Defense for Children calls on the government to abolish the current way of sheltering migrant families who have exhausted all legal remedies, because the poor living conditions would be harmful to children’s development. The aid organization offers Tuesday an investigation to these so-called family locations to the House of Representatives, for which 43 professionals, 14 children and 19 parents were interviewed. According to Defense for Children, all children in the Netherlands have a legal right to development and care, even if they have exhausted all legal remedies. However, due to the problems at these shelters, municipalities would not be able to meet their duty of care.
The family locations were created in 2011 so that families with children who have exhausted all legal remedies have a roof over their heads. In practice, according to Defense for Children, families stay on average more than 600 days in one of the five family locations, where strict rules apply, due to lengthy asylum procedures and problems surrounding their return. Whole families live in one or two rooms, without daytime activities because parents are not allowed to work. The uncertainty about deportation would also cause stress for children.
According to the NGO, access to youth care for this group of children is not always properly arranged. Children are sometimes said not to receive care because they bear the label ‘exhausted’. Social workers indicate that they cannot provide the youth care these children need because the emphasis is on departure. Many families move a lot between reception locations, parents are suspicious of care providers for fear of deportation, and there are waiting lists. Stricter rules apply to children who have exhausted all legal remedies: youth care may last for a maximum of six months.
To assure
Since 2011, several agencies, such as Unicef and the Refugee Work Foundation, have expressed their concerns about the development opportunities of children in reception locations. reported in March of this year the Education Inspectorate that safety and education are not self-evident for these minors. In addition to abolishing family locations, Defense for Children advises the government to stop forced relocations, provide shorter residence procedures and abolish restrictions on youth care for children who have exhausted all legal remedies.