This study aimed to investigate developmental outcomes of children raised in institutions in Switzerland in conditions of psychosocial deprivation and to identify possible risk and protective factors at institutional and child levels.
CCF Moldova conducted a comprehensive financial analysis of foster care services for children with disabilities to identify financial gaps for current foster carers and financial impediments that deter placement of children with disabilities in foster care. The report provides concrete recommendations to address gaps and cost implications of implementing new funding policies.
Serviciile alternative de tip familial sunt un element cheie în reforma sistemului de îngrijire a copilului în Moldova. Totuși, copiii cu dizabilități sunt, încă, sub-reprezentați în grupul de copii în familiile de asistenți parentali profesioniști și părinți-educatori din casele de copii de tip familie. Unul dintre obstacolele menționate de specialiștii în domeniu, de asistenții parentali profesioniști și părinții-educatori este sprijinul financiar insuficient, care limitează accesul copiilor cu dizabilități în servicii de tip familial.
This study proposed a multicomponent model of implementation strategies to empirically examine the degree of adoption of evidence-based practice (EBP) at national, agency, and practitioner levels in a sample of 20 member countries of the European family support network.
Gillian Huebner, Executive Director of the Collaborative on Global Children's Issues at Georgetown University, spoke with Karla Jones & Brooklyn Roberts about the children who have been kidnapped and disappeared during Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The purpose of this longitudinal study conducted on institutionalized infants and toddlers in Switzerland from 1958 to 1961 and then 60 years later on the same group, is to investigate the effects of psychosocial deprivation on cognitive functioning in late adulthood.
In this study the authors explored the coping resources and assets of care leavers during and following the pandemic from the perspective of 44 care leavers in Israel aged 18–29.
Through this study, the researcher has attempted to view the Child Protection System from the lived experiences of 10 children who are/have been part of the Child Protection System in Delhi, India.
The survey of the COVID-19 outbreak focused on studying the impact and long-term consequences on care leavers, especially residential care leavers who are living independently.
Melody Curtis, Laura Horvath, Jared Scheppman, and Kelly Strong discuss the journey from traditional child sponsorship models to a new paradigm that champions community empowerment. They also tackle the ethical dilemmas and strategic decisions that are reshaping the way we support vulnerable children around the world.
Discover the unforeseen ripple effects of child sponsorship programs with Laura Horvath, Jared Scheppman, and Kelly Strong as they dissect the challenges and triumphs in philanthropy's evolving landscape. The guests in this episode reveal how well-intentioned aid can sometimes miss the mark, inadvertently creating dependencies that hobble the very communities they intend to uplift. They also analyze the intricacies of international aid, focusing on the necessary shift from quick fixes to sustainable, community-driven development.
These statements can be used in donor facing advocacy efforts. The purpose of these statements are to demonstrate to donors that care experienced experts, advocates and networks are calling for care reforms, including for the transition of residential care services, so that children can access more appropriate services and be raised in families.
Este artigo explora o papel da avaliação e gestão de caso no contexto das reformas do sistema de cuidados alternativos. Oferece princípios transversais de boas práticas, as etapas essenciais e descreve os fatores críticos envolvidos nas práticas de avaliação e gestão de caso eficazes. Baseando-se na literatura da região, o artigo visa fornecer uma orientação abrangente aos profissionais e às partes interessadas envolvidas nos cuidados, no bem-estar e na proteção das crianças. O anexo fornece detalhes dos recursos de avaliação e gestão de caso da região da África Oriental e Austral e também em outros lugares.
Ce document explore le rôle de la gestion de cas dans le contexte des réformes de la prise en charge. Il propose des principes transversaux de bonnes pratiques, des étapes essentielles et décrit les facteurs critiques impliqués dans des pratiques efficaces de gestion de cas. S’appuyant sur la littérature de la région, ce document vise à fournir une orientation générale aux professionnels et aux acteurs impliqués dans la prise en charge, le bien-être et la protection de l’enfance. L’annexe fournit des détails sur les ressources en matière de gestion de cas dans la région de l’Afrique de l’Est et australe ainsi qu’au-delà.
This paper explores the role of case management in the context of care reforms. It offers cross-cutting principles of good practice, essential steps, and describes critical factors involved in effective case management practices. Drawing on literature from the Eastern and Southern Africa region and beyond, the paper aims to provide overarching guidance to professionals and stakeholders involved in children’s care, welfare, and protection.
Delia Pop, the director of Tanya's Dream Fund, leads grant giving and advocacy strategies in Bulgaria along with working with UNICEF. In this episode she shares her extensive knowledge on creating strong strategy reforms.
Leon Fulcher discusses how to attain long-term holistic development of children in alternative care.
Martin Punaks discusses effective advocacy campaigning in this episode of Care Conversations.
Niels Peter Rygaard, a leading child psychologist, sheds light on 'missing links' and growth-encouraging assessment methods in this episode of episode of Care Conversations: ICB Podcast. He explores the ways of connecting with children without parental care and ways to make small changes that create a large impact in the world of family strengthening and alternative care.
Dr. Monisha Nayar Akhtar, a leading child psychologist and psychoanalyst talks to host Dr. Kiran Modi about the support institutionalised children need in the form of a nurturing family unit.
The Thrive Strategy incorporates updated evidence on children in adversity and their needs, and considers the ongoing impact of global events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, spotlighting the polycrisis that children in adversity and families are experiencing.
This CPC Learning Network hosted a conversation with partners and faculty affiliates on "Rethinking Child & Youth Participatory Methodologies & Processes: Presentations from our Partner Research Centers in Uganda, Indonesia, and Colombia".
