#vulnerablechildren

What About Parental Problems?

Posted on January 21, 2019September 30, 2019 by Florence

Wait a minute, you might say, didn’t you say in the overview that some children need to be taken away from their families for their own protection? Because they are being abused or neglected, or because they are surrounded by domestic violence or substance abuse. Nothing to be done there…

While it is true that there will always be some children who need to be removed from their families for their protection, this is actually only a very, very small group… IF support systems are in place. Even when parents are facing serious problems or are really struggling to raise their children, very often it is possible to help out in ways that allow the child to stay with the family, safely.

The Meaning of Child Protection

Posted on December 21, 2018December 21, 2018 by Florence

With just a few days to go until Christmas, many people ask if we still really understand the meaning of Christmas. And with reason. However, apart from struggling to recall the Christian sense behind Christmas, most people struggle on a much larger scale to see or care about what is happening to vulnerable children.

The combination of Christmas coming up and the work that I do regularly points my mind towards a song that has always had a great significance to me. I would like to share it with you here.

Don’t Take My Word for It

Posted on October 8, 2018October 6, 2018 by Florence

Recently, Lumos has held a major event in the US. Lumos is a London-based organisation that for the past 13 years has worked very hard and gained increasing momentum to achieve global deinstitutionalisation. And now they have released a video that was taken at that event.

In the summer of 2017, I had the privilege of attending Lumos’ ‘Introduction to Deinstitutionalisation’. For four days I was able to exchange experiences and have discussions with a variety of representatives of major international organisations involved in child protection and of several government bodies from across the world. As well as increasing my knowledge and understanding of various details of how to make sure deinstitutionalisation is done responsibly.

Reasons for Abandonment

Posted on October 2, 2018October 6, 2018 by Florence

In a later blog I will share with you more information about why children end up being abandoned and/or placed in institutions. While the reasons can be many, the bottom line is almost invariably that a mother is trying to give a child a better life or even is trying to save his or her life.

Before I find the opportunity to write that blog, however, I want to share this article with you, which gives some insight into one of these reasons:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-45670750

Learning the Lesson and Providing Real Help: Indonesia

Posted on September 30, 2018September 30, 2019 by Florence

In the past days, the news has been full of accounts about the terrible earthquake and tsunami that hit the Indonesian island of Sulawesi on 28 September. A major disaster with a confirmed death toll of many hundreds and rising daily, with some people saying it may well reach thousands. Help will be needed for people to start to rebuild their lives. And many children will likely be separated from their parents and other relatives, either permanently or temporarily.

This brings back to mind the situation in Indonesia when a massive tsunami struck in December 2004. And it rings major warning bells: what happened in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami must not be repeated this time, for the sake of the children.

The Danger of Voluntourism

Posted on September 24, 2018September 30, 2019 by Florence

It seems like such a good idea, like such a kind and generous thing to do, to go to a different country to spend time in an ‘orphanage’ giving your time and love to underprivileged children. It is almost always done with the best intentions and from a real desire to make a difference, to improve these children’s lives.

When you arrive, it really looks like you were the person they were waiting for all this time. A swarm of children runs to you, surrounds you, tries to hug you, or sit on your lap. The second-hand clothes that you brought look better than what the children are wearing. The extra food and treats you buy are accepted as manna from heaven. And when you leave there are many tears, on both sides. As you leave, while you are sad to leave the children behind, you are comforted by the thought that you clearly did make a real, positive, difference in these children’s lives. Unfortunately, all is not what it seems.

Working on ‘The World List’

Posted on September 20, 2018October 6, 2018 by Florence

In the summer of 2015, I was starting to get a clearer insight into the diverse backgrounds and problems that were the main cause of the institutionalisation of children in a few specific countries. This insight led me to speculate that actually to be able to really tackle the issue of children institutions – and to get an idea of what is needed to keep them out of them – it would be useful to have information about a few specific subjects for each country, to gain an understanding of what is already in place, what are major obstacles and how alternative care and institutional care are handled.