National Report Poland V2
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National report Mars 2016 POLAND Authors Justyna Szczygieł, Severine Thomas, Jasmin Flake Consultation: Aureliusz Le żeński Editor: Jakub Iwanski Correction: Olga Ślifirska Translation: Katarzyna Lipiec National Report – Poland 2 Summary PART 1: NATIONAL CONTEXT AND INFORMATION 5 1 CHAPTER 1 : FOSTER CARE SYSTEM IN POLAND 6 1.1 What is foster care in Poland? 6 1.2 Placing a child in foster care. 7 1.3 Foster Care Structure. 7 1.4 Foster care structure in Poland. 8 1.5 Description of the figure and individual forms of foster care. 9 1.5.1 Family foster care 9 1.5.2 Institutional care is provided in the following forms: 10 1.6 Process of gaining independence. 10 1.7 Housing 11 1.8 Changes stemming from the implementation of the Family Support and Foster Care System Act. 11 1.9 Commentary from the authors of the report 12 2 CHAPTER 2 : STATISTICS 13 2.1 NEET people finishing education prematurely and youth unemployed. 16 2.2 Percentage of learners and employed among wards of foster care. 16 COMMENTARY FROM THE AUTHORS OF THE REPORT. 17 3 CHAPTER 3 : LABOUR INTEGRATION. 18 3.1 Assistance provided by the Employment Promotion and the Labour Market Institutions Acts. 18 3.2 Assistance provided in the Family Support and Foster Care System Act. 19 3.3 Organizations supporting the professional activation of foster care wards. 20 3.3.1 Gdansk Social Innovations Foundation. 21 3.3.2 Psycho-prevention Society. 21 3.3.3 EU projects executed by state agencies. 21 COMMENTARY FROM THE AUTHORS OF THE REPORT 21 4 CHAPTER 4 : RESULTS OF SUPPORT ON LABOR MARKET PROVIDED TO FOSTER CARE WARDS. 23 4.1 Conclusions based on SAO 2014 report. 23 COMMENTARY FROM THE AUTHORS OF THE REPORT 24 5 CONCLUSION 25 6 REFERENCES 26 PART 2: YOUTH WORKER EXCHANGE – FEEDBACK AND ANALYSIS 27 7 INTRODUCTION – THE CHOICE OF PRACTICES 28 8 CHAPTER 1 : GDANSK SOCIAL INNOVATIONS FOUNDATION (GFIS) 29 8.1 General description of the institution. 29 8.2 Good practice number 1 – social enterprises. 29 8.3 Good practice number 2: the support model as a process – the mentor’s role. 30 8.4 Positive practice number 3 : the Individual Work Plan. 31 9 CHAPTER 2 : ROBINSON CRUSOE FOUNDATION 33 9.1 Overall picture of the visited institution. 33 9.2 Good practice number 1: “vehicle of self-empowerment”. 33 National Report – Poland 3 9.3 Good practice number 2 : The ‘Robinson on his own’ game. 34 9.4 Good practice number 3: Educational triad. 34 9.5 Good practice number 4: Safe Internship. 35 9.6 Comments 36 9.6.1 History 36 9.6.2 Group work with care leavers 36 9.6.3 Our own experience of the group work 37 9.6.4 Simulation games to prepare for the transition 38 9.6.5 Assisted, safety internships 38 10 CHAPTER 3 : COUNTY CENTER FOR FAMILY SUPPORT (PCPR) IN OTWOCK 39 10.1 An overall picture of the visited institution. 39 10.2 Good practice number 1: System and individual diagnosis. 41 10.3 Good practice number 2: Team work. 42 10.4 Comments. Visitors impressions. 44 11 CHAPTER 4. THE YOUTH WORKER EXCHANGE’S FEEDBACK 45 11.1 An overall picture of the visit. 45 11.2 Good Practices. 45 11.3 Analysis of needs. 47 12 CONCLUSION 48 13 APPENDICES 50 13.1.1 Appendix I. Schedule for the Abeona Youth Workers Exchange in Warsaw. 50 13.1.2 Appendix II. Meetings with youth workers. 50 13.1.3 Appendix III. Meetings with youngsters. 51 13.1.4 Appendix IV. Meeting with stakeholders and partners on professional integration. 53 Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited National Report – Poland 4 PART 1: NATIONAL CONTEXT AND INFORMATION National Report – Poland 5 1 CHAPTER 1 : FOSTER CARE SYSTEM IN POLAND 1.1 What is foster care in Poland? Foster care in Poland entails care for a minor whose parents do not fulfil their protective and educational roles. In these circumstances, care for a child become the responsibility of specialised institutions, aiming to satisfy the child’s existential, social and emotional needs. For many years in Poland, the system isolated children from parents who did not provide adequate care. There was no attempt to work with the whole family and this emotional bond was neglected. At the end of the 90s, foster care system reform was introduced. This established comprehensive family assistance which would allow the child to function within the family. Re-integration of families became the priority, while putting a child in foster care became only one of many available options. Different types of foster care were introduced and the capacity of care providing institutions was reduced; currently they only cater for older children. As of January 1 st 2012, the rules and types of foster care and help for its adult recipients are defined by the Family Support and Foster Care System Act (here referred to as the Act). Supporting a family is aimed at reinforcing parental protective and educational abilities, limiting the necessity of removal of children and overseeing children’s safe return to their families. Removing a child from the family is only the last resort, enforced when a child’s health, safety or life is endangered as a result of environmental failure. Common causes for removal of a child from family include: parental substance abuse – 36,97% of all cases, inability to provide protective and educational care – 25,15%, loss of a parent – 8,51% and loss of both parents – 4,46% 1. According to the Act the objectives of foster care are: 1. Work with the family to allow the return of the child, or if that is impossible – adoption, or if this also proves impossible – to provide care and upbringing in a foster environment. 