When children are most at risk, War Child aims to respond immediately, working with partners to provide life-saving emergency support, and to ensure that children’s safety and wellbeing are prioritised.
Every child has the right to life, survival and development, and protection from all forms of violence. Yet these rights are often overlooked in the initial stages of a conflict or escalation.
Children are often the first to feel the impact of war. Homes are left behind, schools close, families are separated, and the structures and routines that keep them safe disappear. In times of crisis, their lives can change in an instant.
In emergencies, the people who help first are already there. Local people understand their communities better than anyone else, and they are best placed to lead recovery in ways that last beyond the immediate crisis. This is why War Child always works with partners, helping them to build the skills, resources and capacity they need to respond quickly when crises happen.
We focus on ensuring children are protected, can continue learning, and have access to safe spaces, essential supplies, and mental health and psychosocial support to help them process what they’ve been through.
Children and caregivers’ emotional wellbeing and mental health through mental health first aid and psychosocial services
Safe spaces for children to learn, play and recover
Access to child protection services based on children’s individual needs
Children’s learning during and after displacement
Access to essentials such as shelter, clothes, warm meals and water
Children’s dignity with access to hygiene materials
Families' economic independence with cash assistance
A complex humanitarian crisis has left millions of children in Afghanistan at risk of starvation, exploitation, violence and prolonged disruption to…
Colombia's armed conflict has spanned more than five decades and continues to have a profound impact on rural, Indigenous and Afro-Colombian…
War Child works with local partners in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to provide children affected by conflict and displacement with integrated…
The latest conflict between Lebanon and Israel escalated in 2024 and the situation has been unstable ever since. Children and vulnerable communities…
Children in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) have lived under Israeli military occupation for more than five decades, the longest ongoing…
Children in South Sudan are facing one of the most severe humanitarian crises in the world, with many at risk of displacement, malnutrition and…
Children in Sudan are currently living through the largest displacement crisis in the world. Forced from their homes, they face risks of violence,…
Children in Syria have endured over 14 years of armed conflict. Ongoing violence as well as devastating earthquakes have left millions of Syrian…
Uganda hosts Africa’s largest refugee population and has one of the world’s youngest populations. While the country has made significant progress…
Years of conflict in Yemen have had a devastating impact on children and families - causing widespread death, injury and displacement, and tearing…
We are committed to ensuring that our emergency response work is of the highest quality, impact and integrity. We adhere to the principles set out in the Humanitarian Charter, are a verified organisation under the Core Humanitarian Standard, and contribute to and uphold the technical standard soutlined in the Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action and INEE Minimum Standards for Education. We also work closely with other organisations in coalitions to ensure a coordinated response that benefits the wider humanitarian community.
One year since the ceasefire agreement, more than 1,400 people have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, nearly two million still need shelter, not a single hospital is fully functioning, and 1.4 million face crisis-level hunger.
With 200,000 people, including children, displaced in Yemen within a month, our own colleague tells us about how she was forced to flee twice in this period, leaving home and beloved family members behind.
War Child’s Head of Programmes in Ukraine, Yaroslava Mozghova, and Anna Sydoruk, CEO of Osvitoria, War Child’s partner, explain how no matter where children live in Ukraine, they cannot escape the uncertainty of war.
Escalating violence in Taiz and Al Hodeidah governorates in Yemen is putting children at risk once again. Instead of recovering from years of conflict, going to school, playing, and building their futures children are being exposed to violence, displacement and fear.
Escalating violence in Yemen is once again putting children at direct risk. Instead of recovering from years of conflict, going to school, playing, and building their futures children are being exposed to violence, displacement and fear. After more than a decade of war, they deserve the chance to grow up safely and realise their dreams.
We are thinking of the people of Colombia following the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck Chocó province early yesterday morning local time.
