MONITORING METHODOLOGY B. GATHERING AND PREPARATION OF THE MONITORING TEAM Organise the work of the team A head of the team should be identified in order to lead the work and coordinate the preparation – implementation – follow up of the visit. A clear division of tasks should be established within the team taking into account the different skills, background, experiences and specific competences available. Prepare the visit Each monitor needs to: ʺʺ be familiar with the monitoring strategy, goals, objectives, tasks to be accomplished before-during-after the visit, and the timeline of the monitoring visit; ʺʺ have or obtain an in-depth knowledge of the (national, regional and international) legal standards concerned, the required elements of context and specific issues of concern in the place of deprivation of liberty to be visited; ʺʺ be familiar or be trained in monitoring methods and principles to be respected while performing the monitoring visit; ʺʺ share the tasks of gathering, reviewing, contacting, reading, and exchanging detailed information and documentation well in advance, taking into account the background and specific skills of each team member; ʺʺ be prepared to be flexible and to face difficult situations and in particular be aware of the potentially very fragile psychological state in which they may find with some or many of the children deprived of liberty; ʺʺ be aware of how to act (and when to act) when confronted to (allegations of) child abuse See – Section 4.1. / G. – p.56 & Annex 3. – p.160; ʺʺ be aware of and have the specific knowledge in relation to the type of facility to be visited and the specific child-population hosted within the place concerned. C. DESK REVIEW & INFORMATION GATHERING The visit being announced or not, a desk review including research, contacts, and readings should be completed in order to gather as much information as possible about the facility that is about to be visited. Information to be collected must be a combination of quantitative and qualitative data. 61 4