NORWEGIAN PARLIAMENTARY OMBUDSMAN National Preventive Mechanism ANNUAL REPORT 2019 52 Child welfare service – increasing the legal safeguards for children and young persons in institutionalized childcare In 2016, the NPM started visiting child welfare institutions. We have visited 19 such institutions so far. Visits have been made to a variety of places; small, large, state-owned, non-profit and commercial institutions. A recurring theme during the visits has been the routine and unlawful use of coercion and restrictions. Following a visit report that uncovered serious use of routine and unlawful coercion,18 the  Directorate for Children, Youth and Family Affairs (Bufdir) reported on its website that it would review all of Norway's emergency institutions to ensure compliance with the Regulation on the Rights of Children in Institutionalized Childcare (Rights Regulation).19 Improved supervision of child welfare institutions A good dialogue with the oversight authorities is ­vital to ensuring expedient prevention work at the national level. It is the county governor’s ­responsibility to oversee child welfare institutions. During 2017 and 2018, we were invited on several occasions to give talks to county governors about our methods and our findings and r­­ecommendations from visits to child welfare institutions. Through dialogue with several county governors, we also get the impression that our reports are actively used in their oversight work. The Norwegian Board of Health Supervision has overall responsibility for the county governors' oversight of the child welfare institutions.20 The Norwegian Board of Health Supervision can make direct requirements of the county governors with respect to the methods they use, oversight themes and priorities. One of the Norwegian Board of Health Supervision's main priorities in 2018 was the oversight of child welfare institutions.21 The NPM was invited by the Norwegian Board of Health Supervision to describe our methodology, as well as our findings and recommendations following visits to institutions in the child welfare sector. The Norwegian Board of Health Supervision pointed out in its 2018 annual report that it had identified failings in the oversight of child welfare institutions, and concluded that too few violations of the law are probably identified in the county governors' supervision, although the number of ­violations highlighted had increased in the past year. The findings from our visits were ­highlighted as the basis for strengthening the county ­governors' oversight of child welfare institutions. 18 The Parliamentary Ombudsman's report after its visit to Kvammen emergency institution, 16–17 January 2018. 19 https://www.bufdir.no/Aktuelt/Arkiv/2018/Alvorlige_avvik_pa_barnevernsinstitusjon/ (retrieved 22 November 2019). 20 The Child Welfare Act Section 2–3b first paragraph. 21 The Norwegian Board of Health Supervision’s annual report 2018.