Without citizenship, stateless children and families find themselves excluded from the government protection services we take for granted. Domestic violence, drug abuse, trafficking, exploitative work and broken homes are prevalent. Children are at particular risk in this unsafe environment. Our protection programmes were created to mitigate these risks and provide security for vulnerable populations.

In some circumstances, at-risk children or their mothers may need secure shelter. In these cases, COF provides two separate protection centres: the first for children and the second for mothers with children in their care. Legal aid and psychological support are available at these centres. Beneficiaries of these centres remain in our full-time care until safe and secure reintegration is possible.

Our Child Protection Centre provides a safe and supportive environment that emulates family and encourages positive childhood development. Consisting of 5 separate houses, our residential protection centre is home to over 60 children, ranging in age from infants to adults. Children’s housing is determined by age and gender. Care at our protection centre includes support from attentive house mothers, enrolment in local Thai schools, and a healthy, stable environment. Sports, farming, art, music and nature trails are just a few of the activites COF offers to bring fun and belonging to everyday life. Weekly child-centred meetings and regular workshops on topics such as family, health, ethics and life goals are vital to encouraging well balanced, confident and aware future members of society.

With no access to social services, abused, widowed or abandoned mothers often find themselves destitute and homeless. The lack of options can lead stateless mothers to tolerate a partner who is abusive to both them and their children. COF, provides an alternative. Our Mother and Child Protection centre provides shelter, food, medical care and education for both the mother and her children. Counselling workshops and vocational training help empower mothers to achieve an eventual safe reintegration into their communities.

Naturally, COF’s fundamental goal is to keep families together. High divorce rates, alcoholism, joblessness, drug addiction and mental illness are just some of the obstacles to achieving this goal. Despite the challenges, COF has a dedicated team assisting in areas such as:

• Outreach visits by COF social workers to check in with families

• Support through counselling

• Vocational training and work placement for parents

• Food support for struggling families

• Free transport to school

• Assistance with family hospital visits

• Our Mother & Child programme

Our child protection team assesses each child’s case to determine their best options. We adhere to the following standards to determine if a child needs protection:

• Physical or sexual abuse by parents or caregivers

• Substance abuse or mental illness on the part of parents or caregivers

• Incarcerated parents without other eligible caregivers available

• Children who become unwanted or rejected by single parents in new relationships

• Children who are orphaned or abandoned

• Children who are at high risk of being sexually exploited, sold, or trafficked

While children are in our residential protection centre, reintegration with a stable family or alternative care situations, such as kinship care, remains a central objective.