Throughout 2021 and 2022 we worked on the project that explored the use of alternatives to detention for children: the CADRE project. As part of the project, we developed and published training materials on alternatives to detention for migrant children
The materials cover the international and EU legal framework of alternatives to detention for children and related rights, such as the right to liberty and prohibition of immigration detention of children. The materials aim to support efforts to ensure that children are never detained for purposes of immigration control, in accordance with international standards.
They provide specific good practice examples of alternatives, such as case management or placement of migrant children in mainstream child protection systems. Module III details the right to be heard and procedural rights of children, and Module IV covers communication with children in this context.
The training modules are aimed for national judges, lawyers, state authorities, guardians, social workers, and other practitioners.
The modules are entitled:
- Care of migrant children: the need for alternatives to detention
- Alternatives to detention: practical example of care of migrant children
- Appropriate procedures to guarantee access to effective remedies for migrant children in detention and when subject to alternatives to detention
- How to communicate and work with children subject to alternatives to detention
The materials were developed as part of the CADRE project (Children’s Alternatives to Detention protecting their Rights in Europe). This project seeks to promote the expansion, implementation and improvement of viable and effective alternatives to detention for migrant children in full respect of their rights in the European Union. As part of this project the ICJ also developed a searchable database to facilitate access to extracts of laws and jurisprudence, best practices and standards, on alternatives to detention for migrant children for legal professionals.
The materials are available in following languages: English, Bulgarian, Greek, Polish, French and Dutch.