What is the project?

The European Union-Council of Europe Joint Project “Implementing the Barnahus Model in Croatia” aims to improve the access and quality of the justice system for child victims and witnesses of violence in Croatia, to ensure that undue delays in the treatment of such cases are diminished, and that all children who are victims and witnesses of sexual violence benefit from a child-friendly access to justice.

The implementation of the legislative framework concerning protection of child victims and witnesses of criminal offences remains challenging in Croatia, especially regarding the number of examinations/interviews before and during the criminal proceedings. Since the adoption of the Criminal Procedure Act in 2008, pre-recorded interviews are used in Croatia, and the Croatian National Plan for Combating Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment 2022-2027 has a specific Measure 2.6 “Improving care and ensuring the availability of support services for victims of sexual offenses”. Building on the work already carried out by Croatia, the project aims to support the Croatian authorities in their first steps towards the establishment of a Barnahus in the country.

The project is co-funded by the European Union via the Technical Support Instrument, and implemented by the Council of Europe, in co-operation with the European Commission. It is implemented by the Council of Europe’s Children's Rights Division in close co-operation with the Ministry of Justice, Public Administration and Digital Transformation of Croatia, from 1 September 2023 to 30 June 2026.

 Project at a Glance (available in Croatian and in English)

 Noticias

Atrás Croatia moves closer to child-friendly justice with Barnahus (“Children’s House”) project completed at a final event in Zagreb

Croatia moves closer to child-friendly justice with Barnahus (“Children’s House”) project completed at a final event in Zagreb

On 19 May 2026, the Final Conference of the joint European Union – Council of Europe project "Implementing the Barnahus Model in Croatia" took place at the National and University Library in Zagreb, showcasing the results of a three-year initiative aimed at strengthening Croatia’s response to child sexual abuse and violence against children.

A highlight of the conference was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on interagency co-operation by the Croatian Minister of Justice, Public Administration and Digital Transformation, Damir Habijan, the Minister of Health, Irena Hrstić, and two State Secretaries from the Ministry of Science, Education and Youth and from the Ministry of Labour, Pension System, Family and Social Policy together with high-level representatives of the Judicial Academy, the Social Welfare Academy, the Croatian Institute for social workers and the Croatian chamber of Psychology. The Ombudsperson for children who could not attend in person signed the MoU in advance and shared a video message. This agreement underscores Croatia’s strong political commitment to implement Barnahus model.

In his address, the Minister of Justice, Public Administration and Digital Transformation underscored the importance of the initiative: "The strength of our entire society is reflected in how we protect its most vulnerable members. It is our enduring and non-negotiable obligation to establish a system founded on the rule of law." 

The programme featured keynote testimonies from two survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation from Sweden, who shared their personal experiences with the Barnahus system and discussed its impact on recovery and access to justice.

Throughout the day, over 120 participants also discussed the future Barnahus in Croatia, focusing on strengthening professional expertise, legal reforms, and social and behavioural change strategies to improve awareness and responses to child sexual abuse. Children from the Ombudsperson for Children's Network of Young Advisors offered their perspectives on how future Croatian Barnahus should look like.

Reflecting on the achievements, Irena Guidikova, Head of Human Dignity and Gender Equality Department of the Council of Europe emphasised that “Croatia is now becoming a model within Europe, showing that while inspiration and learning from peers is essential, the most meaningful reform is rooted in the local context and built with local voices and expertise at the forefront.” Kjartan Björnsson, Head of Unit at the European Commission (SG reform) strongly encouraged the Ministry and all partners “to build on the achievements of this project and continue moving forward with the implementation of the Barnahus model.”

The project, co-funded by the European Union via the Technical Support Instrument and implemented by the Council of Europe in co-operation with the European Commission and the Croatian Ministry of Justice, Public Administration and Digital Transformation, has run from 1 September 2023, and will officially conclude on 30 June 2026. 

 Conference programme in English and Croatian

 Implementing the Barnahus model in Croatia

 Keynote presentation, by Gabriella Kärnekull Wolfe and Saga Brodersen

 Presentation on the overview, process and key achievements of the project, by Frederique Privat de Fortunie 

 The next steps of the roadmap by Liisa Järvilehto and Tom Pakkanen

 Building the Legal Backbone of a Child-Centred Justice System, by Ivana Celio Cega and Lana Petö Kujundžić

Barnahus Croatia Zagreb 19 May 2026
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 What do we aim to achieve?

