European Network on Family Group Conference
Family is asked to make a plan first
When I saw the little one, I knew she was ours!
When I help families prepare their family council and we reach a difficult point where we can’t expand the circle of important people, I think of Sarah.
At the age of four, due to poor care and subsequent health problems, she was removed from her mother and placed in foster care for a temporary period of time. However, the family was encouraged to find a long-term solution. However, neither the mother nor the grandmother wanted to hear about family group conference with the fractious extended family. The coordinator patiently responded to concerns about the meeting and allowed the family the time they needed.
Eventually, the family did meet. During a stormy discussion in the smoking room, where the adults had shut themselves in, it was agreed that a distant maternal aunt would care for Sarah.
The aunt later recounted, “When I saw the little one, I knew she was ours, I wasn’t going to let her go to an orphanage.”
The transfer of Sarah from her foster parents to the care of her aunt went very smoothly. Sarah is happy with her aunt and sometimes her mother visits her. Her health has improved a lot, so that it is hardly noticeable that she had to fight many health problems.
A story from the Czech Republic
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