Overview of Child Protection: The intersection of children's rights in Hungary's Child Protection System

Abstract The study focuses on the intersection of public education and child protection. The school performance of children in the public education system is strongly influenced by the social environment from which they come to school. The starting point of the research is the legislative background. A comparative analysis of relevant sections of the Public Education Act and the Child Protection Act, examining their synchronization and the enforcement of children's rights, raises questions regarding the extent to which children's rights are upheld in the current legal environment. The historical legal approach of the study highlights that, despite regulatory changes affecting the field of child protection, coherence in terminology between public education and child protection has not been achieved. Children in child protection services, with foster parents, in children's homes, particularly those with special or dual needs, are in a multiply disadvantaged position compared to their peers living in families. Therefore, it is necessary and justified to provide services that, through interprofessional cooperation, can help improve their school performance and resilience. In Hungary, social assistance in kindergartens and schools has been a special social basic service since 2018. The aim of the study is also to draw attention to the current shortages related to specific child needs (e.g., the decreasing number of foster parents) and the possibilities of harmonizing these with child welfare basic services.