Network Events
CSC Network Forum 2023
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Keeping street-connected children safe
This year we will be coming together with members of our global network, expert practitioners and researchers to share a range of initiatives and projects focused on the theme of keeping street-connected children safe. As well as presentations and workshops there will be two training sessions and the opportunity to learn about new research being carried out within the sector.
Our annual network forum has always been a fantastic opportunity to come together and share and learn from each others work, and we are really excited to share with you the below sessions that make up our agenda this year.
All sessions will be taking place on Zoom and information for joining will be sent out ahead of the sessions.
Monday 6 November
9.30-11am (GMT)
Creating safe spaces for street-connected children
Speakers:
- Khadija Lawan, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Officer, Isa Wali Empowerment Initiative, Nigeria
- Bridget Idoko, Project Officer, Isa Wali Empowerment Initiative, Nigeria
- Vi Duy Do, CEO, Blue Dragon Foundation, Vietnam
- Gia To, Senior Social Work Practitioner, Vietnam
In this session we will hear from Khadija and Bridget from Isa Wali Empowerment Initiative who are running programmes for female street hawkers in Kano, Nigeria. They will explain how they have made the community itself a safer space through engaging local leadership and setting up a voluntary community committee as well as how the girls they work with have set up their own peer-led safe spaces in the community where girls can learn about GBV and other issues. We will also be hearing from Vi Duy Do and Gia To about their work to create safe spaces in Hanoi, their ‘Early Warning System’ to educate children of the risks of human trafficking and exploitation and work with police and other local authorities in both ‘source’ provinces and in Hanoi.
Click here to register for this session
11.30 – 13.00 (GMT)
Approaches to national and local network building
Speakers:
- Tijani Mahmoud, Muslim Family Counselling Services, Ghana
- Gilbert Asiedu, Center Coordinator, Chance for Children, Ghana
In this session we will be hearing from Tijani Mahmoud and Gilbert Asiedu, about their work to build both national and local networks, including successes and challenges and future plans. We will also be hearing from the speakers about the process they went through to establish these networks, and in particular, how they identified other organisations with similar goals and objectives. Participants will also have the opportunity to take part in a short workshop focusing on developing network plans to strengthen their own network building.
Tuesday 7 November
10.00 – 11.30am (GMT)
Law Enforcement and street-connected children: approaches to trust-building
Speakers:
- Pia MacRae, CEO, Consortium for Street Children
- Meindert Schaap, Executive Director, Amani Centre for Street Children, Tanzania
- Rose Kagoro, Strategy Liaison Manager, Railway Children, Tanzania
- Mussa Mgata, Executive Director, Railway Children, Tanzania
- Pete Kent, Programme Development Director, Railway Children, UK
- Dr Ingi Lusmen, Southampton Policy Unit
- Professor Jana Kreppner, Southampton Policy Unit
In this session we will be hearing from Railway Children Tanzania and UK, Amani Kids, and Southampton Policy to explore the reasons for breakdown in trust between children in street situations and law enforcement officials, as well as looking at approaches to building trust between law enforcement officials and street connected children.
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13.30 – 15.00 (GMT)
Presenting the Malezi Bora positive parenting research project in Eldoret, Kenya
Speakers:
- Rebecca Ogara, Peer Navigator, Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare (AMPATH) Kenya
- Evans Okal, Volunteer Social Workers, INUKA Pamoja Initiative
- Kathleen Murphy, Doctoral Student and Project Manager, University of Oxford, Department of Social Policy and Intervention
In Eldoret, Kenya, many street-connected young people have children of their own and raise them on the streets. With frequent violence against women and children experienced within the street community, there is an urgent need (and expressed desire from the street community) to address both types of violence that can be offered through improving parenting support.
Building on the Malezi Bora programme, an evidence-informed parenting programme previously delivered with and for street-connected mothers in Eldoret, this project seeks to improve the programme by further adapting it for both female and male caregivers, to reduce family violence more wholistically for the benefit of street connected families and their communities. Seeking to explore the parenting practices, experiences, and perceptions of parents in street situations to better understand how to provide parenting support, and (b) identify barriers and facilitators to engaging male caregivers in the Malezi Bora programme. Co-presenters Rebecca Ogara, Evans Okal, and Kathleen Murphy will share early results from this collaborative work, in efforts to co-create a parenting programme with and for street-connected parents which engages both male and female caregivers and reduces family violence.
Wednesday 8 November
10.00 – 11.00 (GMT)
Participatory research on street-connectedness and education
In this session, Dr Su Lyn Corcoran (Manchester Metropolitan University) will present a position paper on street-connectedness and education co-authored by Su, Dr Ruth Edmonds, VIcky Ferguson (Chance for Childhood) and Sian Wynne (CSC). The paper was informed by participatory research with practitioners working with street-connected children, mostly from within the CSC network. It explores the different ways that organisations working with street-connected children and youth support their access to education and training and the opportunities and barriers they face as part of their work. The presentation will be followed by facilitated discussion.
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12.00 – 13.30 (GMT)
Self-care for street workers learning session
(Only open to CSC Members)
Speaker: Yvonne Gache, Critical Psychologist, Kenya
Vicarious trauma, also known as secondary trauma, describes the emotional effects of hearing about another person’s traumatic experience. Those in ‘helping professions’ such as street social work and other roles in direct contact with street-connected children, are at risk of vicarious trauma when supporting young people who experience traumatic events on the street. In this session facilitated by Kenyan critical psychologist Yvonne Gache, participants will be supported to reflect on and understand the issue of vicarious trauma, and how to identify, understand, prevent and respond to it. Participants will have the chance to share self-care strategies and have the opportunity to join a follow-up session to explore the issue further.
Thursday 9 November
12.30 – 13.30 (GMT)
General Comment 21 Review
This session will see Consortium for Street Children share information on their Implementation Review of General Comment No. 21, which is ongoing. The session will cover the research process to date, as well as the early insights we have gathered.
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14.00 – 14.30 (GMT)
Closing session
Join us for a final reflection on the last four days of sessions, to discuss where we go next in ensuring street-connected children’s rights are protected, respected, and fulfilled, and to celebrate our amazing network members, colleagues, and friends.