For Our Children Foundation
For Our Children Foundation is a successor to the British organization for protecting children’s rights “EveryChild” and has been working in Bulgaria since 1992. For Our Children is the first Bulgarian non-government organization that introduces foster care as early as 1997. Today they are working to make sure no Bulgarian child spends the first years of their life in the isolation of the institutions but lives safe and loved in a family.
They aim to provide the highest level of support for the babies, children and young people who are at most risk in their communities. They work closely with families, extended families, foster carers and healthcare professionals to ensure that every child has the best chance.
Vision:
They want every vulnerable child in Bulgaria to experience a safe and happy childhood and to look forward to a bright future.
Mission:
They aim to provide the highest level of support for the babies, children and young people who are at most risk in their communities. They work closely with families, extended families, foster carers and healthcare professionals to ensure that every child has the best chance.
Why do they exist?
16% of Bulgarian’s population is under 18 years’ old
Child poverty in Bulgaria is among the highest in Europe
The mortality rate of children under five in Bulgaria is twice the average rate of the rest of the European Union
Every year 2000 babies are abandoned in Bulgaria, half of these are abandoned in hospital maternity wards
Bulgaria has the highest number of abandoned babies in Europe
Мore than 4000 Bulgarian children live in institutions
Roma children make up 60% of the total number
The specific needs of mentally and physically disabled children living in institutions are frequently neglected. For Our Children Foundation discovered a 16 year old girl with severe physical disabilities who weighed just 10kg
Over 40 Children’s Homes in Bulgaria do not have adequate living space. In some instances, more than 6 children have to share one small bedroom
Children in institutions are not permitted to keep any personal belongings such as photographs and shoes
Young people are not given the necessary life skills to cope after leaving the institution
What do they do?
They strive to stop children and babies from being abandoned
They provide direct tailored support to individual families considered at risk to give them the best chance of staying together
They challenge the public perception that children’s homes/institutions are an acceptable alternative to a stable family environment
Wherever possible they reunite children from institutions with their birth families
They give individuals and couples in Bulgaria the opportunity to become foster carers
They campaign for the rights of the child
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