No child
should
grow up
alone
Every child has the right to belong to a family and grow up with love, respect and security.
In English
We believe that by building true bonds with children we can change the world together
SOS Children’s Villages, founded in 1949 by Hermann Gmeiner, is the world’s largest non-governmental organization focused on supporting children and young people without parental care, or at risk of losing it.
We want to break the cycle of neglect, abuse and abandonment and assure that every child and adolescent has a support system to ensure that they are able to become their strongest selves.
We work in over 130 countries to ensure that children’s rights are recognized and children and families get the support they need.
Why are we needed?
As a child, you need someone who truly sees you – who stands by you no matter what.
But today, 1 in 10 children and young people in Finland and around the world are separated from their families for one reason or another growing up without the care they need.
The effects of this often last a lifetime, creating a harmful cycle that repeats from one generation to the next.
Together, we are here to break this cycle and to prevent it from happening in the first place.
When a child and an adolescent are cared for and supported, they can become their strongest selves.
That is what we do, and that is why we are needed.
How do we help?
Every child and family have individual needs, and they come from very different backgrounds. Understanding this is the core of our work. We answer to these individual needs to create lasting effects.
We support and strengthen children, adolescents and families in Finland and around the world.
We constantly develop high quality services to answer to individual needs and local conditions.
We strive to help children and families at the right time and in the right way. Additionally, we strive to prevent the issues from transferring to the next generation.
We do advocacy work and cooperation to make sure that each child has the right to grow up in an environment that supports their needs and growth.
SOS Children’s Villages Finland is part of the umbrella organization, SOS Children’s Villages International, which helps vulnerable children in over 130 countries around the world.
559
SOS Children's Villages where children who cannot live with their families of origin grow up in a loving home
395 000
Children and adults received support from our Family Strengthening Programmes in 2019
65 800
Children and adolescents live in our SOS Children’s Villages
267 500
Children and adolescents received education from our kindergartens, schools, vocational training centres and other educational facilities in 2019
Our promise to children is to ensure good quality care. That means that the children grow up in a safe environment, their wellbeing is looked after and their development is supported, so that each child gets the best possible opportunities in life.
Support systems in place
90 % of the children have strong support systems as adults. They have good relations to their families and they take good care of their own children.
Basic needs
90 % of adults who have grown up in children’s villages have their basic needs fulfilled. They have proper housing, enough food and access to healthca
Good education
Over 80 % of the adolescents have received adequate education and they have the necessary skills to acquire employment, or they are still studying.