ERICA - Stopping Child Maltreatment through Pan-European Multiprofessional Training Programme: Early Child Protection Work with Families at Risk

According to the latest report of Unicef (2017), almost 300 million children aged 2-4 experience physical maltreatment, harsh discipline and other forms of parental maltreatment within their families. In Europe, they are estimated to total about 80 million. The ERICA training programme will address issues of agency non-collaboration, seek locally defined and monitored solutions for these problems, whilst training agencies in state of the art detection and management of child maltreatment within a family. Inter-organisational disconnection and lack of adequate consultation and collaboration between agencies in addressing the needs of children at risk of or subject to violence is a great issue. Also need reliable evidence-based identification tools for preventing maltreatment are needed. The key aim of the project is to prevent and combat violence towards children, defined here as maltreatment, by building the expertise of professionals concerning minors living in families with child maltreatment risk, also in multicultural contexts. In detail: - for professionals to undertake a comprehensive training program to enhance their use of risk assessment tools and their engagement in multiprofessional working practices - to integrate a strategy which involves the civil society in the prevention of child maltreatment - to develop, pilot and evaluate a European training program

[lang_it]1. analisi della letteratura scientifica sugli strumenti di identificazione del rischio di maltrattamento in famiglia; 2. ricerca sul campo e analisi delle testimonianze delle famiglie prese in carico dai servizi per maltrattamento, sia dal punto di vista delle vittime sia da quello degli autori; 3. progettazione, implementazione e valutazione di un programma di training (che includa selezionati strumenti per l’identificazione delle situazioni a rischio) sui maltrattamenti dei minori in famiglia, che avrà come target diversi tipi di professionisti e operatori dei servizi; 4. traduzione del programma di training dall’inglese ad altre 5 lingue dell’Unione Europea (Italiano, Francese, Polacco, Tedesco, Finlandese); 5.disseminazione del programma di training tramite vari canali.[/lang_it][[lang_en]1. literature review on risk assessment; 2. analysis and research evidence on experiences of victims and their families of being clients in services, as victims or perpetrators; 3. design, piloting and evaluation of a training program (including selecting risk assessment tools) on child maltreatment evidence with different professionals; 4. translation of the training program into 6 European languages; 5. multichannel dissemination.

The project has the following long-term results: - increase knowledge on preventing and combating gender based violence and violence against children; - identification of at risk situations, build protective factors, signpost cases and address them; - sharing of good practices for programmes tackling child maltreatment, including strategies to engage the local community; - availability of free online training with European scope for professionals from all member states; - multiprofessional risk assessment tool development, creating Risk Assessment Application; - capacity-building for professionals from different sectors to prevent and address child maltreatment and child maltreatment risk; - creation of community partnerships to promote safe, stable, and nurturing environments for children, youth and families; - foster recognition of child maltreatment risk and quicker activation of the care pathway; - reduction of the risk of child maltreatment and of cases of violence towards children and young people.