The Bureau is proud to unveil a new brochure, compiling core competencies in child rights for professionals of pillars of child protection system: justice, social work and security forces. At the heart of IBCR’s expertise, the key competency approach puts the experience and the best interests of the child at the heart of the organisation of work and services.

In order to best accompany and protect children, while respecting their rights, all child protection professionals must be trained and have the relevant skills and knowledge in the field of children’s rights. The Bureau has conducted a reflection on the key competencies that each profession should master to ensure a practice adapted to the rights and needs of each child. Three repositories have thus been created – for judicial personnel, social workers (French only) and security forces – and are brought together in this new guide.

To establish these core competencies, the International Bureau for Children’s Rights has organised and participated over the last ten years in a series of workshops in different countries, bringing together specialists and stakeholders from the various professions concerned, a total of more than 95 local and international partners and 500 representatives from 45 different countries.

Although skills vary from one profession to another, in terms of respect for and enforcement of children’s rights, all the professions in the protection system have an essential role to play in the child’s journey, and all have the same final objective, whatever the field of intervention: to preserve the child’s best interests. By presenting together the key competencies of different professional sectors, this guide helps to realise the similarity of the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed to protect children.

See the guide (French only)

This new guide is available only in French at the moment and will soon be translated.