Changes in child and family policies in the EU28 in 2017 : European platform for investing in children : annual thematic report.

The year 2017 marked a number of important developments in the area of child and family policy in Europe. The presentation of the European Pillar of Social Rights has set the framework for new legislative and policy actions to combat some of the key challenges facing European children and their families. In addition, the preparatory action for the Child Guarantee scheme for vulnerable children outlined the need for an integrated approach to tackle multidimensional aspects of child poverty. The aim of this annual thematic report, drafted as part of the European Platform for Investing in Children (EPIC) project, is to outline changes and new developments during the past year in the area of child and family policies across the EU Member States (MS). The report is aligned with the 2013 Recommendation ’Investing in Children: breaking the cycle of disadvantage’ and its key indicators to measure progress across the policy areas relevant for each of the three pillars of the Recommendation. The report is also guided by recent developments related to the European Pillar of Social Rights. As such, this report provides an overview of the direction of policy developments in this area.