They say that difficult puzzles can be easily solved if you find the key elements. This thought has crossed my mind over and over as I have spoken to people working in foster care over the past few days. The right people in the right positions, a few critical pieces and nothing is impossible. Even in the long-suffering field of child protection.

This is definitely a secret in Heraklion, Crete, where a very high number of underwritings have been recorded consistently over the years. According to the data presented in November at the “Help” conference in Chania, from 2012 to 2019 (that is, even before the introduction of Law 4538/2018 on the promotion of the institution of foster care and adoption) in the regional branch of Heraklion, they found a foster family for 25 babies 0-2 years old, 9 kids 2-5 years old, 8 kids 5-8 years old, 9 kids 8-12 years old and 4 kids 12-18 years old.

“Given that on average there are 20 children in the host institution, even before the platform we avoided the creation of two institutions,” – says Maria Frangioudaki, characteristically for “K”.Deputy Head of the Department of Social Solidarity of the Directorate of Public Health and Social Protection of the Regional Branch of Heraklion.

Agony for children

A social worker since 1995, Ms. Frangioudaki is one of the key pieces of the foster family puzzle in Crete. “When I moved from Lassithi to Heraklion in 2012, we found a group of people in the then Social Security Administration who shared the concern for children who were left in hospitals and then ended up in institutions, which was a tragic event for their further development.” According to him, although since 2009 there was a provision on the foster family (P.P. 86/2009), which in emergency cases gave the prosecutor the opportunity to give children directly to families, preferably relatives, in most regions of the country it remained unused. “On the one hand, we had babies and children who were sent to institutions, and on the other hand, people, couples, families, who declared their willingness to help and take care of the child. By combining these two factors and with the help of the tools given to us by law, we created the first register of potential parents in Heraklion, we created a working group, we informed the prosecutor’s office, as well as the social services of municipalities and hospitals, so that when they recommend the removal of a child from the family, instead of placing the child in an institution, offer to explore the possibility of his admission to a foster family.

They didn’t stay there. They printed informational materials, organized seminars, talked about the underwriting institute in the media. The register of potential adoptive parents is constantly updated. “We constantly placed children in families. We made sure that not a single child stays in the institution for a single day, when working with candidates, we managed to select not only the smallest children, but also children over 6 years old, who make up the largest number of institutions. “

Social workers work at many levels. Underwriting is a process with many challenges and requires a lot of preparation. “A child who was taken from a family has experienced neglect, possibly abuse, traumatic events. The foster family may be agitated at first, but as time passes and the child begins to feel secure, they may exhibit healing behaviors,” says Ms Frangioudaki. “It’s a fascinating process that reveals the influence of the family environment on the healing of trauma. The child needs somewhere to be, to communicate with others. This cannot be achieved in an institution. Being raised in a foster family acts as a restorative experience for the child.”

fertile soil

Thus, in the regional branch of Heraklion, the introduction of an electronic platform that took over the “correspondence” between families and children in institutions has come to prepared, fertile ground. From 2019 to the end of 2022, 6 infants under 2 years old, 5 young children from 2 to 5 years old, 2 children from 5 to 8 years old and 7 children from 8 to 12 years old were transferred to foster families. Tellingly, the SOS Children’s Village in Heraklion (which is actually within the city) has registered 19 adoptions since 2019, plus two cases that indicate they will end in adoption. This is the largest number of all the Villages in the country (it should be noted, however, that there are young children in the Village of Crete, which contributes to their rehabilitation).

Such as says Petros Papadakis to K., responsible for the structure of the Villages in Crete, the success of the program is also due to the preparation of the system by the competent authorities. “What has been achieved in Heraklion is the result of the joint work of the social workers of our service, as well as other agencies, despite the tragic shortage of staff in all services.” Five social workers work in all regional divisions of Crete. In any case, the authorities emphasize that underwriting is not an end in itself. “Upbringing is replacing the institution, not the biological family. And to strengthen deinstitutionalization. He comes to support the family so that it gets back on its feet. Moreover, adoption should not be seen as a prelude to adoption. The goal is for the child to return.”