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"Child representatives and care leavers from South East Asia have called for increased support for continuing education, psychosocial care, finding jobs and affordable housing in the wake of COVID-19," according to this news article from SOS Children's Villages. Their recommendations were discussed with Asian government and civil society representatives in an online forum entitled COVID-19 Response towards the Alternative Care of Children in South East Asia, held on 28 July 2020. The forum, organized by SOS Children's Villages in association with the South East Asian member…
"A new survey issued by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) to staff working on the front lines of child protection services within 17 countries impacted by conflict or crisis finds that child protection concerns have increased among 55% of respondents," says this press release from IRC. Furthermore, "nearly 40% of respondents have seen an increase in unaccompanied and separated children, with most cases being reported in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo."
This article from Time tells the story of one mother in the U.S. who is faced with the decision to either separate from her two-year daughter, releasing her to a sponsor, or keep her daughter in detention with her, waiving the girl’s right to be released. Either way, the mother, Maria, will not be able to leave detention herself.
"As COVID-19 cases continue to increase across the country, court orders from two different lawsuits have created a situation that lawyers and advocates are calling another form of family separation," says the article. "Now, parents in…
"Stay-at-home and lockdown measures have helped to contain the greatest public-health threat the world has seen in decades," says this article from the Bangkok Post. "But as Covid-19 receded in many countries, a new public-health crisis was emerging behind closed doors, with increased domestic violence against women and children."
This article from the Guardian explores the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on students in the UK who have been in care. "Coronavirus has had a huge impact on students across the board, but for those who grew up in care, problems have been felt more keenly," says the article. "When lockdown happened, and most students packed their bags and got their parents to pick them up to go home and isolate, many were left behind in university accommodation. With part-time jobs lost overnight and no prospect of the work they’d normally pick up over the summer, some found themselves in financial…
This article from Modern Ghana calls attention to child protection concerns in Ghana amidst the Coronavirus crisis in the country.
In this blog post for the Parents, Families & Allies Network (PFAN), Andy Bilson emeritus professor of social work and Taliah Drayak, parent with lived experience of child protection and parent advocate and founder of Scots Mums Guide to Safeguarding and Child Protection, write that "the current approach of children’s social care is too often to individualise problems and to search for blame through child protection investigations." The article argues that "we can't afford child protection" - there is a need for a fundamental shift, particularly in light of the COVID-…
This article from the Atlantic explores the impacts of school shutdowns, social distancing, and lockdowns on children during the COVID-19 pandemic and how supportive caregivers can mitigate the harms of social isolation. The article notes "the good news is that children—especially young children—are surprisingly resilient as long as they have at least one supportive adult in their life."
The author of the article spoke to Jack Shonkoff, a pediatrician who directs Harvard’s Center on the Developing Child, who states that “the most important thing that all children need is a…
This article describes some of the findings from a new report on childcare law matters in Ireland, which has revealed many of the impacts of COVID-19 lockdown on families of children in state care. The report discusses "cases where the type of comfort vulnerable children might have got before from visiting family members was no longer available to them."
"The Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting restrictions have had a particularly heavy impact on vulnerable and marginalised children, none more so than those who require the protection of the State through the child care courts," says the Irish Times in this opinion piece. The article describes the impact of the crisis on vulnerable children and their families, including the impact on face-to-face contact between children in care and their parents, the strain on parents already struggling with addiction or mental health issues, and the delivery of services for families.
"The State…