Structure and Challenges of Child Protection in Switzerland

Abstract

This chapter aims at providing an overview on legislation, organizational structure and processes of child protection in Switzerland. For a relatively small country, the number of services is rather vast. This diversity arises from 26 cantonal and sub-cantonal variations of organizing child protection and is amplified by Switzerland’s cultural and linguistic variety. The roles in public child protection differ into risk assessment, deciding on child protection orders, and providing mandated services. They are assigned to at least two different types of organizations. Penal agencies are responsible for prosecuting child maltreatment offenses. Federal legislation entitles victims of crimes to support free-of-charge. Many private or semi-private agencies, such as specialized psychosocial counselling services or interdisciplinary child protection teams, are recognized as victim aid agencies and are therefore able to fund a part of the victim’s support through federal money. The new Child and Adult Protection Law, implemented in 2013, mandates professional sentinels to report to a child protection authority when a “person needs assistance”. Challenges discussed pertain, for example, to increasing the degree of standardization of risk assessment across cantons and to a lack of surveillance and shared data. Moreover, corporal punishment has still not been banned completely.