Supporting the sustainable operation of the Barnahus model in Croatia

Supporting the sustainable operation of the Barnahus model in Croatia

Supporting the sustainable operation of the Barnahus model in Croatia

 

The project will support an analysis of the current legal, institutional and policy frameworks for child protection at national level, the roles and responsibilities of key actors, inter-agency information exchange, and will assess the participation and involvement of children in these processes. The analysis will lead to a set of recommendations for improvement and a roadmap for the establishment of the Barnahus model in Croatia. The project will also contribute to the development of procedures and protocols to support inter-agency co-operation, in particular the signing of an inter-agency agreement between relevant ministries and other stakeholders. Finally, a draft business plan and guidelines for organisational and spatial coordination will be developed in consultation with key stakeholders to ensure the effective implementation of the Barnahus model in Croatia.

  • Analysis of the legislative, policy and institutional framework regarding protection of children and procedures for cases on violence against children, including sexual violence in Croatia (available in Croatian and in English)
  • Mapping and desk research review of the international standards and principles as well as the existing Croatian legislation relevant for professionals handling cases of children victims of sexual violence and abuse (Full version in Croatian / Summary in English)
  • Roadmap, including a Cost Structure Analysis, for the implementation of the Barnahus Model in Croatia (available in Croatian and in English)
  • Report on procedures and protocols supporting an inter-agency agreement between Croatian authorities competent for implementing the Barnahus model in Croatia (available in Croatian and in English)
  • Guidelines on the Implementation of the Barnahus Model in the Area of Organisational and Spatial Coordination (available in Croatian and in English)
Enhancing knowledge and capacities of professionals working in Barnahus

Enhancing knowledge and capacities of professionals working in Barnahus

Enhancing knowledge and capacities of professionals working in Barnahus

 

In order to ensure that legal and non-legal professionals working with and for children in Barnahus are well equipped to fulfil their roles, the project will develop a training gap analysis to identify existing gaps that should be addressed. Recommendations from this analysis will then guide the development of appropriate training materials and the organisation of training of trainers’ workshops to create a pool of national trainers on priority topics. Finally, a study visit will be organised for Croatian professionals to another country where the Barnahus model has already been implemented, in order to learn about the challenges and opportunities that have arisen in the context of implementing the Barnahus model.

Raising awareness of professionals and the wider public on child sexual abuse

Raising awareness of professionals and the wider public on child sexual abuse

Raising awareness of professionals and the wider public on child sexual abuse

 

The project will produce a survey report on perceptions of child sexual abuse in Croatia and, in particular, on the quality and child-friendliness of judicial services available to child victims and witnesses of violence. Roundtables and workshops will be organised to raise awareness among decision makers. Finally, to ensure the successful implementation of the Barnahus model, relevant Council of Europe standards and other materials will be adapted to the Croatian context before being disseminated and promoted through various channels throughout the country.

 What is Barnahus? (Croatian version)

 Video presenting Barnahus in Iceland (Croatian version)

 

 Who do we work with?

The participation of representatives of the relevant bodies and institutions is foreseen. Civil society organisations and academia will also be involved in Project activities to identify existing shortcomings of the Croatian justice system in relation to child victims and witnesses of violence.

 Who will benefit from the project?

The Project targets relevant authorities and legal and non-legal professionals in contact with children and/or dealing with cases of child sexual abuse. They will benefit directly from the Project through reports, analysis and tools on how to implement the Barnahus model in Croatia, as well as capacity building activities.

The final beneficiaries of the Project are children at risk of, victims and/or witnesses of any type of violence, including physical and sexual abuse. Children will eventually benefit from improved access to justice, more effective state response and more child-centred and child-friendly practices during the processing and management of violence against children, including child sexual and physical abuse cases.

The Croatian society as a whole will ultimately benefit from the Project with the wider public reached through awareness raising and promotional activities.

 Project documents

Reports

 Useful resources in Croatian

European standards and principles

Kiko and the hand / Kiko i ruka

Kiko and the Manymes / Kiko i Mnogomene

Tell someone you trust / Reci osobi kojoj vjeruješ

Other resources

 

 

 Vídeo sobre el modelo islandés Barnahus

 

 

Ver la versión larga y corta del vídeo

  Video on the CoE-EU co-operation on Barnahus model

Watch the long and short versions of the video.

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