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IMPACT ASSESSMENT REPORT Mainstreaming Street Children through Inclusive Education Skill Building Design: Pictur e Str ee t 2nd Floor, DDA Community Centre Chandiwali Gali, Paharganj New Delhi - 110055 D T: 91-11-23586416 e l h W: www.salaambaalaktrust.com i Report by E: [email protected] Independent Thought | www.ithought.in Contents Acknowledgments Execuve Summary 1. Introducon 2. Background of the Project 3. Evaluaon Methodology 3. Key Project Stakeholders and Acvies 5. Key Findings of the Assessment 6. Effecve pracces 7. Challenges 8. Case studies 9. Conclusion and Recommendaons Annexure 1 Acknowledgements The successful compleon of this impact assessment report is credited to children of Salaam Baalak Trust, service providers and other stakeholders who candidly shared their thoughts and experiences about the Project “Mainstreaming Street Children through Inclusive Educaon and Skill Building”. I extend my sincere gratude to all of them. I would also like to thank the team of the Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT), who are pung significant efforts towards care and protecon of children living on streets and without their support the study would have not been possible. The support of Parva C Patni, Execuve Director, and AK Tiwari and PN Mishra, Execuve Council was crical in undertaking the whole exercise. The support of Parul, Coordinator, APPI Project was indispensable. I extend my thanks to the Team of Independent Thought especially Rebecca, Afsana and Nidhi during field visits and for providing support in preparaon of the document. The report is an aempt to bring out the impact of the Project in creang/strengthening child-friendly systems to address vulnerabilies of street children in metro cies. The report also aims at generang credible evidence to demonstrate the impact of such successful projects, their replicaon and scale-up. Vikram Srivastava Founder, Independent Thought 3 Executive Summary This report documents and analyses the impact of the project 'Mainstreaming Street Children through Inclusive Educaon and Skill Building' implemented by Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT) and funded by Azim Premji Philanthropic Iniaves (APPI). The project was implemented from July 2015 to June 2018 with the objecve of providing inclusive educaon and skill building opportunies along with the wider ambit of care and protecon services to 600 street children (instuonalise and/or living with families on the streets) in New Delhi and NCR. Through in-depth interviews and focused group discussions (FGDs), this impact assessment has covered the following respondent pool across 12 centres1 managed by SBT. ! staff members via key informant interviews ! direct beneficiaries via FGDs ! stakeholder such as duty bearers and community member via key informant interviews The USP of the project lies in its holisc approach i.e. while the key focus of the project was educaon and skill building, it also brought other important aspects of wellbeing such as food, medical, mental health and exposure visits within its rubric. In addion, its three pronged approach, it pans out deliverables to a) reduce vulnerability of street children and bring out posive behavioural change by empowering them with individual strength and socializaon skills b) develop resilience capacity and strengthen skills of persons working directly with children c) develop with a long term vision of engaging duty bearers and other stakeholders into accountable. Key findings are enlisted below. ! Over a period of three years, there has been a significant increase in number of children receiving care and protecon services. A total of 4765 children were reached through outreach programme of the project. ! 898 children have been empowered with access to formal school educaon. All the children are under instuonal care and protecon at various residenal programmes of SBT. ! 2382 children were introduced to educaon through Non Formal Educaon curriculum across the contact points as well as residenal programmes. ! Improved nutrional status of 750 children through provision of three hot-cooked meals at SBT homes, one hot-cooked meal at contact points. Each meal is planned as diet chart guidelines under Juvenile Jusce Act. ! Improved emoonal and psychological wellbeing of 1370 children. With support of trained psychologists, key mental health intervenons were conducted through regular mental health counselling –first contact interviews, individual therapy, referral counselling, and group sessions. ! Improved medical status of 1602 children through regular tracking this was facilitated via monthly health check-ups by in-house doctors at homes and contact points. ! 93 children were empowered to start a life of dignity with de-addicon support and aer care. ! 697 career counselling session to cover all children reaching adulthood within the project span. 1 6 residenal programmes - Apna Ghar Open Shelter for boys, Aasra Children Home for boys, ODRS Open Shelter for boys, DMRC Children Home for boys, Udaan Children Home for girls, and Aarushi Children Home for girls. 6 Contact Points - GRP Contact Point, Kisalaya Contact Point, Parvaaz Contact Point, Prerna Contact Point, Parivartan Contact Point, Praga Contact Point. 5 1. Introduction ! Individual Care Plan for 443 instuonalized children was maintained. This report demonstrates the impact of a three year Project “Mainstreaming Street Children through ! 495 children benefied from the vocaonal training and skill development programmes. Inclusive Educaon and Skill Building” (2015-2018) of Salaam Baalak Trust supported by Azim Premji Philanthropic Iniaves. ! 132 monthly meengs were conducted with stakeholders coming in contact with street children.13 area watchdogs were created through individual and group sessions with community Street children have been idenfied as one of the most vulnerable groups of children by various stakeholders coming in contact with street children. naonal and internaonal agencies. United Naons Internaonal Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has defined street children by disnguishing between 'children of the street' and 'children ! 4 District-level Bi-Annual Consultaon and 2 State level consultaons were conducted to increase on the street'. Homeless children who live and sleep on the streets in predominantly urban areas, sensizaon of duty bearers and state representaves towards issues of street children. These living with other street-connected children and young people or homeless adults are called children meengs also aimed at improving synergy between government and civil society members on on the street. While those children who earn their living or beg for money on the street and may their role to protect street children. return home at night and maintain contact with their families are called children on the street. These ! The increased liaison efforts through discussion meengs enabled a reducon in school dropout. definions also include children who are stateless or migrang, with or without their families. They ! 312 volunteers from across the globe dedicated their me to add value to SBT's work and vision. are totally on their own, living with other street children or homeless adult street people. Children living on streets most oen lack parental, emoonal and psychological support and are exposed to ! Exposure visit (local and outstaon), extensive training workshops for the SBT staff members has mulple child labour, violence and abuse. To protect these children and ensure their rights to helped to strengthen capacity of the team and consequently improved quality of service survival, educaon and health, services are needed to rescue them from street situaons and deliverability. provide them a caring and nurturing environment. This report also encapsulates the dimensions of change affected at various levels in the lives of street children. Towards this end, it highlights the tangible posive threads of transformaon achieved via In the last three decades, emove concern has been expressed to protect rights of children in an equitable development perspecve. Analyses of the dimensions of change reflect the value difficult circumstances including children living on streets. Poverty has been idenfied as one of the impact of a holisc concept where economic, social and environmental issues are interdependent major factors pushing children on streets. Apart from this, abuse and violence at home or school, dimensions, approached within a unified framework. The child in her/himself is very adaptable to lack of rural employment opportunies, landlessness, river erosion, natural disasters, family change but support from sensized external systems acts as a catalyst to galvanize faster and more disintegraon and conflicts and aracon to cies as sites of opulence also bring children on streets. effecve transformaon. In the hope of a beer life and future, numerous children leave their homes and come to cies every year. These children live invisible lives in urban spaces and can be found at railway staons, near At the end, the report submits humble recommendaons which have evolved from lessons learned. religious sites, markets, under bridges etc. It highlights knowledge gaps that need to be filled in order to further strengthen policy responses. The crical need of policy makers and child rights vanguard to simultaneously work on a prevenve mode while strengthening the curave services is echoed. This is primarily as once a child has lived on the streets, many a mes, the damaged done to fragile mind and body is irreplaceable. 6 7 2. Background of the Project Policy makers