This webinar was a panel conversation hosted by the CPC Learning Network, ChildFund Alliance, the Program on Forced Migration and Health at Columbia University, and the Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict that brought together a panel of experts to discuss the root causes leading to recruitment and involvement in activities of armed groups as well as the current context in countries such as Sudan, Colombia, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and more.
This article reviews a study conducted about child development in residential care, foster/kafalah care, and adoptive families. The authors of the study demonstrated that institutions cannot provide safe, stable, and shared care for children, and lead to substantial delays in their development, not only for physical health but also for mental health and neurocognitive growth.
Listen to transition support experts David Musa and Yatta Palmer of the Child Reintegration Centre (CRC) explain how transition is getting more children home to family and learn about the challenges, successes, and the powerful role of the CRC in revolutionizing child welfare in Sierra Leone.
Updated Checklist for the Integration of Protection of Children Affected by Armed Conflict into the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) Missions and Operations
This is the Council of the European Union's Conclusions on the update of the EU Guidelines on Children and Armed Conflict, as approved by the Council at its 4038th meeting, held on 24 June 2024.
Originally published in 2018 and updated in 2024 defines the EU’s global approach to protecting children affected by wars. These guidelines are intended to serve as a practical tool to direct and assist EU actors throughout the world in their work on children and armed conflict, including other situations of armed violence by state and non-state actors, such as terrorist organisations and organised criminal groups.
In this interview, BCN’s Senior Technical Advisor, Rebecca Nhep, speaks with Phil Aspegren, Founder of Casa Viva, about transitioning residential care services with child sponsorship funding models.
This global scoping review aimed to examine the extent and nature of existing literature on the influence of adverse childhood experiences and resilience on the cognitive, physical, mental, and social health outcomes among older adults.
This practitioner guidance paper outlines the work of the Pillars Ka Pou Whakahou -- a charity based in New Zealand that provides support for the children and families of those in prison by providing wraparound support for these families, with home-based social work and a youth mentoring programme.
This practitioner guide outlines the Aviva program in Christchurch, Aotearoa New Zealand that provides support to children, young people and adults who have experienced family or sexual violence.
This practitioner guidance paper details the work of the VOYCE – Whakarongo Mai centres in New Zealand which centres its work around the belief that care-experienced young people are already experts on the care system – they just need to be offered appropriate training and support to get their voices heard.
This UNICEF paper summarises evidence on the current use and impact of boarding schools in the Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region and draws on wider international evidence. It proposes a typology of boarding schools and considers the drivers for their use, as well as the concerns and challenges related to that use for vulnerable children.
This Global Thematic Review on Education examines the under-researched relationship between education and institutional care.
Around the globe, an estimated 27 million people are exploited for labor, services, and commercial sex. Through force, fraud, and coercion, they are made to toil in fields and factories, in restaurants and residences. Traffickers prey on some of the world’s most marginalized and vulnerable individuals – profiting from their plight. Among these individuals are children who are forced into criminality, sex trafficking, child soldiering, and in some countries the forced marriage of children has been defined as a form of exploitation.
On March 20, 2024, an immersive simulation lab event took place in Sri Lanka. Child protection allies from the Western Province of Sri Lanka gathered for a hands-on experience aimed at transitioning from a system reliant on child care institutions to one focused on promoting family-based care and strengthening family initiatives.
This article aims to trace and present some themes on Sweden's history of transnational adoption, with a particular focus on the public debate and the different narratives that representatives of the adoption triangle—the adoptees, the adoptive parents, and the biological parents—tell when dealing with transnational and transracial adoption as a personal and political phenomenon.
The study investigated the psychosocial consequences of poverty on rural Zimbabwean learners from child-headed households who are lagging behind in their learning. The study also aimed to generate recommendations based on the research findings.
This article aims to examine how the training and competencies of social workers during the deinstitutionalization processes in Lithuania impacted the preparation of children for independent living in society. The review of the scientific literature, presented in the article and the research data, can be applied to improve community care homes providing social services to highlight the role of social workers in creating a safe environment for the child, involving the child in the planning and organization of activities, fostering self-confidence and their abilities.
This article details to unique challenges faced by youth in care in the US when receiving inpatient treatment and how that varies in several ways from the care of non-foster care youth. Children in care have more medical, behavioral, and psychiatric problems and require health care at higher rates than youth not engaged in the child welfare system.
This article details the authors' findings that provide the first description of foster care trajectories in the US. Both practice and policy formulation can benefit from these empirically supported descriptions. Using such trajectory typologies, researchers can now explore how trajectories may predict wellbeing outcomes.
The aim of this empirical study was to analyse the relevance of long-term care solutions implemented in Poland for children leaving foster care, from the perspective of professional caregivers of the process of becoming independent.
In this chapter, the authors explore the intricate relationships between young disabled children, their families, institutional settings, and disability services in Canada, with an emphasis on the challenges stemming from unstable custodial dynamics and governmental interference.
This article provides an analysis of key policy and regulatory documents preceding or accompanying outsourcing policies in England (e.g., policy document relating to the 2012 and 2022 Health and Social Care Acts and the 2014 Care Act), and peer reviewed research on the impact of outsourcing within the NHS, adult's social care, and children's social care.
In Kenya, economic challenges often force families to place their children in residential care facilities (sometimes referred to as orphanages), leading to long-term negative impacts.
This study, conducted in Mthatha in South Africa's Eastern Cape province, sought to describe Xhosa cultural attitudes in relation to adoption.
Resistance from donors is a common barrier for organizations transitioning from residential care to family-based care. What works to sustain and even increase funding for organizations in transition?
This workshop explores why it is important to support care leavers networks, and how these networks can be supported. The workshop was designed and facilitated by care leavers, with presentations from a regional network working across Africa, and networks in Uganda and Zimbabwe.
