EU Training for guardians of unaccompanied children

Refugee refers to a person who is outside their country of nationality due to a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, and who is unable or, because of this fear, unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country. A refugee could also be a stateless person who is outside the country of habitual residence for the same reasons.^[1] 

Refugee status means the recognition by a Member State of a third-country national or a stateless person as a refugee.

Qualification Directive (2011/95/EU), Article 2 (e)

Representative means a person or an organisation appointed by the competent bodies in order to assist and represent an unaccompanied minor in (…) with a view to ensuring the best interests of the child and exercising legal capacity for the minor where necessary. Where an organisation is appointed as a representative, it shall designate a person responsible for carrying out the duties of representative in respect of the unaccompanied minor (…).

Reception Conditions Directive (2013/33/EU), Article 2(j)

Residence permit means any permit or authorisation issued by the authorities of a Member State, in the form provided for under that State’s law, allowing a third-country national or stateless person to reside on its territory.

Qualification Directive (2011/95/EU), Article 2 (m)

In physics, resilience is understood as the ability of an object or a body to resist the impact of an external force. In relation to persons, resilience was first observed as the phenomenon that persons who are confronted with comparable stress situations react differently and do not experience the same adverse outcomes. Resilience has been described as “a dynamic process encompassing positive adaptation within the context of significant adversity”.^[1] Identifying and strengthening resilience factors is considered an important approach to limit the impact of adversity. The concept has been studied extensively in psychiatry and was gradually introduced into the debates on health, social protection and child protection.

The initial narrow understanding of resilience as an individual or personal attribute has evolved into a broader, ecological understanding recognising the interaction between internal and external factors. “Individuals take an active role in engaging with protective factors in the environment, in addition to innate assets in their personality. The effective use of protective factors and resources depends on the ability of the individual to creatively interact with and use resources. For example, resilient children are able to capitalise on their assets, such as good interpersonal skills and the ability to engage others, in order to gain social and other support.”^[2] In light of this interpretation, personal capacities and skills, as well as the availability and accessibility of meaningful protective factors and support from the family, community, society and state are essential to help children strengthen their resilience.

The EU Charter guarantees the “right to asylum”. This means that persons who qualify for asylum have the right to have their status recognised.

EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, Article 18

The Qualification Directive (2011/95/EU) provides in Article 13 for the refugee status and in Article 18 for the subsidiary protection status for those who need international protection, but do not qualify for refugee status. The status of international protection granted to a person under the EU Qualification Directive can be revoked in certain circumstances, for example if there has been a fundamental and genuine improvement in the situation in their country of origin.^[1]

Qualification Directive (2011/95/EU), Articles 13 and 18

A risk describes an event or an action that could possibly occur, but which is not certain. Risks could be related, for instance, to a person’s health and wellbeing, social relations, professional and financial situation, or housing situation. Risks can also stem from the environment or climate, they can be related to actions or inaction of others, to the reliability of service provision or policy measures. A risk can affect an individual or groups of persons. Risks often derive from barriers and obstacles that a person is confronted with.

Risk management, that is preventive and remediating measures, are typically informed by a risk assessment. They can take place ex ante and ex post. Ex ante measures set in before a risky event occurs and take a preventive approach. Ex post measures respond when a risky event has occurred and take a remediating approach.^[1]