Dutch policy
The VIR is established under the authority of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport in 2009, in collaboration with a number of expert municipalities and the Association of Netherlands Municipalities. Since the formation of the former Ministry of Youth and Family in 2007, the VIR came within the compass of the responsibility of this former Ministry. Currently, the VIR comes within the compass of the responsibility of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport.
The role of the government
The government developed the VIR, stimulates the use of it and takes care of the statutory of the use. The former Ministry of Youth and Family made a starter pack for the municipalities in co-operation with some leading municipalities organised in MULTIsignal (www.multisignaal.nl). This pack includes the ICT-application and tools for the introduction in the municipality, for instance , a concept for a cooperation agreement and a privacy protocol, criteria when to report in the VIR.
The role of the municipalities
The ‘Social Support Act’ makes municipalities responsible for the local youth policy. The municipality determines how this occurs and who is responsible for a youngster. Municipalities make agreements about this with social workers in the chain of services and they also make agreements about whom in the municipality participates in the VIR. The local implemententation of the VIR, made it their approach, and therefore better incorporated in daily processes.
The role of the VIR within the chain of services
By 2011 all 418 Dutch municipalities should have at least one Youth and Family Centre (YFC). A YFC is a familiar, low-threshold meeting point in a community to which (prospective) parents and their children, and youth, can go to with questions related to parenting and growing-up. Besides a YFC, it is compulsory with the School Care and Advice Teams and Child Protection Services. The VIR is a tool for municipalities to enable early signalling and by that, stimulate the collaboration within the chain of services and the direction of the youth policy.
