April the 12th is International Day for Street Children - a special day acknowledging the strength and resilience of street children around the world. When we lived in Costa Rica I had a contract with Toybox, a charity helping children connected to the streets in Central and South America. I was contracted to undertake an evaluation of the child protection frameworks of El Salvador. During this project, I learned about the factors which forced children to live on the street. Family breakdown, poverty, parental bereavement. Also, El Salvador had legislated to close their children's homes and relocate children back with family, even if families couldn’t provide a safe and nurturing home. These families struggled to provide the care and support and so the children became dependent on the streets for their basic needs. Many left El Salvador, crossed into neighbouring countries to find safety, food and networks. Sadly, Tāmaki Makaurau has our own street connected children. Sometimes called homeless children, sometimes couch surfers. Lifewise Trust tells us that half of Aotearoa’s homeless population are under 25. That’s about 20,0000 young people. There is a day for everything these days, I hear you! But I’ll be making a donation to Lifewise this week for their awesome work to house the homeless young people in our city. What can the Local Board do: Be curious about the factors that push kids out of their homes and onto the streets Learn who the providers are supporting young people, and support them! Listen to young people. As elected members, are we accessible to homeless young people? How can they tell us their needs if we’re not accessible to listen Understand local boards responsibilities to uphold UNCROC. Unicef offers a child's rights impact assessment tool for Local Government. https://lnkd.in/gRX4tXYH
