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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Policy transfer, social pedagogy and children's residential care in England

David Berridge - Child and Family Social Work, 01 Feb 2016

This paper builds on a recent evaluation of the piloting of the continental European model of social pedagogy (SP) in English residential care. It does three things: it considers the theoretical social policy literature on policy transfer and its implications; discusses European residential care for children and the discipline of SP; and reflects on these debates and the situation of children's residential care in England.

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Country Care Review: Maldives

Better Care Network, 29 Jan 2016

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

Lignes directrices nationales sur la prise en charge des enfants dans les familles d’accueil transitoire: Manuel à l’usage des acteurs de protection de l’enfance en RCA

Ministere des Affaires Sociales, de la Promotion du Genre et de L’Action Humanitaire - Republique Centrafricaine, et UNICEF, 02 Jan 2016

Le présent document propose la procédure d’identification, de sélection, de formation, de suivi et d’appui aux familles d’accueil temporaire dans la prise en charge des enfants non accompagnés, séparés, enfants associés aux groupes armés, orphelins et autres enfants vulnérables en Centrafrique, aussi bien sur les sites des déplacés que dans les communautés.

Addressing Social Norms that Underpin Violence Against Children in Zimbabwe: Findings and strategic planning document

Fry, D., Hodzi, C. and T. Nhenga - Ministry of Public Services, Labour and Social Welfare, 2016

This report highlights key findings from a social norms study conducted in Zimbabwe to understand the drivers of violence affecting children.

South African Early Childhood Review 2016

Ilifa Labantwana, the Children’s Institute at the University of Cape Town (UCT) and the Department for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) in the Presidency, 2016

This report reviews South Africa’s National Integrated Early Childhood Development Policy, which was approved by the Cabinet in December 2015. The policy is aimed at providing a framework for multi-sectoral Early Childhood Development services in South Africa.

The Rights of the Child in a Changing World: 25 Years after the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Editor: Olga Cvejić Jančić, 2016

Meant to highlight the maxim that every child deserves the best that we all have to give; this book provides a review of the progress made since The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. It contains reports from 21 countries on the status of the rights of the child. The countries are: Australia, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, India, Iran, Japan, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Serbia, Solomon Islands, Spain, the Netherlands, the UK, the USA, Uzbekistan and Venezuela. There are no reports from Africa.

The Rights of the Child in a Changing World: 25 Years after the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Carta de Entendimiento de Apoyo Interinstitucional para la Prestación de Servicios Esenciales a Niñas, Niños y Adolescentes Víctimas de Amenazas o Vulneración a sus Derechos

PGN, Gobierno de Guatemala, CNA, 2016

The Children (Amendment) Act, 2016

The Republic of Uganda, 2016

The Children (Amendment) Act of 2016 is an Act to amend the Children's Act Cap. 59 of Uganda to enhance the protection of children; to strengthen the provision for guardianship of children; to strengthen the conditions for intercountry adoption; to prohibit corporal punishment; to provide for the National Children Authority; repeal the National Council for Children Cap. 60 and to provide for other related matters.

Child Protection and Parent Support: The Two Dichotomies

Dejan Janićijević - Factas Universitatis: Law and Politics, 2016

This paper examines the two basic models of the state authorities’ intervention into family life aimed at protecting children.

Schools that care: A review of linkages between children’s education and care

Camilla Jones – Family for Every Child, 2016

This report presents the key findings of a scoping study on the links between education and children’s care. The study involved a literature review in English, French and Spanish; key informant interviews; and consultations with 170 children, carers, teachers and other stakeholders in Guyana, India, Russia and Rwanda.