Cornelia Fuehrbaum’s Post

📚Last week, the Conservatives, Labour and the Lib Dems published their general election manifestos. ✅All three commit to better support for kinship care. Thank you to families and everyone who has worked with us over two decades to push kinship care up the political agenda and to secure this cross party recognition. 🚨But we need all political parties to be more ambitious in prioritising child welfare. 📢Family Rights Group works cross-party to put child welfare and kinship care in the rooms where it matters. We’ve presented proposals to all the main political parties and support families to share their views and experiences. ❗We need to see an ambitious plan to tackle the crisis in children’s social care, to invest in kinship care for children who cannot remain at home, and support for positive, loving relationships for children in care and care leavers. ✉️Will you help us to do that by emailing your local candidates today? It only takes 3 minutes with our easy tool: https://lnkd.in/eifMBPGt You can find a full summary of what the manifestos say about child welfare on our website: https://lnkd.in/eqPTnnZC #ManifestoWeek #KinshipCare #Children #Families #ChildWelfare #Politics #Election #SocialCare

#ManifestoWeek continued today with The Labour Party We welcome commitments to: 🔴develop an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty 🔴support children in care, including through kinship care, foster care and adoption 🔴strengthen regulation of the children’s social care sector 🔴create a new Young Futures programme including hubs with youth and mental health support workers 🔴review the parental leave system so it best supports working families - an opportunity to improve support for kinship carers too, who are often forced out of the labour market when they step in to the parenting role 🔴ensuring children of those who are imprisoned are identified and offered support to break the cycle 🔴new legal safeguards around strip-searching children and young people 🚨But we need all political parties to be more ambitious in prioritising child welfare. Family Rights Group will work cross-party and with whoever forms the next government - to put child welfare in the rooms where it matters and to secure the urgent reset and investment the child welfare system needs. Will you help us to do that by emailing your local candidates today? ✉️It only takes 3 minutes with our easy tool https://lnkd.in/eifMBPGt #ChildWelfare #Children #Families #KinshipCare #FamilySupport #Politics

Exciting announcement Are you passionate about making a difference in the lives of vulnerable children? Then, I invite you to join the conversation through the Child Welfare Series (a bi-monthly event featuring interviews with field experts). This initiative, which I started in February 2024, is now in full swing. This series aims to discuss issues about child welfare and bring attention to the amazing work done by people in this space, including NGOs' founders, child rights activists, and advocates. The goal is to spark meaningful conversations and drive positive change in the lives of vulnerable children. I am open to collaborating with other individuals and organizations sharing this vision. For partnerships and enquiries, please send an email to stoinspire@gmail.com Do you know someone passionate about child welfare? Could you tag them below, and let's start the dialogue? Wishing you a fruitful week ahead. #childwelfare #childwelfareseries #vulnerablechildren #championingchildwelfare #childwelfareadvocate #20daylinkedinchallenge #socialwork #sharetostir #orphans #childrightsexpert #policy #traumaintervention #familiyandchild #adoption #orphanage #careleaver #careleader #dalhousieuniversity #Godcanbetrusted #deborahdzifahtamakloe #livedexperience #partnerships #newchallenege #author #beyondtheorphanage #familybasedcare

This up next in our racial #Equity series... Even though there's increasing #ChildWelfare support for kinship foster families, obstacles still exist. Black and Indigenous kinship families encounter greater challenges because of systemic biases that can affect placement decisions and restrict access to resources. Explore this policy brief for recommendations on how jurisdictions can better support Black and Indigenous families: https://lnkd.in/gNy5nXRA Examples: - Incorporate principles of the Indian Child Welfare Act (#ICWA) to prioritize cultural heritage - Amplify the voices of families and youth with lived expertise

#FEDERAL #US #CHILDWELFARE #REFORM #NOW Every 2 MINUTES in the US, a child is placed in a dangerous, failed system. Once in state care, a child is MORE vulnerable to abuse, trafficking, and even death. We must enact federal reforms NOW to keep children safe! There is no time to wait. Children are suffering in state care every minute of every day. This is a human rights crisis that affects hundreds of thousands of children every year. Call AND write to your Congress Members and DEMAND Federal Reforms to the US Child Welfare System. We know what needs to be done; it is just a matter of enacting the reforms. The states have failed to protect children for DECADES! The same or worsening data on state child welfare has been known and reported, tragic statistics have been shared, and advocates have called for reform. Yet, little to nothing is done. We must enact federal reforms to transform the US Child Welfare System from one of trauma and inequity to one of safety and support. It can be done. We know how to do it. Children in state care are enduring tremendous agony every minute of every day. How much longer will we keep them in pain?! Stand up and fight for our children! Make your voices heard!! Find your US Congress Representatives: https://lnkd.in/eciS2BZX Have questions or comments? I am happy to answer them! Just message me or comment below. #fostercare #kinshipcare #equity #poverty #childrensrights #advocacy

