Brief description:

Early years services and services in general tend to specialize in specific issues in social, educational- and health-related domains. As these issues faced by families are often intertwined with each other, services need to create synergies and work together to address
them and to ensure the holistic development of children. It is pivotal to support collaboration across all sectors and levels of service provision to ensure that the rights of individual children are met. In addition, services and systems need to undergo a transformation and become increasingly capable of providing their services to promote inclusive development and empowerment of young children and their families (progressive realisation of rights). Cooperation among services and between services and local authorities is at the centre of a holistic approach in ECD. This requires a change of mindset in all actors involved, the development of a shared vision, the creation of platforms and spaces for discussion and collaboration, the creation of multidisciplinary teams, and the development of cross-sectoral knowledge in different services. Through this training, participants will understand the value and challenges of the integration of early years services and become better equipped to take action toward integration.

Duration: 1 to 2 days.

Training topics include:

• Identify how the integration of services differs from fragmentation
• Understand the benefits of integration services for children, families, and professionals
• Learn a framework to work on the integration of services
• Identify services and take actions toward integration in their own community

For: Local and international NGOs, ECD institutions, practitioners, community workers, and volunteers. Local policymakers (municipalities) and local organisations linked to ECD and inclusive education