New Project Supporting Babies in Gomel

Our partners ‘Supporting Children Together’ started a new project with UNICEF late last year, supporting babies and young children

The team carrying out this project are working closely with the Director of the Baby Home (pictured here)

The goal is to prevent children being sent to the Baby Home, and for those who are already there, to find families and make sure they do not go on to an orphanage. We have done a lot of this work in the past and have several people working with us who have great expertise and experience in working with professionals across health, education and social protection and in preparing and supporting foster families.  Many of the babies and young children will have disabilities and extra support will be given to them and their foster parents. Guidance will be produced and shared with the Advanced Learning Institute in Gomel to be incorporated into future education and training.

The project is making great progress.   Eight babies and young children have been moved into foster families, and are being provided with support in the community.

Social workers are being employed in five districts of Gomel Region to work with families who have had their babies taken away, so they can improve their situation and get their children back. Project staff are working very closely with social protection centres and children’s polyclinics, and Gomel TV have been supporting the initiative.

This is the fourth project which Natasha and her team have carried out with UNICEF support, and it is likely that there will be a further initiative next year, aimed at finding and training more families to become foster parents.

struggling families.