The government is pushing to regulate child care facilities nationwide, concerned that nearly 6,000 children live in unlicensed children’s homes. It stresses "Family First—Shelters as a Last Resort" to reduce unnecessary placements of children in shelters.
On 31 Aug 2026 GMT+7, Captain Phatdarasmi Thongsaluaykorn, Deputy Spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office, revealed that the government, through the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security (MSDHS), is advancing efforts to improve the welfare of children and youth nationwide. The policy designates institutional care as a "last resort," focusing mainly on family or community-based care to provide children with stable and safe environments.
The government has established key guidelines for child protection by strengthening families and communities alongside raising standards of shelters and child care facilities. This ensures children needing care outside their families receive appropriate, safe services with close supervision.
The Deputy Spokesperson stated that the government promotes strict adherence to child care standards and child protection policies by all shelters and care facilities. The Department of Children and Youth (DCY), together with relevant agencies, has been assigned to urgently regulate private and nonprofit child care facilities nationwide, especially those unregistered or unlicensed, to ensure compliance with comprehensive child welfare standards.
Additionally, the government is intensifying efforts to empower families and communities to provide secure and stable care, reducing unnecessary placements into care facilities. It promotes alternative care forms such as kinship, foster, and adoptive families, while also supporting and preparing original families to enable children to return home when ready.
According to 2025 data from the MSDHS, there are 407 supervised child care facilities: 108 public and 299 private, caring for a total of 16,701 children. Among the private facilities, 134 are licensed, caring for 6,508 children, while 165 remain unlicensed, caring for 5,772 children—more than half of all private care facilities. The government is therefore accelerating efforts to regulate and raise standards to ensure appropriate, safe care compliant with the law.
“Children should grow up in families. When placement in a child care facility is necessary, it must be the last option. When conditions permit, plans must be made for children to return to their families or communities,” the Deputy Spokesperson emphasized.