Moving Forward… with SOS Children’s Villages
Valérie Jans 13th October 2016 ‘What‘s Next‘ conference, Haarlem
Alternative care and SOS
Content presentation
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Changes in SOS’ family care setting Diversifying the alternative care options Supporting kinship care Working across a continuum of care Link to the UN guidelines Challenges
Driver for change External drivers: Changes in context and the situation of the child Changes in international policies Changes in discourse of ‘best interest of the child’ Internal drivers: Enormous expansion Broadened objectives & programmes of SOS Lessons learnt & experiences Organisational challenges Policy and strategy developments
Transitions in the SOS family care setting
Challenges
Independence youth Institutional elements – quality of care SOS mother working conditions Financial considerations
Developments SOS family care setting
1. Physical and social integration 2. Increased autonomy of the family
Physical integration (1)
1
Close network of families (e.g. East Tirol, Austria; Rustenburg, South Africa)
2
Family clusters (e.g. India, srinagar, planned Sene, Ghana)
Dispersed (e.g.families Campinas, Brazil) 3
Physical integration (2)
Some families move 1 into the community (e.g. Abobo Gare ,Côte d’Ivoire)
Families access relevant community 2 services (e.g. Cochabamba, Bolivia; planned Rajpura, India)
Families have direct 3 access to the neighbourhood (e.g. 2
2
Juba, South Sudan)
4
Bring-in other families, (e.g. Imst, Austria)
Social integration
Participation in community-life: Education in community schools, sports, culture, faith,...
• Using community services • Participating in community events
• No visible distinctions, use of terminology
Autonomy of the family
Autonomy of the family
Promotion of family autonomy: SOS mother taking the lead in family life including dayto-day decision making, child participation, etc.
• • •
Family as decision making unit SOS parent taking the lead in family life Child participation Strengthening natural family environment: Appropriate family size, growing up with siblings, couples as parents, relationships with family of origin, biological children of SOS mother living with family
• •
Family size SOS parent
Effects…
Better quality care -> well-being child Identity of children linked to the family unit, not SOS Broader network of peers, social inclusion Developing life skills and preparing for independent life Better adaptation to changes in context SOS parents better working conditions
Exemples…
Interacting with others Children in SOS families learn how to handle differences, because they have to care about other people and more people care about them. Children visit each other, sometimes staying overnight at their friend’s home, so it is more ‘normal‘ now. People look after each other, not only within their own group. Extract case study East Tyrol, SOS Austria
Diversifying the range of alternative care options
Different objectives of care
Developments in goal of care, leading to..: • Different lengths of care • Different types of care settings
Better respond to the particular situation and needs of of the child (and family)
Different alternative care options
What type of care setting is required? Foster care Small Group Homes Emergency shelters, transit houses, mother and child shelters
Foster care
SOS parents in SOS families have the status of foster parents;
SOS sets up and runs a network of foster families;
SOS provides support services to existing foster families in the community;
SOS supports a key implementation partner to develop foster care in the community;
SOS advocate for the reform of care systems and the development of quality alternative care options such as foster care in the country;
SOS support the government in the implementation of foster care;
SOS is supporting kinship foster care families within the community through family strengthening.
Supporting kinship care..
Programme approach
Family strengthening programmes: Supporting kinship care Preventing family breakdown Strengthening quality care within existing family setting Avoiding the need for (or recourse to) formal alternative care
..strengthening existing families
In development..
Changes in strategy: ďƒ˜From direct support to tackling the root causes ďƒ˜From direct result to sustainable result ďƒ˜From working at family level, to community and governmental level
1. Different areas of support
2. Different approaches to support Inclusiveness: Appropriate to level of vulnerbality of target group
Sustainable: Community building (and/or government), social business, combine with advocacy, work with duty bearers Empowering: Civic Driven Change, taking on a different role as SOS Effective: Partnerships
Working across a continuum
Changing perspective
ONE comprehensive programme approach
Child is central to the programme Combining different forms of alternative care Combining different objectives of care Combining prevention & alternative care More differentiation in goals of alternative care Focus on reunification
Case study
SOS and the UN Guidelines
THE UN GUIDELINES AND SOS Q2 U N G U I D E L I N E S
IS CARE APPROPRIATE FOR THE CHILD?
Q1 IS CARE GENUINLY NEEDED?
Ensure that the caresetting meets the need of the child Ensure formal alternative care settings meet minimum standards
Discourage recourse to alternative care Reduce the perceived need for formal alternative care
THE UN GUIDELINES AND SOS Q2 U N G U I D E L I N E S S O S
IS CARE APPROPRIATE FOR THE CHILD?
Q1 IS CARE GENUINLY NEEDED?
Ensure that the caresetting meets the need of the child Ensure formal alternative care settings meet minimum standards
Discourage recourse to alternative care Reduce the perceived need for formal alternative care
ADVOCACY
Family strengthening
Improvements SOS setting Broadening the range & reunification
Challenges
Managing change Changing… People’s mindset (within and external) Systems and supporting tools Required skills Organisational set up (combining teams and programme elements) The role of the organisation Practically, how to…
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