Navigating the Finnish Child Welfare Process: A Personal Journey

Introduction

Parenting is challenging in a cross-cultural environment. Sometimes, circumstances can become overwhelming, and parents may end up in unexplored territories, especially procedures concerning child welfare authorities. In Finland, the child welfare system is designed to ensure the well-being of children and families. In this blog post, I will share my personal experience with the Finnish child welfare system and shed light on the processes of child welfare notice.

Like most parents, my primary concern was the well-being of my child. However, my parental behaviour traverses within the confinement of cross-cultural boundaries covering my upbringing in India and child welfare policies in Finland. A few years ago, school authorities filed a child welfare notice voicing their concern about parental violence at home. I realized that my behavior which is very common in Indian culture is treated as an offense here in Finland, so I admitted my mistake. Here is how our experience unfolded:

The beginning

The school’s social worker (Koulukuraattori) had a conversation with our child regarding parental violence and, during this discussion, informed her about the child welfare notice. Upon returning home, our child shared with us the details of what had taken place at school. I was worried that they were going to take away the kid the next school day. In retrospect, I realized this was not the case always as the school authorities did not perceive an immediate danger to our child’s well-being.

The next day, we visited the school to clarify our perspective, and the school’s social worker patiently listened. We hoped that we could avoid filing of child welfare notice. I emphasized multiple times that the incident was neither intentional nor a regular occurrence. I expressed my willingness to take steps to prevent similar situations in the future. Throughout our conversation, her stance remained consistent: “By law, I am obliged to report the case”. So, we are left with the only available option: (im)patiently wait for the law to take its own course :-)

The Skyfall

After months and a half, I received a call from Espoo police informing me that they had spoken with our child at school that day. With their conversation, they realized the incident was not a regular occurrence and informed about the consequences of corporal punishment in Finland. I was given two options, either to explain my position or to get the help of social workers. I choose the second option. The investigating constable told me they are closing the complaint as they see that the situation did not warrant any criminal charges.

I rushed to school after the call to pick up our child. The child was visually upset and mentioned that the whole interview was videotaped and the process was horrifying in the beginning. When I asked the kid to elaborate, the kid explained about the initial shock at the beginning of the interview and her conversation with the police. Apparently, our child asked them, whether they were taking her away. In essence, the interviewers are cordial and professional. Notably, with the child-friendly approach, they made our child open up about her experiences at home. I informed the kid about my call and said, we as a family need to social welfare counsellor.

The next day, I got a call from the city social welfare office and we booked an appointment for a counselling session after a week. On the day of the counselling, we arrived at the office and were greeted by three employees including a child psychologist. They asked a few questions about our family situation with a specific focus on my details.

The conversation snowballed into two specific events our child mentioned. I explained both situations and acknowledged my mistakes. I explained how I am trying to mend my ways and identify alternative methods to deal with the child’s behaviour. They appreciated my efforts and decided that we did not need further support. They have also mentioned that they are closing their case. We thought it was a happy ending.

The Shock

All of a sudden, I got a call from Espoo court about the child welfare case. The caller is overseeing the complaint. The court employee has mentioned that the court appointed a temporary guardian for my daughter as my wife will not act as an impartial guardian concerning the child welfare complaint. I need to come to court to receive the decision concerning the temporary guardian (Edunvalvoja) and have the opportunity to contest their decision if we do not agree. I asked our child a few questions but did not understand the situation completely. I called the social welfare office to better understand the situation. The employee said from their end, the case is closed and they were not aware of proceedings from other stakeholders. I went to the police station the next day to meet the constable who investigated the case.

The constable explained the whole procedure.

  • Considering the case, the appointment of a temporary guardian is compulsory

    • as the child can not represent themself
    • conflict of interest associated with my partner

  • There could be a time lag concerning the child welfare complaint, police investigation, the social welfare office, and the court procedure and documentation.

He further mentioned that our case is procedure-wise closed but requires technical closure as they need consent from higher authorities.

Then I called the Espoo court again and asked a question concerning the validity of a temporary guardian. Then the court employee said the guardian represented the child concerning the criminal complaint only. Their rights will cease to end after the case is closed. They were waiting for a written statement from the police.

Again we cannot do much but wait for the law to take its own course.

The ending

One fine day, a letter arrived, bearing the news that the case was officially closed. That simple piece of paper brought with it a profound sense of relief, offering closure to the painful journey we had endured throughout the entire procedure. It marked the end of a chapter filled with uncertainty, anxiety, and emotional turmoil, allowing me to finally move forward.

My experience with the Finnish child welfare system is positive but also transformative. One of the most crucial lessons I took away from this experience was the need to unlearn and re-evaluate what I thought I knew about parenting.