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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Country Care Review: Oman

Better Care Network, 17 Apr 2018

This country care review includes the care-related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Country Care Review: Slovenia

Better Care Network, 16 Apr 2018

This Country Care Review includes the care-related concluding observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as well as other care-related concluding observations, ratification dates, and links to the Universal Periodic Review and Hague Intercountry Adoption Country Profile.

Serving clients and the community better: A mixed‐methods analysis of benefits experienced when organizations collaborate in child welfare

Marianna L. Colvin & Shari E. Miller - Child & Family Social Work, 16 Apr 2018

Data from extensive qualitative interviews (n = 67) and a survey instrument (n = 80) are used in this study to examine the perceived benefits experienced when organizations interact in community‐wide child welfare practice.

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Country Care Review: Haiti

Better Care Network, 13 Apr 2018

This country care review includes the care-related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Country Care Review: Sudan

Better Care Network, 10 Apr 2018

This country care review includes the care-related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

3rd Biennial International Conference Report: Evolving Trends in Alternative Care for Children in South Asia

Udayan Care, 01 Apr 2018

This is the report of the 3rd Biennial International Conference (3rd BICON) on “Evolving Trends in Alternative Care for Children in South Asia” that was convened by Udayan Care on March 16 & 17, 2018 at Amity University, Noida NCR (India).

UNICEF 2017 Report on Communication for Development (C4D): Global Progress and Country Level Highlights Across Programme Areas

UNICEF, 01 Apr 2018

The following report summarizes how UNICEF and its partners have utilized Communication for Development strategies in their work during the period of UNICEF’s Strategic Plan 2014-2017, with an emphasis on 2017.

Treacherous crossings, precarious arrivals: Responses to the influx of unaccompanied minors in the Hudson Valley

Anne R. Roschelle, Elizabeth Greaney, Timothy Allan, Luz Porras - Children and Youth Services Review, 31 Mar 2018

This research examines how federal immigration policy impacted child migrants at the local Hudson Valley level and the collective response by service providers, educators, activists, and immigration lawyers to effectively deal with the crisis.

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A critical analysis of the creation of separated care structures for unaccompanied refugee minors

Ilse Derluyn - Children and Youth Services Review, 30 Mar 2018

Based on an analysis of the evolutions in the way the care structures for unaccompanied minors were set up in Belgium, the authors of this article critically reflect on the underlying rationales that justify the particularities of these structures, hereby also reflecting about the implications of these rationales for professionals and researchers.

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Unaccompanied children seeking safe haven: Providing care and supporting well-being of a vulnerable population

Julie M. Linton, Elizabeth Kennedy, Alan Shapiro, Marsha Griffin - Children and Youth Services Review, 26 Mar 2018

The purpose of this article is to describe the impact of current and evolving immigration policy on the health of unaccompanied children, to delineate barriers to care and challenges they face prior to gaining legal relief, and to suggest policy recommendations that support health and safety for them from the point of apprehension to and through achieving legal status.

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