The year in child and family policy

The past year marked a number of important developments in the area of child and family policy in Europe.

The presentation of the European Pillar of Social Rights has set the framework for new legislative and policy actions to combat some of the key challenges facing European children and their families.

In addition, the preparatory action for the Child Guarantee scheme for vulnerable children outlined the need for an integrated approach to tackle multidimensional aspects of child poverty.

This annual report outlines changes and new developments during the past year in the area of child and family policies across the EU Member States.

The report is aligned with the 2013 Recommendation ’Investing in Children: breaking the cycle of disadvantage’ and its key indicators to measure progress across the policy areas relevant for each of the three pillars of the Recommendation.

The report is also guided by recent developments related to the European Pillar of Social Rights.

The report provides data on key trends as reported in the EPIC national profiles, with a reflection on policy developments and key challenges remaining. It also signposts current policy discussions and how they could potentially shape child and family policy at the EU and national levels in coming years.

The report also specifically covers developments in the area of child migrant and refugee policy; changes in parental, paternity and maternity leave policies in the EU; and the progress of deinstitutionalisation of the child care system.

EPIC supports Member States to invest in children

The European Platform for Investing in Children (EPIC) is an evidence-based online platform that provides information about policies that can help children and their families face the challenges that exist in the current economic climate in Europe.

EPIC helps Member States implementing the Recommendation for Investing in Children and is a tool for monitoring activities triggered by the Recommendation.

It is also a platform for sharing the best of policymaking for children and families and to foster cooperation and mutual learning in the field.

In addition to this annual thematic report, EPIC publishes a series of policy memos aimed at policymakers, researchers and practitioners and focusing on topics relevant to child welfare.

Policy memos published in 2018 cover the:

• use of EU funding mechanisms to invest in children 
• provision of education for migrant and refugee children in Europe
• effective implementation of evidence-based practices and programmes to support child and family wellbeing and
• paternity and parental leave provision across Europe.