Lift the Children hosted an impactful meeting with 40 social workers from the children’s centers we support. This session provided a platform for social workers to discuss key challenges in case management and explore practical solutions. The discussions were guided by principles from Gatekeeping and Preparing Children for Reintegration, ensuring that every child’s best interests are prioritized.

Key Challenges and Solutions Discussed

✅ Financial Constraints: Limited resources often hinder reintegration efforts. Social workers emphasized the importance of prioritizing reintegration within the local area before considering distant regions to minimize costs and maintain support structures.

✅ Missing Documentation: A major challenge in case management is the lack of proper records, making it difficult to reintegrate children or trace families. The team suggested utilizing media tracing and community networks to locate families and ensure accurate documentation for new admissions.

✅ Cultural Barriers: Traditional beliefs and stigmas sometimes hinder family reunification. Social workers proposed engaging local leaders and communities in family tracing efforts to foster understanding and acceptance of returning children.

✅ High Caseloads: With many cases to manage, social workers often feel overwhelmed. A key resolution was to involve interns and attaches to assist in handling documentation, follow-ups, and counseling sessions, thereby easing workloads.

✅ Children Rejected by Families: Some children face rejection from their biological families upon reintegration. To address this, social workers plan to organize parents’ meetings to educate caregivers on the importance of family reunification. Where reintegration is not possible, alternative solutions such as foster care, guardianship, or kinship care should be explored.

✅ Gatekeeping Mechanisms: Ensuring that children are placed in care only when absolutely necessary is a key priority.

Social workers were trained on Gatekeeping principles, equipping them with strategies to prevent unnecessary child-family separation and promote family-based care.

The Role of Gatekeeping in Case Management

From the Gatekeeping Training, social workers were reminded that gatekeeping is not just a one-time decision but a continuous process that includes:

• Identification and Referral: Community networks, child protection officers, and teachers play a crucial role in identifying children at risk.
• Assessment: Each child’s case should be evaluated thoroughly to determine the best intervention.
• Decision-Making: Multi-disciplinary teams should be involved in making informed placement decisions.
• Intervention and Reintegration: Family-based care should be prioritized, and reintegration should be handled with sensitivity and support.
• Monitoring and Evaluation: Ongoing follow-ups are necessary to ensure the well-being of reintegrated children.

Preparing Children for Reintegration

Drawing insights from the Preparing Children for Reintegration training, social workers emphasized the importance of emotional preparation and life skills development to ease the transition process. Key recommendations included:

• Counseling and Emotional Support: Addressing children’s fears and anxieties through therapy, storytelling, and role-playing.
• Life Skills Development: Teaching basic hygiene, social skills, conflict resolution, and independence.
• Gradual Exposure: Allowing children to reconnect with their families through short visits before full reintegration.
• Parental Education: Training caregivers on positive parenting and reintegration challenges.

Commitment to Continuous Support

We are incredibly grateful for the dedication and commitment of our social workers, who work tirelessly to ensure every child has a safe and loving home. As we move forward, Lift the Children remains committed to:

✔ Providing ongoing training and mentorship for social workers.
✔ Strengthening case management frameworks to improve service delivery.
✔ Advocating for family-based and community-based care over institutional care.

Together, we can continue to transform lives and create a future where every child has the opportunity to grow in a loving, supportive environment.