Netherlands Child Protection Law Grants Families the Right to Make a Plan

The Netherlands Parliament recently voted to amend the Child Protection Act, which grants parents or guardians of a child the right to meet with family and close family supporters to make their own plan regarding how to care for the child, before the state and courts are permitted to intervene. This article includes an interview with Rob van Pagée, director of the nonprofit organization Eigen Kracht Centrale, the Netherlands leader in family group conferencing or FGC (known as family group decision making or FGDM in the US), which led lobbying efforts for the amendment.

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The First Canadian Conference on Family Group Conferencing: Honouring the Circle, Connections and Wisdom

25-27 September 2011
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

American Humane Association and Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies are joining to bring you Honouring the Circle, Connections and Wisdom to be held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Sunday, September 25 to Tuesday, September 27, 2011.

Download a conference program here »

European Congress on Family Group Conference: Democratizing Help and Welfare

19-21 October 2011
Utrecht, The Netherlands
Organized by the Eigen Kracht Centrale in cooperation with Hogeschool Utrecht

FGC is about mutual self reliance and the right of citizens to remain in control of their own lives, even in times of trouble when official institutions are playing an important part. During the congress, professionals from social care, research, and politics and citizens from all over Europe will share their visions, experiences, and developments.

Learn more and register here »

American Humane Association Conference
Oasis in the Desert: Celebrating 15 Years of FGDM and Family Engagement

June 8-11, 2011
Henderson, Nevada, USA

The 2011 annual Conference on Family Group Decision Making and Other Family Engagement Approaches continues the tradition that American Humane Association started 15 years ago. Based on the feedback of thousands of participants over the years, FGDM and family engagement is a critical, current, relevant and urgent topic for child welfare, juvenile justice, courts and allied systems.

Learn more and register here »

Guidelines for Family Group Decision Making in Child Welfare

American Humane’s National Center on Family Group Decision Making, in coordination with the FGDM Guidelines Committee, has published Guidelines for Family Group Decision Making in Child Welfare, a comprehensive 63-page handbook covering all aspects of the FGDM process and philosophy, from basic explanations, history and values to detailed descriptions of the role of the coordinator, the referral process, preparation, the family meeting, follow-up and administrative support.

Download the free handbook here »

News from the IIRP 13th World Conference

The 13th IIRP World Conference, in Hull, UK, October 13-15, included more than 100 presentations from restorative practitioners from 16 countries. A link to the conference schedule and papers submitted by presenters are here, as are links to a blog on the conference by Sylvia Clute, an attorney and author from Richmond, Virginia, USA, along with comments from other conference participants from around the world.

More information here »

International Institute for Restorative Practices approved as a graduate school by Pennsylvania Department of Education

On June 26 the Pennsylvania Secretary of Education signed the Certificate of Authority for the International Institute for Restorative Practices to operate as a graduate degree-granting institution. By this action, the Pennsylvania Department of Education has officially recognized "restorative practices" as a new discipline. The IIRP is the world's first graduate school wholly dedicated to restorative practices.

Courses will be offered on weekends to accommodate working adults and those traveling substantial distances. Summer weekday courses will be offered to accommodate teachers' summer break.

More information on the IIRP Graduate School here »

Family group decision making/family group conferencing articles available in the IIRP Library

Here's a list of some of the articles and links to articles on FGDM/FGC available in our Library:

A Family Plan Forged Out of Commitment and Love:
An FGDM Story
Lynn M. Welden, IIRP

Family Group Conferencing Worldwide
Part One    Part Two    Part Three
a three-part series by Laura Mirsky, IIRP

Family Group Decision Making Reunites a Family
Laura Mirsky, IIRP

New Study Reports on Success of Family Group Conferences in Schools in Hampshire County, England, UK
University of Sheffield, England

Hampshire County, U.K.: A Place of Innovation for Family Group Conferencing
Laura Mirsky, IIRP

The Family Group Conference 14-Year Journey: Celebrating the Successes, Learning the Lessons, Embracing the Challenges
Shannon Pakura, New Zealand Department of Child, Youth and Family Services

Family Group Conferencing as a First Choice: Empowerment Versus Intervention
Robert van Pagée, Eigen-kracht Centrale, Voorhout, Netherlands

Addressing Child Protection and Group Care Issues Through the Use of Family Group Conferencing
Karin Gunderson, Northwest Institute for Children and Families, University of Washington School of Social Work, Washington State, USA

Family Group Conference Connections: Shared Problems and Joined Up Solutions
Paul Nixon, former commissioning officer for FGCs for the Hampshire County Council Social Services Department, England, currently Children’s Service Manager in West Berkshire, England

Mainstreaming Family Group Conferencing: Building And Sustaining Partnerships
Joan Pennell, North Carolina State University

Long Term and Immediate Outcomes of Family Group Conferencing in Washington State U.S.A. (June 2001) Nancy Shore, Judith Wirth, Katharine Cahn, Briana Yancey, Karin Gunderson

Restorative Justice in New Zealand: Family Group Conferences as a Case Study
Allison Morris and Gabrielle Maxwell, Institute of Criminology, Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand

Background Paper On New Zealand Youth Justice Process
Judge Michael J.A. Brown, Principal Youth Court Judge, New Zealand

The Family Group Conference – 10 Years On
Mike Doolan, Children, Young Persons and Their Families Agency, New Zealand

Special volume on FGDM research available from American Humane Association

A special double volume of Protecting Children, the journal of the American Humane Association's National Center on Family Group Decision Making, is now available. This volume, entitled Promising Results, Potential New Directions: International FGDM Research and Evaluation in Child Welfare, contains reports on FGDM research from around the world and offers "considerable support for the advancement of FGDM and good reasons to explore ways to mainstream its practice." A PDF of the volume's 10-page introductory article is also available.