The two victims of the tragedy in Weiteveen were the parents of two children. One is in group six at a primary school, the other is attending secondary school. How and where should they continue with their lives? And what is the role of the Child Protection Council?
A 44-year-old woman and a 38-year-old man from Weiteveen were killed in the violence a week ago. Their two children need a new home now that their parents are no longer there.
The Child Protection Council (RvdK) works with organizations such as Veilig Thuis and the municipality to determine what the best solution is for the child. The RvdK cannot say exactly what happens to the children in Weiteveen. But the organization does want to discuss what is usually important for children if both parents die suddenly.
“The child, who has experienced something so terrible, comes first,” says spokesperson Jeroen Duijvestijn of the RvdK. First of all, the child needs to go somewhere where he can stay. For this purpose, the child’s network is examined.
And of course the child himself, from about the age of 12, also has a say in it. “The priority is to take the child somewhere where he or she feels safe. The most obvious is a family member, but the child can also go to a non-family member who is important in his life.”
When deciding on a new place to live, several things are taken into account, such as the environment where the child has a social network.
“Because especially in such an extreme situation, it is important that some things remain the same. The ground has been pulled away from under the child’s feet with the loss of both parents, so social contacts, school and the sports club sometimes offer the stability that a child needs. need.”
If the child continues to live at the location for a longer period of time, the RvdK also carries out a screening to see whether the family members or acquaintances involved have, for example, been in contact with the law for matters that are incompatible with good care for children.
In addition, authority must be arranged, says Duijvestijn. If the parents who died had custody of the children, there is no one left to make decisions about the child. Consider, for example, a serious car accident in which the parents die and the child is seriously injured and requires surgery. There must then be someone who can give permission for the operation.
Therefore, a provisional authority (VoVo) is often requested for the Certified Institution (GI), the regional Youth Protection Organization. “They then have custody of the child for three months and can make necessary legal decisions. And they have more time to find out who will have final custody of the child or children,” says Duijvestijn.