Children's welfare

All children have a right to protection against violence. It is the adults’ responsibility to guard this. If you know, or suspect that a child is being abused, you must report it. Serious bullying, negligence or risk behaviour must also be reported. Good communication and education is a good base to prevent violence and put a stop to it as quickly as possible.

Manneskja heldur fyrir augun. Hún snýr að okkur og mikið liðað hár sveiflast til hægri í vindinum.

Child abuse

Child abuse has long-term and serious consequences, far into adulthood. It is always important to stop the abuse as quickly as possible and come to the children’s aid.

Manneskja situr í hjólastól. Hún snýr frá okkur og horfir upp í vindinn. Mikið og liðað hár sveiflast í vindinum.

Neglect

Neglect can be both emotional and physical. It is neglect when a child doesn’t receive the care and accommodation that is necessary and can damage its development.

Manneskja styður höndum á gagnaugun. Henni líður greinilega illa. Eldingar eru teiknaðar hjá höfðinu.

Bullying

Bullying is repeated abuse, physical or mental, in which one or more bully an individual who has difficulty defending themselves. In order to stop the bullying, it is important to recognise the signs.

Manneskja í fjötrum. Hún er með lokuð augu og er leið á svipinn og heldur þétt utan um sig. Rauður þykkur borði er vafinn utan um hana.

Risk behaviour

A child’s risk behaviour is when a child behaves in a way that causes it harm or is likely to harm its health or development. For example drug use, self-harm, violence against others and crime.

Parental education

Raising a child is one of the most important and demanding challenges that parents deal with in life. Competence in parenting is however neither inherent nor does it come automatically; it takes time to acquire the necessary knowledge.

Education for young children

It is good to discuss with the children which behaviour is alright and which is not. Here is material to show children at the age of 4-9 about bullying and abuse.

"It takes a village to raise a child."
African proverb

Call 112 if you suspect that a child is living in poor conditions.

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Mandatory reporting

If you suspect that a child has been abused, that it lives in unacceptable conditions or that it is risking its health and development, then you must, according to law, report this to the child protection services. You can do this by calling 112. This also applies to unborn children. The mandatory reporting applies to both the public and to people who are involved with children in connection with their work.

When a report is made, a professional gets the case underway and the family is provided with support from either child protection or social services. Get rid of your concern and channel it by notifying. The child’s welfare is the guiding principle.

Children and Teenagers

Children and teenagers can read about communication, violence and available help here.

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Resources

It is always best to talk to someone about how you are feeling and what you are experiencing. Here is information about various resources where you can seek advice and assistance, whether it is for you or somebody you know. It does not matter how long it has been since the abuse occurred, you can always get help.

View resources

Manneskja heldur um gagnaugun og yfir henni vofir regnský. Hún er leið á svipinn. Önnur manneskja heldur regnhlíf yfir höfði hennar til að skýla henni fyrir regninu.