The last meeting for the current year of organisations – members of the Childhood 2025 Coalition, took place on the 5th of December in Sofia.
It was attended by representatives of the International Social Service – Bulgaria, For Our Children Foundation, Hope and Homes for Children – Bulgaria, Cedar Foundation, Tulip Foundation and the Know-how Center for Alternative Care for Children at NBU.
During the meeting the impact of the joint work of the organisations throughout the current year was reported and the strategic goals and priorities for 2025 were discussed. The meeting started with an assesmnet of the latest political situation and the current state of the social sector.
The focus of the discussions were the actions by the organisations related to the recently conducted research "Causes of separation of children and families in Bulgaria". Opportunities to use the data from the research in the January consultation process on the update of the European Child Guarantee Implementation Plan were discussed. Participants in the meeting also planned upcoming public events to communicate findings and recommendations on policies related to improving access to services for the prevention of unnecessary separation as well as for supporting children and families at risk.
Further ideas toward specific advocacy actions were discussed like the closure of the remaining two institutions for medicalised care for children with disabilities, enforcing the adopted changes in the organisation of foster care, substitute care, etc.
Meeting participants also discussed opportunities to recruit new members – trusted partners who would be organisations that share the Coalition's vision, furthering the partnerships with universities and academia, and the continued expansion of the shared resource library.
