On July 20-21, a training on interagency cooperation to identify children and families with children who belong to vulnerable groups or are in difficult life circumstances, including in conflict with the law, was held in Chuguiv.
The training was attended by more than 20 specialists, including representatives of the Children's Service, the Department of Social Protection of the Population, the Juvenile Probation Sector, the Center for Social Services of the Chuguiv City Council, the Chuguiv District Police Department, the Center for Comprehensive Rehabilitation for Children with Disabilities "SHANS", healthcare institutions, education, a specialized service for primary social and psychological counseling for victims of domestic violence or gender-based violence, as well as village elders of the Chuguiv community.
The participants of the event were greeted by Deputy Mayor and Executive Committee Manager Lyudmila Makarenko. She noted that even during the war, the community creates conditions so that there are no children who are not receiving attention.
«"Interdepartmental interaction, which directly covers all areas, is the best example of how children should be taken care of in every community. In times of challenges that our country is facing during the war, coordinated interaction is especially important and valuable," said Lyudmila Makarenko.
Tetyana Zhuravel, executive director of the NGO "All-Ukrainian Public Center "Volunteer", noted that in the Kharkiv region, after the full-scale invasion, the organization's activities were aimed at several aspects.
«"The first is psychosocial support for children and families. Together with the Chuguev community, we are developing a comprehensive social service for building resilience. The second, very important for our organization and valuable aspect today, is the development of child-friendly justice. And at the heart of each of the areas is high-quality interagency interaction," she said.
The event was based on the development of a draft Model Procedure for Interdepartmental Interaction to Identify Children and Families with Children Who Are Vulnerable or Are in Difficult Life Circumstances, and to Organize the Provision of Necessary Assistance to Them in the Territorial Community, developed by the Coordination Center for the Development of Family Education and Child Care.
The training was conducted by Yulia Pylypas, an expert in the development of social services at the NGO "All-Ukrainian Public Center "Volunteer".
During the training, participants will:
- found out how interagency interaction takes place at the community level;
- worked out the principles of such interaction and methods of their practical application;
- developed skills in recognizing indicators/signs that may indicate signs of vulnerability in a child, being in difficult life circumstances;
- considered algorithms for responding to various situations and providing assistance on the basis of interagency cooperation;
- found out what the best interests of the child are and how to determine them;
- considered the concept of ensuring the best interests of the child and how to determine them.
The training participants also learned techniques for effective communication with children and their parents, considered ethical principles of communication, and ways to strengthen interagency interaction in the community.
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The event takes place within the framework of the child-friendly justice component of the project, implemented by the NGO "VHC "Volonter", with the support of the UNICEF Representative Office in Ukraine (Kharkiv office) and with the financial support of the Government of Ireland.
