Creating safe spaces for children within communities

In Papua New Guinea, where up to 80% of children experience physical or emotional violence and widespread neglect, access to child protection can often feel out of reach. But a new initiative is changing that narrative.

The Child-Friendly Spaces (CFS) Toolkit, developed under the leadership of the National Office of Child and Family Services (NOCFS) and UNICEF, in partnership with UNFPA, IOM, faith-based organisations, and local NGOs, offers communities a practical, homegrown approach to protecting vulnerable children.

Designed for use in both emergency and development settings, the toolkit provides step-by-step guidance to help communities create safe, welcoming spaces where children can feel protected, supported, and heard. These spaces offer not only emotional and psychological relief but also serve as entry points for access to legal, medical, and counselling services.

Last week, the toolkit was rolled out during a Training of Trainers (ToT) workshop in Port Moresby, where 18 organisations gathered to learn how to establish and manage Child-Friendly Spaces in their own communities.

“Children in our communities face a lot of physical and emotional abuse,” said Seruma Numa, National Operations Manager at Links of Hope, which supports children impacted by HIV/AIDS. “We see how stigma silences them. Many can’t speak up about what’s happening in their homes. A Child-Friendly Space gives them a voice, a space to talk, to feel safe, and to be heard.”

More Than a Toolkit

While the toolkit provides structured templates for community outreach, play-based activities, and referral pathways, its power lies in something deeper: it fills a long-standing gap in community child protection systems.

“In PNG, child negligence is everywhere,” said Benoni Masalo, WASH and Peace Project Manager at CARE International. “Parents often don’t realise the importance of emotional and educational support. That neglect leaves deep wounds, and children carry them silently. A Child-Friendly Space offers something simple but powerful: safety.”

Masalo emphasized how trained facilitators use creative methods, like storytelling, drawing, and play, as bridges to healing.

“Children express their pain through play. When you create that environment, it helps them open up. And it also helps communities see that healing starts with connection. That’s when referral systems and community support become essential.”

Grounded in Community

One of the most impactful features of the toolkit is its focus on embedding protection into existing community structures, from churches and schools to ward offices and aid posts.

“Children are on the streets, we see it every day,” said Numa.
“By working through trusted community spaces, we can be there when a child is finally ready to reach out. The support must be there, waiting.”

Among the trainees was Ediola Avosa, Programs Officer at the Papua New Guinea National Scouts Association, who works with at-risk youth in urban areas.

“Some children I work with are already exposed to drugs, alcohol, and even trafficking,” she shared. “A Child-Friendly Space could be the difference between further harm and hope. It becomes a bridge, to protection, to trust, and to transformation.”

Building for the Future

The toolkit rollout coincides with the finalisation of PNG’s Child Protection Case Management Standard Operating Procedures, a national framework designed to strengthen frontline response to child abuse and neglect.

“We’ve had policies and awareness campaigns,” Masalo said. “But very little that reaches the grassroots in a practical way. This toolkit changes that.”

For Numa, Avosa, and Masalo, one message remains clear: protecting children is a collective responsibility.

“When communities take ownership of these spaces,” Avosa said, “they stop being just ‘programs.’ They become places where children rebuild trust, discover their worth, and imagine a future not shaped by fear.”

As this initiative unfolds across the country, thousands of children will finally gain access to the safe spaces they’ve long needed.

"We encourage all stakeholders, government, humanitarian responders, community leaders, and frontline workers, to use this toolkit as a guiding framework to strengthen the protection of children in communities, " said Paula Vargas from UNICEF. “By working together, we can ensure that every child in Papua New Guinea has access to a safe, nurturing environment where they can heal, grow, and thrive, right in their own community."