1. Global Perspectives on Child Care Reforms

2. BETTER CARE NETWORK
BCN is an inter-agency network of organizations committed to supporting children without adequate family care around the world.
BCN Steering Committee:

3. Knowledge Hub www.bettercarenetwork.org
Largest global clearing house of research, program and policy guidance and tools
Monthly newsletter over 4000 readers across 191 countries

4. Global Learning

5. International Framework for Children’s Care
Strengthening the capacity of parents and families to care
Preventing child-family separation
Providing a continuum of appropriate alternative care options
Reintegrating children into safe and nurturing families
Strengthening the capacity of parents and families to care in the face of adversity
Preventing child-family separation whenever possible
Reintegrating children in their families
Providing a continuum of alternative care that is appropriate, with prioritization of family based alternative vs. residential care

6. Global Perspectives: the Good News
Reforms of child care and protection systems ongoing in virtually all regions of the world (HICs, LMICs)
Strengthening family care and preventing separation is central to child well-being (US National Action Plan; the European Comm. Rec on Investing in Children, and Social Investment Package; etc.
Moved from why to how: Era of Implementation
Growing body of practice-based learning about care reform processes and what works in different contexts

7. Global Perspectives: the Less Good News
Fragmentation of the research agenda; empirical research mostly Western European/North American;
Lack of concerted efforts on data collection systems
One size fits all? No ‘universal model’…but common challenges and shared strategies and solutions
Not enough quality documentation of what works and what does not work - Brave enough to fail?
Unrealistic goals and targets: Transformation takes time but not ages; ‘Closing institutions as the goal or result?’

8. TRACKING PROGRESS: WEB BASED INTERACTIVE TOOL
To measure a country’s progress in the implementation of the Guidelines, identify any gap, and provide a diagnostic and planning resource for government and other agencies.

9. UNDER EACH KEY THEMES ANALYSE THE DATA REPORT DATA MEASURE CHANGE
OVER TIME
REPEATEDLY
TRACKING PROGRESS
UNDER EACH KEY THEMES

10. WHAT NEXT? TO BE LAUNCHED LATER THIS YEAR PILOTED IN FIVE+ COUNTRIES
LEARNING ON PROCESS & CONTENT

11. Who Cares For Children and Why We Should Care
Strengthening data collection systems on children outside of family care (children in residential care; living or working on the streets; children in domestic work/bonded labour; children in other forms of alternative care inc. foster care; guardianship; detention)
Strengthening data collection systems on children in ‘care vulnerable situations’/ at risk of separation: indicators for risk of separation?
Making better use of existing national household surveys, in particular DHS and MICS, but also other relevant data sets (i.e. census data etc.)

13. Living arrangements for children under 18 not living with a biological parent (DHS)
Significant diversity within regions and within countries

14. Who do they live with?

15. Living arrangements for children under 15 not living with a biological parent- related or unrelated

16. The main form of alternative care
Kinship Care:
The main form of alternative care
12 countries in East Africa (Burundi, Comoros, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe)
Total 19.2 million children under 15 are in kinship care.
90% have at least one parent alive, majority both.
Implications for strengthening family care, preventing separation?
Implications of formalizing kinship care? (Kinship foster care? Learning from South Africa, Australia, USA etc.)

17. Addressing domestic and international drivers
Orphanage volunteering
The Role of Faith Based Actors
Funding streams

18. Orphanage Volunteering
Global Initiative that brings together:
Travel sector
Education sector
Faith based sector
Child protection sector

19. Role of Faith Based Actors

20. Funding Streams Research
Elevate Children funding stream research (Uganda, Nepal, Cambodia)
Lumos research on international funding
Rethink Orphanages: Australian funding mapping
Country level costings
Are we counting/measuring the same things? Implications if we are not?