A landmark moment for children everywhere – but only if we act now

World leaders gathered during the United Nations General Assembly yesterday to launch the Global Charter on Children’s Care Reform – a landmark commitment to ensuring every child has the right to grow up in a safe and loving family.

For three decades, we’ve worked to end the institutionalisation of children. We know beyond doubt that when children grow up in orphanages, the harm is profound and lifelong, robbing them of their childhood, and too often, their very safety: stunted physical, social, and cognitive development, devastating mental health impacts, and a sharply increased risk of abuse, trafficking, and exploitation that leaves scars for life.

And yet today, 5.4 million children remain locked away in institutions – children hidden from view and stripped of the love and protection every child deserves in places that should never exist in the 21^st century. Worse still, 80% of them are not orphans at all. A tragedy made all the more shocking because it is preventable. They have parents or relatives who could care for them, if only the right support was in place.

That’s why this Charter is not just important – it’s urgent.

“Yesterday at the UN General Assembly, world leaders – including our Deputy Prime Minister – backed the new Global Charter, marking what could be the beginning of the end of orphanages.

When children are out of sight, they’re too often out of mind – and in danger. A century of research proves this.

This Charter must spark the political will and resources to reunite the 5.4 million children confined to orphanages with families – whether their relatives or foster families.

Hope and Homes for Children have been closely advising on this campaign from the outset, from our very first meeting with David Lammy while he was still in the Shadow Cabinet. It is a special moment to see it come to life – to see the Deputy PM take his promise to make care reform a priority to the highest levels of leadership – with the profound hope that it begins to turn the tide on global care reform and gets children to where they belong – Back to Family.” — Our CEO, Mark Waddington.

When children are out of sight, they’re in danger

Decades of research prove a painful truth: when children are separated from their families and placed in institutions, they don’t just lose love – they lose their futures.

This Charter must now ignite the political will and unlock the resources needed to bring those 5.4 million children home – safely reunited with their families or welcomed into loving foster care.

Why this is urgent – and solvable

Children don’t end up in orphanages because they are unloved. They’re driven there by poverty, disability, discrimination, and conflict – pressures that tear families apart. But these pressures can be prevented and overcome.

The Charter recognises that the solution is not to build more institutions, but to invest in families – solutions that are proven, cost-effective, and already transforming lives:

• Supporting parents and caregivers with inclusive, community-based services.
• Upholding children’s rights under international law.
• Ending harmful practices like orphanage tourism.
• Equipping care leavers with the tools to thrive as adults.

One of the countries who have signed the charter is Moldova, where we have been working in partnership with Child Community Family (CCF) for 20 years. In that time, we have succeeding in closing ten orphanages, reuniting over 500 children with their families, and prevented over 2000 children from suffering family separation. Proof that reform is not only possible, but achievable and lifesaving.

“The Global Charter on Child Care is highly important for Moldova’s childcare reform, as it reinforces the country’s commitment to completing the transition from institutional care to family- and community-based alternatives. By aligning with the Charter’s principles, Moldova strengthens its efforts to ensure every child’s right to grow up in a safe and nurturing family environment. At the same time, the Charter provides a shared framework for authorities, civil society, and donors to work together in advancing a child-centred protection system.” — Dr Liliana Rotaru – President of CCF Moldova.

Our call to action – before another generation is lost

We welcome the leadership shown by the UK Government and early adopter nations, but this is only the beginning. Without urgent action, millions more children will grow up without the family they need – with consequences that last a lifetime.

We’re calling on:

• World leaders to sign and implement the Charter without delay.
• Charities, businesses, and civil society to unite behind this global effort.
• Communities and individuals everywhere to demand a world where no child grows up in an orphanage.

Because the solutions exist. They are affordable. And they work.

A future without orphanages is within reach

This Charter shows that governments are finally listening – that change is not only possible but inevitable, if we choose it. But we cannot achieve it without you.

Together, we can consign orphanages to history and build a world where every child grows up in the safety and love of a family.

Read the Global Charter here and help us spread the word by sharing our posts on social media:

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