DAPHNE 2003: Young children at risk of harm under 5 years in institutions - different approaches, model
Project Reference Number:
2003-046-C
Young children at risk of harm under 5 years in institutions - different approaches, model
Identifying good practices in the de-institutionalisation of children under the age of five.
Categories
Actions: StudiesInformation sourcesPrevention of violenceLegislative measures
Beneficiaries: WomenMigrantsPeople in prostitutionTrafficked people
Intermediaries: General publicSocial workers
Topics: Trafficking in human beingsCommercial sexual exploitation
Comments
Research has shown that less than 4 per cent of children in institutional care are biological orphans. The overall average length of stay for infants was 15 months with a mean age of 11 months on admission and 26 months on departure. One in three young children in residential care had some form of disability and one in four showed developmental delay, as research demonstrates that any length of stay over six months has a potential to damage brain development in those children under 24 months. The majority (63 per cent) of children were moved to foster care or adoptive families and about one in five was returned to the natural family. However, more than one in 10 children (11 per cent) was moved to another institution. Only two cases of inter-country adoption were recorded in the whole sample.
This project aimed to identify good practices for de-institutionalisation of young children younger than five years placed in institutions for more than three months without a primary caregiver. Data from eight countries (Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovak Republic and UK) was considered in terms of new placements (family-based care such as returning to natural family, foster care and adoption) and the process explored. Unfortunately, 29 children from the sample of 489 remained in the same institution during the time of the study. Therefore, information was provided on 456 children who moved out of residential care. Of these, an in-depth study was carried out on 244 children who were followed up six months later in their new placements (Hungary, Romania and Slovakia).
Lessons and ideas
The results tentatively suggest that countries with better community support services are more likely to base their decisions on the child’s needs and provide better preparation for the move. Where community services are limited, the placement decisions are more likely to be driven by institutions or the parents’ expectations. Most countries assess children’s physical health and developmental needs together with the physical environment and carer suitability. However, only half of the disabled children had their disability assessed as part of the decision making and only 38 per cent of all children who have siblings were placed with one of their siblings. State agencies followed up on 52 per cent of the cases moved from residential care while staff from the institutions followed up on 38 per cent of the cases.
Overall, the findings demonstrate that there is room for improvement in the practice of moving children from residential care into family-based care and a 10-step model of good practice closure of institutions has been developed. Also, it is important to develop a foster care and adoption system before de-institutionalisation. Sufficient numbers of foster families have to be carefully assessed and recruited beforehand. Without this before a child is moved, the child will be at risk of entering a placement that cannot meet their needs. This would further damage the child or result in placement breakdown.
Website
Organisations
Lead organisation:
Partner(s):
CDCP - Comitato per i Diritti Civili delle Prostitute
TAMPEP International Foundation
ICCL - Irish Council for Civil Liberties
UMAR - Uniao de Mulheres Alternativa e Resposta
ACT UP - trafficking
SCOT-PEP Scottish Prostitutes Education Project
Pro-tukipiste
CEAR - Comision Española de Ayuda al Refugiado
LEFÖ - Counselling, Education and Support for Migrant Women
VFS-Udsatte - Danemark
Material available
- Paper trail Proforma
- In-depth study Background information form, study follow up form for home visits,for institutional visits
- Publication list
- CD Rom of Athens Conference presenting results of the end of the project to 100 international participants (8th April 2005), published by WHO Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen with EU logo and Daphne Programme acknowledgement.
- De-institutionalising Children from Residential Care: A Guide to Good Practice. Manual in press. To be published by UNICEF with EU logo and Daphne Programme acknowledgement and WHO Regional Office for Europe logo.
- ‘Identifying good practices for the deinstitutionalisation of young children from European residential care’. Book to be published by the University of Birmingham (Centre for Forensic and Family Psychology) in collaboration with the EU Daphne programme and WHO Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen. All logos will appear on the front cover.
to order the book please contact Stella Briggs s.f.z.briggs@bham.ac.uk
Documents
01_final_report_2003_046.doc (300 KB)
01_final_report_2003_046.pdf (252.24 KB)
02_annex_final_report_2003_046.doc (889.5 KB)
03_summary_2003_046.doc (51 KB)
eurochild_members_list_europe.pdf (150.21 KB)
hungary_violence_against_children.pdf (544.14 KB)
int_directory_eu_institutions_children_rights.pdf (959.86 KB)
int_un_ljubljanareport_2005.pdf (2.15 MB)
report_revision_july_2005_2003_046.pdf (496 KB)
who_report_2004_copenhagen_2003_046.pdf (180.22 KB)
Useful Links
UN Study on Violence Against Children - Europe & Central Asia 2005