Safe Childhood

"Safe Childhood" is a NGO established for promotion of children's mental health and prevention of child abuse and neglect.
The activities are addressed to physically, psychologically and sexually abused, neglected children and their families as well as to the professionals facing this problem.Our main objective is in raising public and professional awareness for this problem, creating multiprofessional network and assistance to the existing institutions of the system working for the benefit of the children in the area.

 

The initial activities started in 1995 when a small team of enthusiastic professionals gathered together on a Seminar for prevention of child abuse, organized by OSI New York and Children's Mental Health Alliance Foundation NY.
The initiative from this seminar was put into practice and the core of the multidisciplinary team was established. During these several years the team broadened and enriched with new professionals from schools, social welfare, legal system, police, as well as child psychiatrists, psychologists, pediatricians. These professionals were trained through international and national training seminars.
In 1997 psychologists and psychiatrists from the team successfully completed the Treatment Institute in Child Abuse and Neglect run by experts form CMHAF.
In the beginning of 1999 the project developed in "Safe Childhood" Organization with a status of an NGO.

 

The main directions of NGO's activities are:

 

Prevention:
· Establishing structured preventive program for primary schools and kindergartens
· Working on preventive program for specific risk groups of children and their families
· Establishing CAN training programs for professionals (pediatricians, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, police officers, school teachers and lawyers).
· Publishing activities (brochures, manuals, leaflets etc.)
· Raising public awareness for the CAN problem through social campaigns and other social events.
· Changes in the legal system, lobbing for establishing family courts.
· Preventive school and pre-school programs with pedagogues, school psychologists and teachers on early recognition, prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect.

 

Treatment
· Providing treatment and counseling services for CAN.
· Establishing Community based Mental health Centre for Children, Adolescents and Families especially addressing the issue of child abuse and neglect.