Action Enfance

The Foundation is based on five principles of action that it adapts to the social, cultural and geographical context of the children and young people it supports.

• Family-type care
  Family-type care is based on sharing the day-to-day life of a small number of children with a limited number of family educators. The children live and grow up, brothers and sisters together, in warm homes that they furnish and decorate. A stable team of family educators, working in shifts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, takes care of the children and young people in a home. This stability fosters a permanent and privileged educational relationship, providing children and young people with emotional and structuring points of reference.
  
• A long-term response to the needs of children and young people
  A personalized welcome for each child, encouraging the expression of his or her expectations and apprehensions, helps to reveal the potential of each individual. This type of support is designed to last at the Foundation, even beyond the placement period, if the young person so wishes, thanks to the ACTION+ scheme, financed from ACTION ENFANCE's own funds.
  
• Support provided by committed educational teams
  Each team works closely with the child, combining different approaches and professional viewpoints to enrich its practice. Recruitment, training and the sharing of best practices make it possible for the educational team to take relevant action and position itself appropriately. Family educators are trained as specialized educators or early childhood educators.
  
• Children's and teenager's Villages open to their environment
  Children's and teenager's Villages are integrated into their local, school, community and medical environments. The Foundation works to ensure that all children and teenagers have access to culture, sports and leisure activities that will enable them to develop their potential, become independent and achieve personal success. It pays particular attention to the issue of educational, professional and social integration by developing networks and partnerships in these areas.
  
• An institutional framework
  The Foundation works in partnership with child welfare services (Aide Sociale à l'Enfance - ASE), departmental councils and, more broadly, with all local and national players involved in child protection. With a view to developing and enhancing the relevance of its work with young people and children at risk, it implements innovative care arrangements, while retaining its specific features, in the best interests of children.

ACTION ENFANCE has three main areas of action in favor of children at risk: reinforcing educational support financed by the départements in the context of placement, building and renovating Villages d'Enfants et d'Adolescents, and developing our care methods and offering responses adapted to the needs of each child according to his or her background and identity.

The work we do alongside the brothers and sisters we take in is therefore long-term. This daily presence with the children, often for several years, and the specificity and quality of our support, are only possible thanks to the support of our benefactors and the confidence of our departments. This is also true of the major projects presented below.