Barnahus Forum 2026

The Barnahus Forum gathers the practitioners and the community that supports their work in a vibrant exchange of information, tools, contacts, and inspiration that will help participants to keep their momentum going in establishing Barnahus and achieving excellence in practice.  

Here’s what participants have said about the Forum:

• It helped me think about how our Barnahus can work more effectively within the constraints of criminal justice system in our country, and still strive to be child focused.
• I was struck by the commonality of challenges and approaches to interdisciplinary and interagency working and found discussions on this topic very useful, with ideas to take back to our setting.
• About the need to address our national challenges with poor police and prosecutor engagement with our Barnahus – this is core to the model and it was good to hear about the impact of more positive engagement and criminal justice outcomes from other countries.
• The Forum helped me to re-focus on the original principles, connecting to the broader purpose and standards.
• I feel much safer knowing there is this network of people, there are people around Europe facing the same challenges, and we are and overcoming them.

We look forward to welcoming you all to experience the holiday season in Hamburg, and to fill your notebooks with pages of new contacts, ideas, and inspiration which can support you to make concrete steps wherever you find yourself on your Barnahus journey.

The 2026 Forum is co-organised by the Barnahus Network and the Germany national network of Childhood Hauser, with the financial support of the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme (CERV) of the European Union. 

Register for 2026

Provisional Agenda

• 8:30 to 9:30 Registration
• 9:30 to 10:30 Plenary
• 10:30 to 11:00 Break
• 11:00 to 12:30 Breakout session 1
• 12:30 to 14:00 Lunch
• 14:00 to 15:30 Breakout session 2
• 15:30 to 16:00 Break
• 16:00 to 17:00 Plenary
• 17:00 Mingle – Light refreshments will be served

Key themes to be covered

• International policy developments
• Child participation 
• Child safeguarding
• Children affected by war 
• Scaling Barnahus with impact
• Adaptations for insuring inclusion and participation for all abilities and backgrounds, across all disciplines in Barnahus
• The importance of Space for children, families, and professionals
• Working with interpretation across all disciplines in Barnahus: child protection, interviews, physical evaluation, therapeutic support 
• Multidisciplinary teamwork 
• Forensic interviews – preventing revictimization, child safeguarding, how to engage with interpretation, accessibility for all children 
• Crisis and therapeutic support, how to select from the spectrum of options based on the child’s need
• Medical evaluations – improving accessing a physical evaluation for child victims of violence in Barnahus
• Is there a topic we’re missing? Let us know!

Study visits

It wouldn’t be a Forum without study visits to a Barnahus. Childhood Haus Hamburg is warmly welcoming a limited number of participants to visit their location. Visits will be arranged:

• afternoon and late evening of 23 November
• evening of 24 November, and
• morning of 25 November.

Places are very limited, and will be allocated first come first served.

Register to the forum to receive more information about when the visits will take place, and how to sign up.

Side events on 23 and 25 November

The Forum is an excellent opportunity to meet for in person exchange, training, and other meetings, such as:

• Study visits – see above.
• General assembly members gathering – a special opportunity for the representatives of each of our members to meet and exchange in person. To be held evening 23 November.
• 5th anniversary of Childhood Haus Hamburg – planned for afternoon of 23 November at UKE Campus. Event to be held in German.
• Would you like to arrange a side event, such as training, peer supervision, or other type of exchange on the sidelines of the Forum, with organisational support from us? Contact svb AT barnahus.eu for more information.

Cost

This year’s Forum introduces:

• registration fees to support the co-financing of the event.
• the possibility of non-members to express their interest in joining the event. Priority will always be given to members and associate members of the Barnahus Network.

You have the option to now pay by card, or to pay later by invoice.

	Member and associate members	Non-members
Early registration fee until 28 August 2026	25 €	100 €
Standard registration fee from 29 August until 25 October 2026	50 €	250 €
Late registration fee depending on availability	75 €	350 €

Practical information

Venue: NordEvent Panoramadeck

Suggested hotels

Hotel	Trip Advisor	Walk to venue	Price per night Single room  (at time of writing)
Hotel Motel One Hamburg Am Michel	Link	16 minutes	126 EUR
IntercityHotel Hamburg Dammtor-Messe	Link	9 minutes	139 EUR
Scandic Hamburg Emporio	Link	3 minutes	145 EUR  (124 prepay)
NH Collection Hamburg City	Link	13 minutes	158 EUR
Ruby Lotti Hotel Hamburg by IHG	Link	13 minutes
Barceló Hamburg	Link	22 minutes	186 EUR