Permanency Planning

Permanency planning is the process of assessing and preparing a child for long term care when in out-of-home placements such as kinship, foster care or institutions. A care plan must centre on what is in the child’s best interests, and therefore requires an ongoing assessment of the child and her needs. A guardian may be appointed as a further protection of a child’s rights.

The ultimate goal of permanency planning is to ensure a secure environment with lifelong bonds that will support the child into adulthood. For most children this will be provided by their birth parents and relatives, and therefore family reunification should be the primary goal. Where reunification is not possible or suitable for the child, adoption or Islamic kafalah is usually the next best option since it offers more stability and enables the child to develop a lasting attachment to carers.

Each child is an individual and brings a unique set of requirements. The choice of placement must therefore consider the child’s cultural and religious background, abilities and any special needs, attachments to significant people and how such relationships can be maintained, their education, health and overall development. Ideally, children should be kept close to their original communities in order help maintain their identity and to reduce disruption to their everyday lives.

While short term care such as fostering can provide a safe place for a child and time to assess their needs, it is often an unsuitable long term option since it is a temporary arrangement that is prone to breakdown. Social workers or other child protection paraprofessionals in the community must determine the use of short term care and the development of longer term plans with the full participation of the child, birth family, and prospective caretakers, providing opportunities for contact with each other, and preparing all for moves.

All placements should be monitored regularly to ensure the child is safe and his/her physical, emotional, and educational needs are met. This includes children who have been recently returned to their birth family or who are newly placed with adoptive parents. Monitoring enables the provision of family support services, and helps to reduce placement breakdown and incidences of abuse.

The resources in this section focus on the factors that should be considered when planning a child’s care, and the advantages and disadvantages of placement options.

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Situation Faced by Institutionalized Children and Adolescents in Shelters in Guatemala

Office of Social Welfare of Guatemala, Holt International and UNICEF, 01 Jun 2008

Assesses the causes and realities of children living in institutions in Guatemala with recommendations for systemic reform.

Adoption: At What Cost? For an Ethical Responsibility of Receiving Countries in Intercountry Adoption

Terre des hommes, 01 Feb 2008

A comparative study on the ethical responsibility of receiving countries of intercountry adoption.

Capacity to Manage Alternative Care: Assessment Report for Namibia

Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare Government of the Republic of Namibia, 2008

This report prepared for the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare (MGECW) with financial support from UNICEF Namibia assesses the country’s capacity to manage alternative care systems for children.

Challenging Dominant Policy Paradigms of Care for Children Orphaned by AIDS: Dynamic Patterns of Care in KwaZulu-Natal, Republic of South Africa.

Caroline Kuo & Dan Operario, 01 Oct 2007

Analyzes the care of children without parents in the contexts of current theoretical and policy formations and attachment theory with kin and non-kin caregivers.

http://www.crin.org/docs/KZN.pdf

Experimental Apartment Declared a Successful Alternative to Orphanages

John Budd, 23 Jul 2007

In Georgia, UNICEF and EveryChild have teamed up to place children in need of alternative care in small, supervised apartments as an alternative to orphanages.

A Rapid Assessment of Children's Homes in post-Tsunami Aceh

Florence Martin and Tata Sudrajat, 2006

Examines institutional and family care in post-Tsunami Indonesia. Includes situational analysis, key issues, and recommendations.

Consideration of Kinship Carer(s) for a Longer Term Placement of a Child or Children

Carol Edwards, Edwina Brockelsby, Family Rights Group, UK, 2006

A template for assessing the suitability of kinship caregivers in the longer term, and for planning the care of a child in kinship care.

Adoption - General Principles

International Social Services and International Reference Centre for the Rights of the Child Deprived of their Family (ISS/IRC), 2006

A 2-page fact sheet outlining the general priniciples to be taken into account regarding international adoption. Discusses the "adoptability" of children who have not lost their parents, but are abandoned or made vulnerable by poverty.

Provisional Protective Measures: The Principles to Be Observed During the Institutionalization of a Child (1 of 3)

International Social Service and International Reference Center for the Rights of Children Deprived of their Family (ISS/IRC), 2006

A brief 2-page overview of what steps should be taken if and when a social worker or other community worker admits a child to a residential institution.

The Adoptability of the Child: Objectives and Responsibilities

International Social Services and International Reference Centre for the Rights of the Child Deprived of their Family (ISS/IRC), 2006

A 2-page fact sheet that discusses the conditions under which a child may or may not be eligible for adoption. Discusses legal implications and the role of local social services.