Displaying 71 - 80 of 225
Abstract: This paper aims to highlight inequality in current adoption processes and procedures in England and Wales. Whilst inequality has been recognised in adoption research, the role of social structures is often neglected. Inequality within social structures plays a role in the process of the permanent removal of children to be adopted and is worthy of further attention. Birth parent voices can contribute to a wider understanding of adoption, but often remain hidden. Empirical research findings highlight how birth parents may find that their adverse experiences are exacerbated by the…
Abstract
This study provides an analysis of the ‘investigative turn’ in England by comparing two large cohorts of children, one whose fifth birthday was in 2011–12 and the other in 2016–17. It shows a 35% increase in children investigated before their fifth birthday to a rate of one in every 16 children in 2017. Investigations were less likely to lead to a child protection plan and there was a 60% increase in children facing the collateral damage of an unfounded investigation. Where it was deemed necessary to respond to child protection concerns with a plan of action concerns…
In this documentary episode from Channel 4 in the UK, Lemn Sissay meets seven young people who are in the care of their council and sets out to help them express their experiences through words and perform them to a packed theatre of decision-makers.
Abstract
This report is the evaluation of the pilot partnership agreement between Police Scotland and local authorities, for responses to children and young people missing from foster and residential care. This Partnership Agreement is a component of the National Missing Persons Framework for Scotland (2017). The report includes recommendations from the Advisory Group (comprising representatives of Police Scotland and the three pilot local authorities) in response to the findings are included and should inform any further roll out of the Partnership Agreement.
Summary
This briefing paper provides general background on the development of Government policies to support care leavers, and existing support available in key areas such as: social services; housing; education and training; health services; and the social security system. It mostly deals with the position in England, but includes some information about support for care leavers in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Who are care leavers?
The focus of this paper is young people aged 16+ leaving local authority care. Support for younger children moving into and out of care, or…
Abstract
This chapter examines Global North and South similarities in children and young people’s reactions to school-led child protection programmes. It considers key shifts in social policy that led to the introduction of child protection training in formal educational contexts. It discusses background to this practice in Zanzibar and the United Kingdom and explores some strengths and limitations of this approach. Our findings suggest that school-focused child protection programmes often either have limited influence outside the educational sphere or create unexpected outcomes, which…
Abstract
This paper is based upon ongoing theoretical work by the author. A growing number of academics are starting to problematise social work within a risk paradigm by highlighting the impact this has on how service user's experiences are atomised into units of risk, rather than having their needs understood as members of families and communities. This paper seeks to develop this discussion by offering a theoretical examination of risk from a phenomenological perspective by unpacking some of the underlying constructions of risk. Using Heidegger’s work this paper attempts to first of all…
Consistent and effective implementation of public policy can be challenging, and this is particularly so in relation to services and provisions for Scotland's care leavers.
In response to feedback from a wide range of stakeholders, CELCIS, in association with the Scottish Care Leavers Covenant Alliance, hosted a roundtable workshop and practice exchange discussion on 5 September 2018 for local authorities in their role as Corporate Parents, in the effective and consistent implementation of the…
Abstract
Educational outcomes for Looked-After children on the autism spectrum are significantly poorer than for autistic children not being Looked-After by their local authority (those ‘in care’), and poorer than for most other groups of children with Special Educational Needs who are Looked-After in England. Such poor outcomes have led to calls for specific attention to be paid to the needs of autistic Looked-After children within the care of local authorities. There is also evidence that the numbers of autistic children being Looked-After by local authorities could be underrepresented…
Abstract
Comparative International data on patterns of inequality in child welfare interventions, for example, the proportion of children about whom there are substantiated child protection (CP) concerns or who are in out-of-home care (CLA), are far less developed than data about inequalities in health. Few countries collect reliable, comprehensive information and definitions, methods of data collection and analysis are rarely consistent. The four UK countries (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales) provide a potential ‘natural experiment’ for comparing intervention patterns. This…