Job Description- Child Protection Specialist
Mobile Creches (MC), a pioneer organization in Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD), has been operational since 1969, providing childcare, health, nutrition, and protection services to more than 15,000 children annually across worksites, urban slums, rural, and tribal communities in India. MC has played a pioneering role in advancing ECCD for children under six years, particularly those from marginalized and migrant communities, through its integrated approach of delivering quality childcare services, strengthening caregiver and community engagement, enhancing linkages with government systems, training the ECCD workforce, influencing policy, and promoting research in the field of early childhood development. Officially recognized as the National Creche Agency by the Government of India, Mobile Creches continues to expand sustainable childcare solutions in partnership with governments and civil society organizations.
Building on its extensive experience in community-based childcare and child protection, Mobile Creches is implementing an integrated drowning-prevention programme in the high-risk districts of South 24 Parganas, Purba Medinipur, and Paschim Medinipur in West Bengal. The programme will establish 50 community-based, supervised childcare centres operating for long hours for children aged 1–4 years, with the objective of reducing children’s unsupervised exposure to nearby water bodies while ensuring safety, nutrition, early stimulation, caregiver engagement, and community integration. In addition, the programme will promote child-centred water-safety and survival awareness, community mobilisation, and first-responder preparedness to strengthen local prevention systems.
The programme will work closely with Panchayati Raj Institutions, ICDS, public health systems, NRLM/Anandadhara platforms, and community institutions to create sustainable and scalable drowning prevention systems rooted in local governance and community participation.
As an organization, Mobile Creches adheres to a strict safeguarding policy, and all staff, volunteers, consultants, interns, and partners are required to comply with safeguarding norms and child protection protocols.
To know more about MC, please log on to www.mobilecreches.org.
Department: Child Care Services
Designation: Child Protection Specialist
Level: 4
Reporting to: State Lead-West Bengal
Location: Mobile Creches State Project Office, West Bengal
Position Overview:
The Child Protection Specialist will provide technical leadership on safeguarding, child protection systems, child safety protocols, and psychosocial wellbeing across the drowning prevention crèche programme. The position will strengthen child protection and safeguarding systems within crèches and communities while ensuring compliance with organisational safeguarding standards, child protection protocols, and statutory requirements.
Educational Qualifications:
Master’s degree in Social Work, Child Development, Psychology, Human Rights, or related field.
Total Work Experience:
Minimum 5 years of experience in child protection, safeguarding, child rights, or community protection programmes.
Essential Requirements:
• Willingness to relocate within West Bengal based on programme requirements.
• Willingness to travel extensively across programme districts and field locations.
• Strong understanding of safeguarding systems, community-based child protection interventions, case management processes, and referral mechanisms.
Age Criteria: 30–45 years.
Key Responsibilities:
Child Safeguarding and Protection Systems:
• Develop, strengthen, and oversee implementation of child safeguarding and child protection systems across all programme locations in alignment with organisational safeguarding policies and statutory requirements.
• Ensure that child protection and safeguarding protocols are integrated into all programme activities, operational systems, training processes, and community engagement mechanisms.
• Support development and periodic review of safeguarding tools, reporting mechanisms, safety protocols, and risk mitigation systems for programme implementation.
Capacity Building and Technical Support:
• Provide technical inputs for the development and adaptation of drowning prevention protocols, child safeguarding guidelines, training modules, and IEC materials for the programme.
• Support integration of child protection, safeguarding, child safety, psychosocial wellbeing, and safe child supervision components into programme training curricula, operational guidelines, and communication materials.
• Facilitate /Co-facilitate specialised sessions on child protection, safeguarding, psychosocial wellbeing, referral mechanisms, and child-safe practices during trainings and review workshops, as required.
• Provide ongoing technical guidance, mentoring, and supportive supervision to programme teams to strengthen child-friendly, safe, and protective practices within crèche centres and community settings.
Safety Monitoring and Risk Assessment:
• Conduct regular safety audits, safeguarding assessments, and risk assessments of crèche centres and programme sites to identify and address child protection concerns and vulnerabilities.
• Review programme environments, systems, infrastructure, and operational practices to ensure child-safe standards are maintained across all locations.
• Recommend corrective actions and support programme teams in strengthening safety and protection measures.
Case Management and Referral Systems:
• Develop and strengthen referral linkages with ICPS, Childline, health systems, police, Panchayats, and other relevant government and non-government support systems.
• Support identification, documentation, reporting, and management of child protection concerns and safeguarding incidents in accordance with organisational protocols.
• Provide technical guidance to programme teams on case identification, handling, referral follow-up, documentation, confidentiality, and survivor-sensitive approaches where required.
Government Coordination and Systems Strengthening:
• Coordinate with district and state-level child protection systems, including ICPS functionaries, Child Welfare Committees, District Child Protection Units, and relevant government authorities.
• Support convergence with government child protection and child safety initiatives at community, district, and state levels.
• Participate in relevant coordination meetings, consultations, and review forums related to child protection and safeguarding.
Documentation, Reporting, and Compliance:
• Maintain safeguarding records, incident reports, risk assessment documentation, and child protection tracking systems in accordance with organisational protocols.
• Support preparation of programme reports, case studies, learning notes, and safeguarding updates for internal review and donor reporting.
• Ensure compliance with organisational safeguarding standards, child protection policies, and legal requirements across programme operations.
Other Responsibilities:
• Undertake any other responsibilities assigned by the State Lead – West Bengal
Key Skills Required:
• Good understanding of child protection laws (especially the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act and the POCSO Act), safeguarding standards, child rights frameworks, and government child protection systems.
• Demonstrated experience in developing and implementing safeguarding systems, community-based child protection interventions, case management processes, and referral mechanisms for vulnerable children.
• Ability to conduct safety assessments, risk assessments, and supportive supervision in field settings.
• Strong documentation, incident reporting, analytical, and programme reporting skills.
• Ability to work effectively with multidisciplinary teams, government systems, and community institutions.
• Proficiency in MS Office, reporting tools, and digital documentation systems.
• Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Fluency in Bengali and English required; working knowledge of Hindi will be preferred
Location requirement: The candidate will be required to travel extensively (at least 10-15 working days per month) to programme districts in West Bengal based on programme requirements.
Application Process:
Interested candidates may email their resume, cover letter, and last drawn CTC (mandatory) to
hradmin@mobilecreches.org.
https://forms.office.com/r/5265u3PJiY
Subject line: “Child Protection Specialist – West Bengal”
We will review applications on a rolling basis and reserve the right to close the position as soon as a suitable candidate is found. Hence, early applications are strongly encouraged.