The separation of children from their families in Bulgaria

Type:Study

Organization:Childhood 2025 Coalition

Authors:Hope and Homes for Children – Bulgaria; Know-how Center for Alternative Care for Children, New Bulgarian University; Equilibrium Association; SOS Children's Villages Bulgaria; For Our Children Foundation; Tulip Foundation; International Social Service – Bulgaria

Year:2025

Summary:This research is part of the long-term efforts of the Childhood 2025 Coalition to focus attention and priorities in national and local social, educational and mental health policies on the issue of separation between children and their families as a serious risk to their development. The main focus of the Coalition's advocacy initiatives at the moment is the need to develop policies, measures and practices for effective prevention of separation of children from their families. The study was conducted with the active participation of professionals from community-based alternative services led by these organizations. A wide range of professionals from other alternative services in the country were also involved in validating the findings of the analysis. The alternative services that participated in the study were the Family Type Accommodation Centres (FTA), Community Support Centres (CSC), Social Rehabilitation and Integration Centres (SRIC), foster families from the Foster Care Programmes (FC). Separation of children from their families is addressed here mainly through cases where there is a report to the child protection system of a child at risk according to the Child Protection Act (CPA) and measures are taken to remove the child from the family or other actions to work with the child at risk and the family and to prevent separation between them. Cases of separation also include cases where the parents themselves leave their children in the care of the system.

Purpose:The study aims to describe the picture of situations that lead to risk in families and trigger protection system intervention, and to critically examine how the child protection system identifies, assesses, moves, closes and follows up cases of risk in children's families when separation is required. Recommendations for changes at all levels related to the management of the risks presented are proposed.