Defence for Children stands up for the rights of children in the youth care system and for those who are otherwise in need of protection due to a problematic home environment. This can involve behavioral and child rearing issues, physical problems or other difficulties at home.

Children facing such difficulties can receive help in the form of youth care. Their parents can also obtain help with child-rearing matters at Youth and Family centers or via the Youth Care Bureau. Here they can get both information and advice. In complex cases which require more than just information or one consultation, more specific assistance can be instigated.
 

When a child's development is threatened, a juvenile judge can, at the request of, for example, the Council for the Defence of Children, instigate a child protection order. A child's healthy development into adulthood can be jeopardized, for example, when the aforementioned volunteer youth care assistance is not sufficient to resolve the issues for which the help is initiated.
A child may also be in need of protection in other situations, such as when parents divorce, for example. The best interest of the child plays an important role in such proceedings. When the parents are unable to ensure their child's best interest on their own accord, the judge (sometimes on the advice of the Board of Child Protection) can rule on the matter. Such a ruling can, for example, regulate custody and visitation rights with regard to the child.

Reflection- and Action Group to Combat Child Abuse