Child Helpline International, the global network of child helplines, is a collective impact organization dedicated to advancing child protection systems and amplifying children’s voices globally. Since our establishment in 2003, we have brought together child helplines worldwide to drive change at national, regional, and global levels.
One of the core pillars of Child Helpline International is supporting our members in providing high-quality responses to children and youth. Since 2005, we have conducted multiple consultations with our members, resulting in the development of Core Quality Standards that describe nine essential aspects of a child helpline: rights-based, advocates for children, facilitates meaningful child and youth participation, reliable, safe, accessible, child-centered, accountable, and responsibly and effectively operated in emergency settings. As part of this process, we are currently undertaking an additional project to delve into best practices related to each core quality standard.
We are seeking PRO BONO EXPERTS (child rights experts, child helpline employees, NGO workers, academics) to assist us in reviewing lists of best practices. The creation of the list for each standard has been a meticulous process involving insights from extensive discussions with child helplines and a thorough review of existing literature in the field. We warmly invite you to review this compiled list of best practices and assess their real-world applicability.
Currently, we are looking for experts in one of the following thematic areas:
- CQS 9 Child helpline is responsibly operated in emergencies. Standard CQS9 covers preparation and responding to emergencies such as natural disasters, conflicts, or public health threats.
or
- CQS1 Child helpline adopts a rights-based approach. Standard CQS1 emphasizes promoting and safeguarding children’s rights, conducting comprehensive situational analyses, integrating child rights principles in staff training, and actively engaging in monitoring and reporting efforts at various levels to ensure children’s rights are upheld and protected.
Experts Review Process:
- We will send you instructions with questions and the list of best practices for the standard you have expertise in.
- You will have up to 2 weeks to thoroughly review the best practices list and send a written response via email. We estimate that this activity could take around 2-3 hours.
- Subsequently, your input will be taken into account when creating materials for our member child helplines that they can apply in order to work towards increasing their compliance under the CQS Framework.
Additionally, your involvement in this research positions you as part of a network of CQS experts, offering opportunities for future initiatives such as workshops, training, and research projects. Your name will also be acknowledged in the materials resulting from this research.
We strongly believe that involving experts will enhance the assessment by introducing diverse perspectives. Your participation not only helps validate these standards but also ensures an impartial evaluation, preserving the credibility and relevance of the quality standards.
Contact us:
Your involvement will be a catalyst for positive change, and we eagerly await your response. Together, we can strengthen child protection systems and amplify the voices of children in emergencies.
Send an email to Magda Zimnowoda, our Quality Lead, at data@childhelplineinternational.org to express your interest in participating. Please attach your CV confirming your expertise and add “CQS1 expert” or “CQS9 expert” to the email title.
Thank you for considering this endeavor.