Children with disabilities are among the most vulnerable and most easily overlooked. In many countries, they continue to grow up in institutions even when their parents are alive. Families facing poverty, stigma, or a lack of support often feel they have no choice, believing an institution will meet their child’s needs better than they can at home. 

In this short video, Pete Garratt, Director of Global Programmes at Hope and Homes for Children UK and longtime friend of WWO, offers insight drawn from decades of work in the child protection and disability sectors. Having led programs in more than twenty countries, he reflects on the pressures that separate children with disabilities from their families and the deeper cultural beliefs that contribute to exclusion. 

Many parents of children with disabilities face shame, isolation, and cultural pressure that make caregiving overwhelming. Yet when communities grow in understanding and when churches and local leaders offer support, families gain confidence and children are welcomed as valued members of their homes and communities. 

This video reminds us that every child has dignity, worth, and the ability to enrich the life of a family. It affirms the simple truth at the heart of the WWO movement: children with disabilities need families too, and supportive communities can make that possible.