2. Preparation of a child for: - A decent, independent and responsible life - Ability to deal with life challenges ethically and in an appropriate manner - Establishment and nurture of close, personal and socially accepted relationships with family and peers, including relief of the effects of loss and separation and acquisition of social skills 3. Satisfaction of children’s emotional needs with emphasis on nutritional, health, education, cultural and recreational needs 2. 1 Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, 2012 2 Family Support and Foster Care Act. National Report – Poland 6 1.2 Placing a child in foster care. A child is placed in foster care following a court order, parental request or with the parents’ consent. A court rules when a child is orphaned or parental custody is limited or revoked; also, when a child’s wellbeing is endangered 3. Furthermore, it is possible to place a child in foster care based on an agreement between the foster family or the head of a foster home and the local authority (starosta). An attempt is always made to place a child in family foster care first - only if there is no such possibility are they placed in institutional foster care 4. 1.3 Foster Care Structure. Foster care structure reflects the hierarchy of Polish local government. The figure below depicts how competences are divided between echelons. Figure 1. Foster care hierarchy (own research) Assisting wards of foster care who come of age while gaining independence is solely assigned to local government and government authorities. The organizational units responsible for family support and the foster care system are branches of local government such as the: County Centre for Family Support (CCFS) or, in cities with the legal status of a county, the Municipal Centres for Family Support (MCFS). These institutions organize the foster care system and run both family and institutional care facilities. Adoption centres, regional care facilities and pre-adoptive intervention centres are managed by county authorities. 3 Family and Guardianship Code. Article 109, paragraph 2, point 5 4 Family and Guardianship Code, Article 112, paragraph 1 National Report – Poland 7 According to the Act the main tasks of the authority are: creating and implementing 3-year plans for counties on how to develop foster care, which includes the yearly limit for professional foster families providing children with foster care supporting individuals who are in the process of leaving foster care and becoming independent creating conditions for new foster families, foster homes and assistant families to emerge and function running care and education centres organizing and funding workshops for those who will be working with children and youth from foster care organizing support for family foster care, for example specialist counselling financing benefits for foster care, the process of becoming independent and workshops for those who will be working in foster care Besides CCFS, Social Assistance Centres (SAC) can provide help to wards of foster care. SACs are institutions established according to national social policy, which is aimed at helping people in difficult life situations (financial hardship, poverty, unemployment, alcohol addiction, violence, failure as a caregiver) . 1.4 Foster care structure in Poland. Foster care is elaborately distributed and can be manifest as institutional or family type care (Figure 2). Figure 2. Foster care in Poland (own research) National Report – Poland 8 1.5 Description of the figure and individual forms of foster care. 1.5.1 Family foster care Forms of family foster care are: 1. Foster family 2. Foster home FOSTER FAMILY – provides care and education for children — fully or partially deprived of parental care. Types of foster families are as follows: - kinship foster family – formed by the relatives and siblings of a child; it is entitled to child support benefits; - non-professional foster family – formed by individuals who are not related; it is entitled to benefits for each child in its custody; no more than 3 children are placed with them at a time (more only in the case of more numerous siblings); - professional foster family – besides receiving benefits for each child in its custody, also entitled to financial remuneration for foster family duties; no more than 3 children are placed with them at a time (more only in case of more numerous siblings).