A child welfare service is to be set up in the Novyi Buh community: 96 children in difficult life circumstances are already on the register
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- Alina KvitkoReporter
In the Novyi Buh community, the number of children facing difficult life circumstances has increased almost fivefold. Photo: illustrative, NikVesti archiveThe Novyi Buh community plans to establish a guardianship and care unit within the Children’s Services Department and to increase its staffing levels. They attribute this need to new requirements from the Cabinet of Ministers, as well as to the fact that over the last five years, the number of children in difficult life circumstances has risen from 20 to 96.
This was reported by Viktoriia Zakharchuk, head of the Children’s Services Department, during a meeting of the Novyi Buh City Council’s budget committee on 22 July, according to NikVesti.
According to her, in 2021, the service had 20 children registered who were in difficult life circumstances. There are now 96, which has significantly increased the workload on staff.
«Unfortunately, the number of children facing difficult life circumstances is rising. Whilst there were 20 in 2021, there are now 96 children on our register. That is why more attention is being paid to these children in particular,» said Viktoriia Zakharchuk.
She noted that, due to the increased workload, staff are forced to devote less time to orphans and children deprived of parental care who are already being raised in foster families, family-style children’s homes or under guardianship.
That is why the Children’s Services Department plans to establish a guardianship and care unit and create an additional post.
According to the head of the service, the new division will deal with matters relating to adoption, the formalisation of guardianship and care arrangements, the placement of children in family-based care settings, monitoring their living conditions, and preparing reports for executive bodies and the courts.
The need for these changes is also linked to new requirements from the Cabinet of Ministers, which stipulate the mandatory establishment of guardianship and care sectors within local children’s services.
According to Viktoriia Zakharchuk, there are currently three family-type children’s homes, three foster families and three support families operating in the Novyi Buh community. The creation of a new department is intended to strengthen support for such families and ensure that children deprived of parental care are, first and foremost, brought up in a family environment rather than in residential care homes.
Following the discussion, the Budget Committee supported referring the matter of changes to the structure of the Children’s Services Department to the next session of the City Council for consideration.
It should be noted that, as of February 2026, 837 children were registered with the Mykolaiv City Council’s Children’s Services. Of these, 574 are orphans and children deprived of parental care who are on the primary register.
Read also the article by NikVesti: «Every child has the right to a family: how adoption and family-based care are being developed in Mykolaiv».
This material was produced within the REACH – Media Partnerships for Accountability and Trust project, implemented by International Media Support (IMS) and supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. The content reflects the views of the authors and not necessarily those of the Danish government. Denmark’s support strengthens civil society and independent media in Ukraine, including in Mykolaiv.