Call for researcher
26 September 2019
Mapping the situation of Romani children in Presovky and/or Kosicky region, Slovakia
Terms of reference:
The ERRC is accepting applications for a researcher to implement a qualitative and quantitative field research project on the situation of Romani children in the child protection system in selected locations in Slovakia.
Goal of the field research:
The aim of the research is to undertake field research in the Presov and/or Kosice regions and gather information about the practices of local and regional child protection systems and the situation and representation of Romani children in those systems.
Research questions
The field research shall address the following research questions besides looking at the local/regional child protection practices:
- Whether Romani children are overrepresented in state care specifically in Presov and/or in Kosice region in Slovakia. If so, what are the root-causes for the separation?
- What role ethnicity and poverty play in the separation of Romani children from their parents.
- What is the proportion of Romani children compared to non-Roma when it comes to separation from their biological families?
- What are the main reasons for separating Romani children from their families, compared to non-Roma?
- Whether there is any discriminatory practice against Romani children and their families in the child protection system based on their ethnicity and/or poverty.
- Whether – once separated – Romani children are discriminated in the state care when it comes to placement in the different child care settings/
Background:
The ERRC’s previous research in this area showed that Romani children are overrepresented in institutional care compared to their proportion of the population as a whole in several European countries, including in Slovakia. Many factors contribute to this overrepresentation, including discrimination, poverty and material conditions (such as unemployment, indebtedness, and inadequate housing), school absenteeism, single parenthood, unwanted pregnancies, and migration. Preventative measures are often inadequate, and there are an insufficient number of skilled social workers and an absence of community level prevention services in isolated Romani neighbourhoods due to insufficient funding. Given that a disproportionate number of Romani children are in institutional care, that they are unlikely to return to their biological families, and that many are passed up for adoption, a great proportion of Romani children spend their whole childhood in an institutional setting. Romani children are disadvantaged on multiple grounds when it comes to child protection placement, in-care treatment and leaving, including on the basis of their ethnicity, poverty, disability, and institutionalised status. More information about the previous research shall be found here: http://www.errc.org/reports-and-submissions/life-sentence-romani-children-in-institutional-care.
Deadlines and deliverables:
Start date: November 2019
The research shall be conducted by 15th February 2020. The researcher is expected to deliver a draft report afterwards and the final research report written in English and Slovak shall be submitted to the ERRC by no later than March 2020.
How to apply?
In order to apply please submit the following documents and send it to marek.balaz@errc.org
- a CV of the researcher(s) including two references
- list of publications relevant to the subject matter
- letter of interest demonstrating how the qualifications and previous experience of the researcher will enable her / him to implement of the research.
Application deadline: 25th October 2019
