Child Care and Protection Policies

Child care and protection policies regulate the care of children, including the type of support and assistance to be offered, good practice guidelines for the implementation of services, standards for care, and adequate provisions for implementation. They relate to the care a child receives at and away from home.

States and all organisations with child care programmes should have child care policies which are in line with national legislation and international law, e.g. the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). In line with the CRC, emphasis should be placed on the child’s best interests, with support to families prioritised in order to prevent family separation. Good gatekeeping mechanisms are essential in ensuring families receive the services they need and are entitled to, and to guard against inappropriate placement into poor care arrangements.

Home-based care, day care, and other family support services are mechanisms for assisting families in providing for the child’s development and, when used appropriately, can prevent child separation. When a child is unable to remain at home, alternative forms of community based care should be prioritised, such as formal kinship care or foster care. The use of institutions should be highlighted as a last and temporary measure. All support and care provisions should outline the referral and admission process, the use of care plans, regular reviews, rehabilitation, and aftercare procedures.

Child protection legislation which recognises that abuse can be physical, emotional, sexual, or neglect, and may be carried out by parents, caretakers, children and other adults is required. All agencies working with children should have written child protection policies which respect the rights of the child. Policies should outline behaviours and actions which are unacceptable, provide standards for the appropriate care of children, and clear guidelines on what procedures to follow and by whom, including reporting mechanisms for suspected abuse to an assigned authority for investigation.

Child care and protection policies require resources and monitoring of standards to ensure their appropriate implementation. Adequate provision and training of child care and social work staff is required to deliver family support services and alternatives forms of child care. All staff working with children should be trained and supervised in providing appropriate care for children, identifying abuse, and responding appropriately.

The literature in this section contains country reports and examples of national and organisational child care and protection policies.

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BCN and Partners host event on Guidelines for Alternative Care at United Nations

BCN, 13 Oct 2011

In order to commemorate the two year anniversary of the resolution of the Alternative Care Guidelines, discuss the use and implementation of the Guidelines, and raise the profile of the importance of this international framework, the Permanent Mission of Brazil to the United Nations, in partnership with the Better Care Network, UNICEF, SOS and the NGO Committee on UNICEF Working Group on Children without Parental Care, held side-event during the UN Social, Humanitarian Cultural Affairs Committee of the UN General Assembly.

Policy and Programing Resource Guide for Child Protection Systems Strengthening in Sub-Saharan Africa

Plan, Save the Children, TRG, UNICEF, World Vision , 13 Oct 2011

This Resource Guide aims to be a user-friendly and manageable document designed to provide an overview of the current system strengthening approaches, along with a series of resources and tools available to support systems strengthening in child protection.

Analysis of the Situation of Children in Residential Centres in Burundi

Government of Burundi, International Rescue Committee, UNICEF, 13 Oct 2011

The report of this study responds to the objectives of identifying all the residential centres for children in Burundi, including the number of children residing in them; analysing the situation of children living in the centres and developing recommendations for the next steps

Child care subsidies and care arrangements of low-income parents

Nevbahar Ertas & Susan Shields - Children and Youth Services Review, 05 Oct 2011

This study uses data from the 2005 National Household Education Survey to examine the effects of child care subsidies on the enrollment of low-income children in early childhood education programs.

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A Situation Analysis of Ghanaian Children and Women: A Call for Reducing Disparities and Improving Equity

UNICEF and Ministry of Women & Children’s Affairs, Ghana , 01 Oct 2011

This comprehensive situation analysis provides an overview of issues related to public policy, social budget, and service delivery environment affecting children and women in Ghana.

Prakas on Procedures to Implement the Policy on Alternative Care for Children (Cambodia)

Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation, Kingdom of Cambodia, 01 Oct 2011

This Prakas is intended to define roles and responsibilities of relevant competent agencies and establish procedures, operational guides, and forms to implement the Policy on Alternative Care for Children.

Bottom-Up Learning About Child Protection Systems: A View of Community-Based Mechanisms From Inter-Agency Research in Sierra Leone

The Columbia Group for Children in Adversity, 29 Sep 2011

This presentation describes research undertaken in Sierra Leone by an inter-agency group to map the child protection system in the country, including the community-based child protection mechanisms (CBCPMs) in place.

Child Protection Systems: Eastern and Southern Africa

Philip Goldman - Maestral International, 28 Sep 2011

This presentation describes the mapping of the child protection system in Eastern and Southern Africa.

An Act to Establish the Children’s Law of Liberia, 2011

Republic of Liberia, 01 Sep 2011

The objective of this Law shall be to facilitate the respect, protection, promotion, and provision of the realization of child rights in order to make maximum contribution to the survival, development, participation, and protection of every child in Liberia.

Child Protection Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices in Central and Western Liberia - 2011

Save the Children, 01 Sep 2011

This report provides the initial findings of a Child Protection Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) Study commissioned by Save the Children (SC) as part of the project “Educating and Protecting Vulnerable Children in Family Settings in Liberia” (2010-2014).