About the Supporting Integration Toolkit
Children and young people on the move often spend many years of their childhood living with great uncertainty and insecurity. This is often rooted in lack of clarity on their status or the potential duration of their stay, and can have negative implications for their care, protection and access to services. This toolkit has been developed as a result of an identified gap in good practice guidance on supporting children and young people in a new country from a perspective of integration.
What is the Supporting Integration Toolkit?
This toolkit was developed as part of a three year project and involved a co-creation process that engaged practitioners from 12 organisations in nine countries. This included a community of practice, research and consultations with young people on the move in three countries, a reference group, a regional level desk study, and a co-creation workshop which generated learning from on-the-ground practice. The toolkit was originally developed into a downloadable document which is available now in multiple languages.
While the original project was based on research and experiences in the European context, the purpose of this online space is to expand on the content of the toolkit document to allow for regular updates on tools and resources, as well as the sharing of knowledge and good practices from around the world.
Scope of the toolkit
The toolkit documents and shares good practice for the care, protection and integration support of child migrants. This includes any child or young person (CYP) arriving in a new country- this could be a transit country, a destination country or any third country. It is applicable to CYP that are accompanied by a caregiver as well as to those that are unaccompanied.
The toolkit aims to support practitioners to enhance integration support and services, helping to ensure that CYP remain within caring and protective families or in appropriate alternative care, and are provided with support and protection that fosters their development and well-being in a way that is equal to that which is provided to the children that are already citizens of the country.
Who is the toolkit for?
The toolkit is a practical resource, designed to connect people with helpful information and based on the experience of the members of the Family for Every Child network. It is primarily aimed at practitioners working directly with children and young people, but is also useful for programme managers, policymakers and funders responsible for designing and planning services, as well as capacity development and advocacy practitioners.
Why this toolkit is important
Across many contexts, the increase in child migrants has overwhelmed services and practitioners, with implications for the quality of service provision. Child welfare and child and youth services play a critical role in supporting CYPs' integration through the provision of equitable care, development and protection for children for the duration of their stay. This means care and protection that is in line with children who are citizens of or who have a legal right to remain in the country. This toolkit addresses the gap in good practice guidance for practitioners working with child migrants in countries perceived as both transit and destination countries. It also aims to help further inform programme managers, policymakers and donors working in the sector.