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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Fact Sheet for Tribal Child Welfare Officials

Children’s Bureau , 2015

This factsheet looks at whether States in the US are following best practices in regards to the Indian Child Welfare Act, such as notification of Tribes and placement preferences. Findings from the Reviews are presented.

SHAME ON U.S. - Failings by All Three Branches of Our Federal Government Leave Abused and Neglected Children Vulnerable to Further Harm

Children’s Advocacy Institute of the University of San Diego School of Law , 2015

This study, produced by the Children’s Advocacy Institute at the San Diego School of Law, examines the activities of the federal government of the United States in regards to enacting and enforcing child welfare laws and ensuring that individual states are complying with minimum federal standards for child protection.

Your Rights Under the Indian Child Welfare Act

Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid and Legal Services State Support, 2015

This fact sheet describes the rights of native children and families under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) in the United States.

National Plan of Action for Children in Kenya 2015-2022

National Council for Children’s Services, 2015

The National Plan of Action (NPA) provides an operational framework to guide stakeholders and partners in coordinating, planning, implementing and monitoring programmes for the child.

Research-Practice Partnerships for Implementation of Evidence-Based Practices in Child Welfare and Child Mental Health: A White Paper

Lawrence A. Palinkas, Cherry Short, and Marleen Wong - School of Social Work, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 2015

This paper addresses the disconnect between research and practice in regards to child welfare and child mental health services in the US.

The Foster Care Systems are Failing Foster Children: The Implications and Practical Solutions for Better Outcomes of Youth in Care

Mary Ramsay-Irving - Canadian Journal of Family and Youth Vol. 7, No. 1 , 2015

This paper reviews the literature on foster care and explains the issues that foster children in Canada experience.

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The Place of Foster Care in the Continuum of Care Choices: A Review of the Evidence for Policymakers

Ghazal Keshavarzian, Family for Every Child , 2015

This report from Family for Every Child explores rising concerns about the expansion of foster care services in low and middle income countries, it begins to fill the gap in understanding, and aims to assist in both states’ and NGOs’ decisions on whether to invest in foster care, and in the kinds of supportive services needed to make foster care safe and effective.

Protect children, screen your employees

Dutch Ministry of Security and Justice , 2015

The Dutch Ministry of Security and Justice has developed this flyer, along with ECPAT Netherlands, Better Care Network Netherlands and Terre des Hommes Netherlands, to motivate foreign organizations working with children to ask for a Certificate of Conduct when recruiting Dutch volunteers or employees.

Unified Resolution on the Twenty-First Pan-American Child and Adolescent Congress - Childhood and Adolescence: Building Peaceful Environments

IIN, Organization of American States (OAS) , 12 Dec 2014

This Unified Resolution from the Twenty-First Pan-American Child and Adolescent Congress highlights resolutions and recommendations relevant to violence against children, recognizes achievements made by Member States in addressing violence against children, and presents 17 specific resolutions related to ending and preventing violence against children in the Americas.

Position Statement from the Expert Consultation on Violence and Alternative Care

Expert Consultation on Violence and Alternative Care - 21st Pan American Child Congress , 08 Dec 2014

In advance of the 21st Pan American Child and Adolescent Congress, an international consultation on the elimination of violence against children in alternative care was convened. This position statement from the consultation was presented at the 21st Pan American Child and Adolescent Congress.