This General Election help put child welfare in the rooms where it matters. The children's social care system is in crisis. Many families are struggling unable to get the help they need. Grandparents & other kinship carers who do step in to raise a child are often left unsupported. There's a record numbers of children in the care system often placed far from relatives & friends.The children's home sector is dominated by private providers making exorbitant profits which is pushing some local authorities to the edge of bankruptcy. Yet child welfare seems to be low down the national political agenda. This General Election you can help change that...

In honor of #childabusepreventionmonth, we want to shed light on some of the key challenges faced by those subjected to the family court and child welfare systems. These challenges often have a significant impact on families, particularly those living in poverty and Black and Indigenous families. One of the key issues identified is the tendency to misconstrue conditions of poverty as neglect, which can lead to the disproportionate removal of children from their parents. Additionally, significant racial and socioeconomic disparities exist in child welfare involvement, with Black children being almost twice as likely to experience investigations as white children. Parents often lack adequate legal support and information about their rights, which limits their ability to assert their rights, respond to charges, and appeal decisions. The COVID-19 pandemic has also posed challenges for child welfare agencies, including declines in child abuse reports and delays in child welfare hearings due to court closures. Children, youth, and birth families often suffer from poor representation in child welfare proceedings, with legal guardians ad litem (LGALs) receiving low payment rates and little training. The physical court environment can also contribute to the trauma families experience, with uncomfortable waiting areas and unclear information about hearing locations impacting their ability to prepare for hearings. These issues highlight the need for reforms and support systems that prioritize the well-being of children and families while addressing the underlying socioeconomic factors that often lead to family court and child welfare interventions. #childwelfare #familycourt #reforms #supportsystems #socioeconomicfactors

A growing body of research shows using economic and concrete supports to help families meet basic needs can prevent unnecessary contact with the #ChildWelfare system. We explain the different ways that states are using flexible funds to provide concrete supports to families in our new policy brief: https://lnkd.in/gfpH_ARR Our brief shares recommendations to expand family and economic and concrete supports, including: 1. Provide direct cash assistance to families at risk of child welfare involvement to promote family dignity, address racial inequities, and more. 2. Engage experts with #LivedExperience to co-develop pathways for families to equitably access economic and concrete support services in their communities.

🌟 A New Era for Children's Welfare? 🌟 With a change in government, here's what we're hoping to see for our children's future: 1️⃣ Tackling Child Poverty Clear targets to end child poverty Stronger social security system 2️⃣ Protecting from Exploitation New laws to safeguard vulnerable kids National strategy across all UK nations 3️⃣ Transforming Social Care More quality homes in the right places Better support for care leavers 4️⃣ Early Help for Families Legal duty for early intervention Integrated services for struggling families 5️⃣ Expanding Support Services Increased access to childcare Improved mental health services Read more on this blog by Action for Children here: https://lnkd.in/ghwFtTEz At Heart & Home Living, we're committed to being part of the solution. We'll continue to advocate for policies that ensure every child has a safe, happy, and healthy childhood. What changes do you hope to see? Share your thoughts below! 👇 #ChildrensWelfare #PolicyChange #HeartAndHomeLiving #ChildPoverty #SocialCare #EarlyIntervention

This General Election, let’s put child welfare in the rooms where it matters. The system is in crisis with a record number of children in care, often far away from family and friends. Meanwhile some private children’s homes providers are making huge profits and local authority budgets are under severe strain. We are calling on the next government to urgently reform the child welfare system: ⚫To ensure families get the help they need early, so children can live safely and thrive in their family. ⚫To have an ambitious plan for investing in kinship care for children who cannot remain at home. ⚫To support children and young people in care and care leavers to have positive, loving relationships they can turn to throughout their life. Over the next six weeks, we'll be working to make sure children, young people, parents and kinship carers are heard. 🚨Share our message and take action: - Are you registered to vote? - Have you signed up for our campaign updates? - Will you contact your local candidates? We'll soon be launching an email tool to make that easier. Find out more: https://lnkd.in/eqPTnnZC #GeneralElection #Politics #Parliament #childwelfare #children #families #HistoryHasItsEyesOnYou