The resources on this page will help you understand the research behind the transformation from residential care to family care for orphaned and abandoned children. Please review and share these articles, videos and infographics that explain why children belong in families, not institutions.
If you have questions about the transition away from institutional care to family care, we would love to hear from you. Please contact Laura Horvath, HCW's Director of Program Development and Community Engagement at laurahorvath@helpingchildrenworldwide.org.
And please plan to join us on September 6-7, 2019 in Herndon VA for Rising Tides, The Future of Global Missions, where we will engage with influential voices in child welfare, public health, and short term missions on the global movement for better care of vulnerable children.
If you have questions about the transition away from institutional care to family care, we would love to hear from you. Please contact Laura Horvath, HCW's Director of Program Development and Community Engagement at laurahorvath@helpingchildrenworldwide.org.
And please plan to join us on September 6-7, 2019 in Herndon VA for Rising Tides, The Future of Global Missions, where we will engage with influential voices in child welfare, public health, and short term missions on the global movement for better care of vulnerable children.
Articles
Why we decided to transition from residential to family-based care (published in the Scottish Journal of Residential Care Vol. 18 No. 2)
Worldwide efforts to make orphanages a thing of the past
By Alex Anhalt, January 2, 2018 (Shared from Mission Network News)
International (MNN) — Not many organizations want to put themselves out of a job, but that’s exactly what Bethany Christian Services is trying to do.
According to Bethany’s Kristi Gleason, a perfect world would be one in which organizations like Bethany were completely unnecessary. The first step towards such a world is moving orphans out of orphanages and into homes.
“We focus not just on orphans but really on families,” Gleason said. “Our day-to-day work really focuses on figuring out how to get children out of orphanages and into families, either back into their biological families or, if that’s not a possibility, into a foster family.” Once a child is part of a family, Bethany’s work isn’t done just yet. Next, the organization helps with family preservation, strengthening familial bonds so children aren’t put in orphanages to begin with.
Their goal of making orphanages a thing of the past is one they share with several national governments. Russia and Romania, for example, are trying to get every child out of every orphanage and into families. “Rwanda has, in the last several years, also said ‘We are going to close down the orphanages in our country, and we are going to be one of the first African countries to not have orphanages,’” Gleason said.
“What we’re feeling is a momentum shift. It has been a little slow and steady, but now, we have lots of interest from governments, churches, and US organizations interested in helping us move away from orphanage care and into what we call family-based care.” And the need for that care is as great as ever. Conflict, disasters, and other devastating events have left many children alone and lost. The best remedy for such a widespread need? The global Church.
“This is an absolutely amazing way for the local church to respond to the situations going on in their own countries,” Gleason said. If Bethany and other organizations can assist and train them, there are plenty of families who can help. In other words, the Church is massive, and if they’re willing, its members can make a huge difference in the lives of orphans all over the globe.
There’s no denying the scale of this undertaking. Even after splitting the project into countries and regions, it’s a massive job, and countries that have many strict regulations for orphanages, such as India, Nepal, and China, present plenty of their own problems.
Still, partnership can make all the difference. “We partner with governments and we partner with other organizations working on a similar path because we know not one organization or church can address this problem holistically,” Gleason said. It requires mass cooperation of all of the talents and abilities of the pieces of the body of Christ, and it requires support and prayer. “A really great way that people can start obviously is to pray. Pray for governments and organizations to think about orphan care differently.”
International (MNN) — Not many organizations want to put themselves out of a job, but that’s exactly what Bethany Christian Services is trying to do.
According to Bethany’s Kristi Gleason, a perfect world would be one in which organizations like Bethany were completely unnecessary. The first step towards such a world is moving orphans out of orphanages and into homes.
“We focus not just on orphans but really on families,” Gleason said. “Our day-to-day work really focuses on figuring out how to get children out of orphanages and into families, either back into their biological families or, if that’s not a possibility, into a foster family.” Once a child is part of a family, Bethany’s work isn’t done just yet. Next, the organization helps with family preservation, strengthening familial bonds so children aren’t put in orphanages to begin with.
Their goal of making orphanages a thing of the past is one they share with several national governments. Russia and Romania, for example, are trying to get every child out of every orphanage and into families. “Rwanda has, in the last several years, also said ‘We are going to close down the orphanages in our country, and we are going to be one of the first African countries to not have orphanages,’” Gleason said.
“What we’re feeling is a momentum shift. It has been a little slow and steady, but now, we have lots of interest from governments, churches, and US organizations interested in helping us move away from orphanage care and into what we call family-based care.” And the need for that care is as great as ever. Conflict, disasters, and other devastating events have left many children alone and lost. The best remedy for such a widespread need? The global Church.
“This is an absolutely amazing way for the local church to respond to the situations going on in their own countries,” Gleason said. If Bethany and other organizations can assist and train them, there are plenty of families who can help. In other words, the Church is massive, and if they’re willing, its members can make a huge difference in the lives of orphans all over the globe.
There’s no denying the scale of this undertaking. Even after splitting the project into countries and regions, it’s a massive job, and countries that have many strict regulations for orphanages, such as India, Nepal, and China, present plenty of their own problems.
Still, partnership can make all the difference. “We partner with governments and we partner with other organizations working on a similar path because we know not one organization or church can address this problem holistically,” Gleason said. It requires mass cooperation of all of the talents and abilities of the pieces of the body of Christ, and it requires support and prayer. “A really great way that people can start obviously is to pray. Pray for governments and organizations to think about orphan care differently.”
Helping Children Worldwide joins the Global Social Service Workforce Alliance, signs Call to Action
Helping Children Worldwide is now a member of the Global Social Service Workforce Alliance, and has signed on to support the Alliance's Call to Action for Strengthening the Social Service Workforce to Better Protect Children and Achieve the SDGs (see infographic below.) The Call to Action makes recommendations at the country and global level for governments to initiate, lead and engage in dialogue with partners for efforts to achieve the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide an unprecedented opportunity to influence national and international development policy and programs, while highlighting the intersections between the work of the social service workforce and those working on health challenges, violence prevention and migration. This is a critical time to promote and build awareness of the valuable contributions made every day by the social service workforce toward achieving the SDGs, particularly related to ending violence against children, supporting children and families on the move and improving health and well-being.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide an unprecedented opportunity to influence national and international development policy and programs, while highlighting the intersections between the work of the social service workforce and those working on health challenges, violence prevention and migration. This is a critical time to promote and build awareness of the valuable contributions made every day by the social service workforce toward achieving the SDGs, particularly related to ending violence against children, supporting children and families on the move and improving health and well-being.
The impact of orphanages on children - Faith to Action |
12 strategies for strengthening families and community-based care - Faith to Action |
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Videos
A world without orphans |
Building adult capabilities to improve child outcomes: a theory of change |
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Experts on the care of orphaned and vulnerable children were interviewed on the importance of placing orphaned and vulnerable children in families, instead of residential institutions.
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This 5-minute video depicts a theory of change from the Frontiers of Innovation community for achieving breakthrough outcomes for vulnerable children and families. It describes the need to focus on building the capabilities of caregivers and strengthening the communities that together form the environment of relationships essential to children's lifelong learning, health, and behavior.
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"We all need families at the end of the day," Better Care NetworkThis video is presented by Better Care Network and UNICEF. It tells the story of Maureen, a young girl in Kenya who was separated from her family and sent to live in a children's home. The video highlights the efforts of care reform initiatives to deinstitutionalize children. As a result of such efforts, Maureen and her siblings are able to return to the home of their grandparents.
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Infographics
How strengthening social services will help achieve the sustainable development goals.
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Why funding orphanages harms the children it aims to help |
