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Strengthening Family Care

All Children have the right to grow up in a supportive and caring family environment. Whenever possible, children should be cared for by their parents and families. Sometimes children may face a risk of separation from their families due to several factors. This does not mean parents do not or cannot care for their children in the short-term or long-term. Some parents need additional support to care of their children. 
Strengthening at-risk or vulnerable families is the first line of defence against their breakdown. Its primary purpose is to prevent the separation of children from their biological parents. This is a pivotal intervention as many children in difficult circumstances and institutional care belong to families with poor access to social security measures. Furthermore, family strengthening plays an equally important role for children in family-based alternative care, such as kinship care, foster care, or other customary practices across cultures. Family strengthening is also a sustainable and long-term measure that allows for deinstitutionalisation. Family strengthening and its allied support interventions must consist of comprehensive legislation, policies and programmes to empower the family to provide quality care to children within the community. When implemented effectively, family strengthening forms a complete safety net around children and caregivers to avoid their neglect, abuse, separation or institutionalisation.


RESOURCES

  • Building a Life: Akbar's Story
    Prerana, 2019

    ‘Building a life’ is a story of a now 21-year-old Akbar hailing from the infamous red-light area of Kamathipura, Mumbai. This story best explains how Prerana’s interventions were guided by the principles under the JJ Act, 2015 – the principle of best interest, family responsibility, and institutionalization as a measure of last resort for rehabilitation. Akbar’s journey, from 2005 till date, comprises overcoming innumerable challenges innate to the red-light area (from being in and out of childcare institutions to dealing with severe medical conditions, and so on), forming strong familial bonds, and building a dream and a life of rights, choices, and dignity. Throughout Akbar’s journey, Prerana has been instrumental in ensuring that he and his family (his mother and four siblings) receive timely counseling, regular medical assessments, enrollment in educational and recreational programs, and rehabilitation whenever necessary through regular follow-ups and outreach.

  • Together for Children: A Community's Journey
    Leher, 2017

    In 2014, Leher partnered with Sarvo Prayas Sansthan (SPS) to develop and implement a community based preventive child protection initiative in the district of Madhubani in Bihar. The program focuses on organizing and capacity building communities, to take self-driven initiative and to work in collaboration with the government to protect and keep their children safe. We adopt a participatory approach to the work in communities, encouraging them to set the agenda for issues they want to address. The position taken with communities is that this program does not bring the answers, but would instead hand hold communities through a journey of transformation, where we learn and find answers together from resources which, exist in the environment. Into the third year of work in Madhubani, this report is a documentation of learning and insights from the field.