Reference: Catalysts for Future Action & A Future for Every Child, 2020
For children growing up without a familial support system, the need for adequate preparation for entering into the adult world is essential, in order to prevent them from falling into a cycle of poverty and exploitation. According to this paper, however, 'a number of surveys conducted over the last few years do not paint a rosy picture of the life experience of [care leavers] after they age out of institutional care.' (iii)
This paper presents the learning from a programme which helps prepare and reintegrate young people who are leaving child care institutions (CCIs) and are entering mainstream society in India. It describes an approach that is potentially scalable to children in all CCIs and included the following components:
-preparatory life skills training (with topics such as healthy life choices and financial literacy)
-after care services (careers counselling and education of short- and long- term skills training or higher education leading to a degree)
-mentoring (including help for job placements, enrollment into a peer support network, and support to ensure a care leaver is on the path to self-sufficiency)
This report can be accessed here.