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London Children's Project
Every day children come to the attention of Local authorities because there are concerns about their home, their health, their education and their welfare. A proportion of these children, or their families, may originate from overseas and have moved to the UK for a variety of reasons, leaving behind parents and/or extended family members. The services that these children receive from their Local Authority may be restricted by the information known by that Local Authority, in relation to their history and/or family background, which can make care options rather minimum and care planning rather incomplete. Additionally, family members overseas may not be aware of the child’s situation, they may be unaware that there are legal proceedings and, therefore, unable to participate, and unable to make their wishes and feelings.
Thanks to a three year grant from the City Bridge Trust, CFAB has been given the opportunity to work more closely with the London Boroughs, who work with the highest number of children from non-British and/or non-white background in the UK. The aim is to increase the awareness of London based practitioners of the international dimension in their daily work and to help them to utilise the available resources of CFAB, to achieve positive outcomes for their clients.
In 2008/09/10 the London Children’s Project offered training events to enable practitioners to deal with international aspects more effectively. The training raised awareness of different practices and also offered practical advice by identifying key issues when safeguarding children across borders and seeking permanent solutions abroad.
The following local authorities were identified for the project:
Brent, Camden, City of London, Croydon, Ealing, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Haringey, Harrow, Hillingdon, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Lewisham, Newham, Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth, Westminster.
CFAB acknowledges and would like to thank the City Bridge Trust for their generous support.
Case Study
A Local Authority contacted CFAB regarding children from Lithuania. The children had only recently come to the UK and had been found home alone. They were visibly neglected and the Local Authority ensured that support was available to safeguard the children. As part of their investigation the Local Authority then wanted to enquire whether these children were known to the authorities in Lithuania. CFAB contacted the Lithuanian colleagues and subsequently they not only confirmed that there had been similar concerns about the children when they had been in Lithuania, but also that there had been incidents of domestic violence.
All the information was forwarded to the Local Authority and the information received from Lithuania enabled them to decide a much more comprehensive protection and support package for the children.