children living and working on the streets require legal protection by the state, recognition of their rights, and access to public services. Reception and drop- in centres can provide an entry point to basic services, including shelter, food and health provision, education, and income generation projects. While such initiatives can help to sustain children on the street and protect them from high risk behaviours, organisations working with vulnerable children need to work towards preventative measures to reduce the numbers of children who end up homeless. Prevention begins with an assessment of the causes of family separation, identification of those most at risk, and strategies to support family and community placements.

The opinions and preferences of children already on the street must form an integral part of any strategy since the empowerment of such children is necessary to effect change in their own lives. Community reintegration services should be established where possible to provide children with an alternative to street life. All placements, such as kinship or foster care, must be regulated to ensure that they meet the needs of children and are in their best interests.

The resources in this section provide statistical and country information on the situation of children living and working on the street, assessments of their needs, and intervention examples relating to support services, care planning, and access to health and education programmes.

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Violence prevention: the evidence

WHO and Liverpool John Moores University, 2009

This report brings together an eight-part series of briefings on the evidence for interventions to prevent interpersonal and self-directed violence. By spotlighting evidence for the effectiveness of interventions, the series provides clear directions for how violence prevention funders, policy makers and programme implementers can boost the impact of their violence prevention efforts.

Preventing violence through the development of safe, stable and nurturing relationships between children and their parents and caregivers

WHO and Liverpool John Moores University, 2009

This briefing looks at the effectiveness of interventions that encourage safe, stable and nurturing relationships for preventing child maltreatment and aggressive behaviour in childhood. The focus is on primary prevention programmes, those that are implemented early enough to avoid the development of violent behaviour such as child maltreatment and childhood aggression.

Why Do Separated Children Matter? A Policy Briefing Paper

EveryChild, 01 Nov 2008

Evaluation of the need for increased understanding and inclusive responses to highly marginalized and separated children.

Mapping of Residential Care Institutions in Sierra Leone

UNICEF, 01 Aug 2008

Mapping of existing facilities caring for children in residential capacity for use in developing child protection standards

Situation Assessment of Children Living and/or Working on the Streets in Harare and Chitungwiza

Harare Task Force on Children Living and/or Working on the Streets, 01 Jun 2008

Analysis of the contributing causes, needs and vulnerabilities of children living and/or working in the street in Zimbabwe.

Keeping Children Safe: Standards for Child Protection

Keeping Children Safe Coalition, 2008

The first tool in the Keeping Children Safe Toolkit which explains what the basic standards should be for all organisations across the world working with and for children directly and indirectly

Children's Property and Inheritance Rights, HIV and AIDS, and Social Protection in Southern and Eastern Africa

Laurel L. Rose, Ph.D., 2008

Discusses the bi-directional relationship between HIV/AIDS and agriculture, food security, and rural livelihoods, including the relationship between HIV/AIDS and children’s property and inheritance rights

Lubuto Library Project: Bringing Knowledge and Enlightenment to Africa's Street Children

Lubuto Library Project, 14 Jan 2007

The Lubuto Library Project seeks to fill an important gap in services to vulnerable children in Africa by providing a bridge to schools and social services otherwise beyond their reach.

The Child Protection System in Azerbaijan: Situation Analysis: Resources, Referral Mechanisms, Gaps and Risks Seen from a Child Rights Perspective

Cristina Roccella, 2007

Analyzes emerging protection problems and priorities of children living in Azerbaijan. Drafts a map of the institutional system related to child welfare at a national level.

Study on Child Abuse: India

Dr. Loveleen Kacker, Srinivas Varadan, Pravesh Kumar, 2007

Presents the findings of a nationwide study into the extent and characteristics of child abuse and girl neglect in India. Includes: children in a family environment but not attending school; children in schools; children in institutional care; working children; and street children.