In Polotsk, over the past five years, all children left without parents have found new families

September 3, Vitebsk / Olga Bogacheva - BELTA /. In Polotsk, all children left without parents find new families. For the last five years, not a single young resident of the city (an orphan or left without parental care) has been sent to an institutional facility, Tamara Lyutko, chief specialist of the education department of the Polotsk City Executive Committee, told a BELTA correspondent. As of September 1, there are 111 foster families in Polotsk raising 147 children, and 94 guardianship families (102 children). This is the highest figure among all districts of the Vitebsk region. Finding a new family for every child in need, left without parental warmth and care, is facilitated by extensive public awareness campaigns. For example, local television regularly airs stories about children in difficult life situations, and thematic articles are published in the press. Regular presentations by education workers to work collectives, at parent meetings in educational institutions of the city, and at other events have become an important step in this work. Members of public organizations also actively participate in this. "Live communication during such visits does not allow citizens to remain indifferent. Thus, a person who is ready to take a child is always found," the interlocutor said. Events aimed at enhancing the prestige of the family also help to strengthen this positive trend. Children's Day, Family Day are always celebrated in Polotsk in an interesting and vibrant way, the city marathon "Give a Fairy Tale to Children," the "Best Family of the Year" competition, and entertainment and sports events for the whole family have become annual traditions. Clubs for foster and large families operate on a permanent basis. The effectiveness of this set of measures is also evidenced by the established database of potential parents, which currently includes 20 Polotsk residents, added Tamara Lyutko. In total, according to data for the first half of the year, in the Vitebsk region, over 2.5 thousand orphans (more than 50%) are raised in substitute families, including 1426 in guardianship families and 1097 in foster families. 88 young residents of the region are in 12 family-type children's homes. 48 children were adopted during this period. As of September 1, 930 children remain in 14 boarding institutions in the region, the childhood protection sector of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee's education department reported. -0-