CHILD - a story about social reintegration of minors through learning and personal development

An opportunity for teens and minors from the Târgu Ocna Educational Center (juvenile detention center), by improving education and specific assistance. The project "CHILD. Social reintegration of minors through learning and personal development" had the clear mission to provide a new chance and build a decent future for those in need of support.

Started in December 2018, the project was implemented with the support of Norwegian Grants 2014 - 2021. With the help of the project, the foundations for a stronger and more united community were laid, by fighting school dropout and social exclusion and providing opportunities for the vulnerable, especially Roma teens and others at risk of marginalization.

Magdalena Andrei, Commissioner of Penitentiary Police and Director of Târgu Ocna Educational Center was the coordinator of the CHILD project.

One of the objectives of the CHILD initiative was to build the right framework to encourage the reintegration into society of teens from the Târgu Ocna Center.
The local partner, the city of Târgu Ocna, has provided a house which has been renovated and which hosts the visits of minors and teens in detention with family members.

The house provided by the City of Târgu Ocna, a partner in the project, has been specially arranged to host the visits of the beneficiaries with their families.

The project also meant the rehabilitation of the Center`s premises, with two detention wards, an infirmary, a food block and a newly built building, all of which supported the authorities` need to provide decent detention conditions.

"Most of the positive effects for the teens in the Centre have come from the 24-hour family visits, as well as from the activities they have carried out which have encouraged them to achieve rewards, the most coveted of which is the beneficiaries` own release from the juvenile detention center for good behavior. In addition, our teens and minors have benefited from family counseling, a first in Romanian prisons," said Magdalena Andrei, Commissioner of Penitentiary Police and Director of Târgu Ocna Educational Center.

Interior of the dining hall during the modernization works.

Learning opportunities and the start of a new life for minors in the re-education center in Târgu Ocna

The improvement of the detention and re-education facilities in Târgu Ocna was also accompanied by concrete actions in the area of education of the beneficiaries. A specific study was carried out to gather information on the incidence and causes of school dropout among minors and teens serving an educational detention measure. The main risk factors involved in the manifestation of criminal behavior among Roma teens as well as other vulnerable minors and young people were measured.

At the same time, the focus was also put on increasing the school performance of the target group, an objective achieved through remedial, integrated and accessible educational activities. Minors and teens participated in a range of activities and opportunities for learning, personal development and social integration.

"I participated in different activities, and one of the activities that helped me the most was outside the Center when I helped homeless people. That was the moment that made me think about my actions and what brought me here." confessed Andrei Florin, beneficiary and young resident of the Center.

The educational programs developed within the CHILD initiative are included in the offer of social reintegration activities and programs available to the whole penitentiary system, being applied both at the level of the Educational Center Targu Ocna and in the rest of the penitentiary units in the country.

Among the priorities was also the organization of training/qualification programs in order to teach practical skills to the beneficiaries. The organization of qualification courses (welder and cook`s assistant) as well as practical skills development programs (barber, potter) were included in the program.

The minors from the Târgu Ocna Educational Center were trained and received diplomas of graduation of free qualification courses.

In addition, the development and implementation of a multi-sensory stimulation program for people with ADHD and learning difficulties contributed to the development of social, communication and conflict resolution skills.

Targeting activities in the community that support the adoption of positive, civic and responsible attitudes, camps and excursions were organized.

The management of violent and aggressive behavior of minors in Târgu Ocna, a model for other detention centers

"This program has come with an accumulation of results both for those admitted here and for those who work in the Center. It has challenged us to develop personally and professionally and to overcome some of our fears by evolving together. We had to adapt some things, but I believe that the model can be replicated in other similar centers in the country," said Magdalena Andrei, Commissioner of Penitentiary Police and Director of Târgu Ocna Educational Center.

CHILD aimed to develop service standards for the psychiatric care of adolescents serving an educational measure in order to set the optimal parameters for interventions with minors with psychiatric disorders in the context of an educational sanction. This has also been supported by the development of a crisis intervention guide for staff, which has been recognized as a model of good practice in the Council of Europe`s White Paper on the Management of People with Mental Health Disorders (2022) - (Appendix III. Prisons). The guide is adapted to the age and psychosomatic particularities of teens. Both materials complement the procedure for the management of violent and aggressive behavior of minors and teens serving an educational measure, elaborated and developed by the Târgu Ocna Educational Center aimed at ensuring appropriate assistance and protection for the persons in detention and the staff of the penitentiary system.

In addition, a specific training program to improve professional skills and a collection of best practices on working with juvenile delinquents was developed.

A counseling methodology for families of vulnerable persons was also developed. During family visits, both the detained persons and the family members are counseled according to the developed methodology. The piloting and implementation of the counseling methodology for the target group is effectively aimed at carrying out the visits between the minors and teens in detention and their family members.

The results of the project contribute directly to the improvement of specialized assistance to minors and teens deprived of their liberty, facilitating the application and transfer of good practices at systemic level. Thus, on the one hand, its activities have implemented the steps set out in the National Strategy for Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2016-2020, under the responsibility of the National Penitentiary Administration.

On the other hand, the collaboration between the Târgu Ocna Educational Center and the City Hall of Târgu Ocna is a model of inter-institutional cooperation that will increase the chances of social reintegration and prevention of relapse among persons under criminal sanctions, through community involvement.

"We had something challenging. But since other countries have applied this model, it was good to do the same. We want to continue and develop such initiatives, which can only be done through partnerships and external funding, such as the Norwegian Grants", said Cristian Aurelian Ciubotaru, Mayor of Târgu Ocna.

The CHILD initiative has contributed to the improvement of specialized assistance to minors and teens deprived of their liberty, facilitating the application and transfer of good practices at systemic level.
For this reason, in the years to come, the replication of this type of partnership will be envisaged, as far as possible, at the level of the other 4 penitentiary units for minors and teens in detention centers.

Norway Grants provided vital funding

With a budget of over 3.3 million euro granted under the "Justice" program managed by the Ministry of Justice, the National Penitentiary Administration, together with their local partners, the Târgu Ocna Educational Center and the City Hall of Târgu Ocna, have set up an initiative aimed at changing the paradigm of education and social reintegration.

The project was not only a local initiative, but also an example of how Norway Grants contribute to the goals of reducing social disparities and promoting social inclusion.

The EEA and Norway Grants are the contribution of Iceland, the Principality of Liechtenstein and the Kingdom of Norway to reducing economic and social disparities in the European Economic Area and to strengthening bilateral relations with the 15 beneficiary countries in Eastern and Southern Europe and the Baltic States. These funding mechanisms are established on the basis of the European Economic Area Agreement, which brings together the EU Member States and Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway as equal partners in the internal market. In total, the three countries have contributed 3.3 billion euro between 1994 and 2014 and 2.8 billion euro for the 2014 - 2021 funding period. More details can be found at: www.eeagrants.ro and www.eeagrants.org.

The story of the project "CHILD: Social reintegration of minors through learning and personal development" is available here.