The European Platform for Investing in Children (EPIC) presents a round-up of the latest developments in child and family policy in EU member states in January 2020.

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Each piece of news contains a link to the original source, which may be in a language other than English. In most cases, they are press releases from the relevant ministries.

Belgium: Postponement of early childhood care reform

On 20 December 2019, the Government of the French Community in Belgium passed a decree which will postpone the implementation of some elements of the reforms to early childhood education and care (ECEC) establishments until July 2020. This decision, which affects reforms to the staffing, legal form and capacity of ECEC establishments, was made to allow for more consultation.

Belgium: Free cystic fibrosis testing for infants

Since January 2020, detection of cystic fibrosis will now be part of the tests that are automatically offered to parents free of charge upon the birth of their child in the Walloon and Brussels regions (Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles).

Croatia: New projects to encourage deinstitutionalisation

The minister with responsibility for demography, family, youth and social policy (Ministrica za demografiju, obitelj, mlade i socijalnu politiku) has announced an investment of HRK 22.5 million (approximately €3 million) in three new projects that aim to develop non-institutional alternative care facilities for children, young people and persons with disabilities.

This funding is taken from the overall investment of HRK 135 million (approximately €17 million) in projects for deinstitutionalisation that were announced in 2017.

Denmark: Social policy report focuses on fostered children

The Ministry of Social Affairs (Social- og Indenrigsministeriet) has published a new report on social policy in 2019, which focuses particularly on the attainment of children placed in foster families.

The report highlights that fostered children perform substantially worse at school than other children, although children who are fostered at a younger age and who have foster parents who are in work may be more likely to succeed academically at school.

The report also examines the performance of young people with disabilities at school and in the labour markets.

Finland: New government calculator for examining family leave and pensions

The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriö) has published a calculator that is designed to help parents calculate the impact of family leave on their pensions. This tool aims to make it easier for parents to decide how to divide family leave between them and is part of a wider project promoting gender equality in pensions.

France: New report on child protection interventions

The secretary of state with responsibility for child protection has published a report that gathers research, good practices, and experience in the field about child protection interventions. The French government hopes to use this report to better harmonise child protection interventions in France.

Germany:  Report on impact of full-day care for children

The ministry with responsibility for family affairs (Familienministerium) has published a report which suggests that the expansion of all-day care for primary school children has led to an increase in the employment rate of mothers (by 2 to 6 percentage points). As a result, the report suggests that this expansion has generated an additional income of €1-2 billion per year for Germany and may therefore be self-financing.

Greece: New scheme for school enrichment activities

In the context of raising awareness around environment and sustainability, the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs (Υπουργείο Παιδείας, Έρευνας και Θρησκευμάτων) has launched a new scheme entitled Programmes for School Activities (Προγράμματα Σχολικών Δραστηριοτήτων). These programmes will set out additional enrichment activities that will be offered in primary schools as part of the curriculum and in secondary schools as an after-school activity.

For the year 2019/2020, these programmes will have a particular focus on environmental education, health education and cultural affairs. Schools will be able to collaborate with public organisations or other local authority organisations in order to deliver these activities.

Greece: Swimming to be taught in all primary schools

For the school year 2019/2020, the Greek government have agreed to extend the teaching of swimming as part of Physical Education  to all regions of the country that have existing swimming facilities. The programme will teach children to swim, as well as provide transportation between schools and swimming facilities for free.

Ireland: More funding for youth organisations

The Ministry for Children and Youth Affairs has announced that €61 million of funding will be made available for youth organisations and initiatives throughout 2020. Of this amount, over €38 million will be spent on a targeted youth funding scheme (‘UBU – Your Place, Your Space’) which provides services to support particularly vulnerable young people aged between 10 and 24 to develop necessary personal and social skills. The rest of the funding will be divided between the national youth organisations, education and training boards, and on grants for local youth clubs.

Italy: Reconstitution of the National Observatory of the Family

The Minister for Equal Opportunities and Family (La Ministra per le Pari Opportunità e la Famiglia) has confirmed that the Italian National Observatory of the Family (Osservatorio nazionale sulla famiglia) will be reformed following a two year hiatus. The Observatory is an organisation that considers and supports the development of national family policy in Italy.

Malta: New grant to families with new children

As part of the new budget measures entering into force in January 2020, the Ministry of Family, Children’s Rights and Social Solidarity (Ministru għall-Familja, Drittijiet tat-Tfal u Solidarjetà Soċjali) has announced a childbirth bonus: parents will receive €300 for each new child entering the family.

Netherlands: New national campaign on child poverty

The ‘Sam &’ (Samen voor alle Kinderen) initiative has launched a national campaign on child poverty. After identifying that child poverty results in children being excluded from participation in sports, dance lessons or school activities, ‘Sam &’ aims to offer a single digital counter where parents and teachers (among others) can refer children who are living in poverty to access facilities and funds that will allow them to join in.

‘Sam &’ is a joint venture of a number of charities, funds and foundations that aim to eradicate child poverty and fund participation in sport and culture.

United Kingdom: Vaccination shown to reduce illness in children

A recent study shows that the UK’s vaccination programme against group B meningococcal disease (MenB) has reduced cases of meningitis and septicaemia in young children by almost two-thirds. The UK was the first country to offer this new vaccine against MenB in 2015 and since then approximately 90% of infants have received at least one vaccination.

European Union: Croatian presidency outlines priorities

On 21 January, the Croatian minister with responsibility for demography, family, youth and social policy (Ministrica za demografiju, obitelj, mlade i socijalnu politiku) presented the priorities of the Croatian presidency to  a number of European Parliament committees, including  those dealing with culture and education, employment and social affairs, and women’s rights and gender equality.

The priorities discussed include implementing the European Pillar of Social Rights, promoting gender equality, continuing dialogue with young people, and bringing about the Child Guarantee.

European Union: New European Semester cycle launched

The European Commission has launched the new European Semester cycle for the upcoming year. This includes a proposal for a Joint Employment Report which outlines the employment and social situation in Europe and highlights area of progress and where improvement is needed.

The report notes that while EU-wide unemployment is at a record low, children are still at high risk of poverty or social exclusion. Although the percentage of children at risk of poverty or social exclusion in the EU fell to 24.3% in 2018, children remain at a higher risk than the general population.

Europe: Online child participation resource published

Eurochild (a network of organisations working to promote children’s rights in 34 European countries) has published an online toolbox for child participation in collaboration with the Learning for Well-being Foundation. Entitled ‘We Are Here – A Child Participation Toolbox’, this is an online resource designed to act as a practical set of tools to be used by organisations who want to introduce or strengthen child participation in their organisation.

WHO: New report about violence against children

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has recently published a report that identifies effective strategies to reduce violence against children. By publishing this report, WHO aims to support countries in their efforts to prevent and address this problem.

The study identifies that many forms of violence against children are persistent and underreported. While there is increasing legislation that aims to tackle child abuse (including national action plans), the report suggests that there is not always sufficient funding to put these policies into action.