Description
Book SynopsisThis book focuses on children''s journeys through the care system, from voluntary admission into care, through complicated and often long court proceedings, in pursuit of Care or Freeing Orders. Problems that arise from taking cases through the courts are examined, together with tensions that may arise between judicial and social work decision-making.
The Child''s Journey Through Care discusses in full:
- the emotional and behavioural problems of looked-after children and elaborates on care-planning and helping strategies;
- children''s rights whilst in State care and their participation in decision-making about their future, including preparation for appearances in court;
- the importance and ways of building new attachments and relationships with substitute carers, with emphases on resilience and children''s strengths;
- pitfalls and successes when seeking permanency of care and emotional stability.
The book also include
Trade Review
“…a consistent style that makes some complex issues quite accessible…if you’ve only got time for one book about care, this could be it.” (Children Now, April 2007)
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations xi
About the Contributors xiii
Preface xvii
Editor's Acknowledgements xix
Part I The Need for a Good Start in Life: Attachment, Bonding, and Children's Rights 1
1 Introduction: An Overview of Children in Public Care 3
Dorota Iwaniec
Introduction 3
Problems and Dilemmas with Fostering and Residential Care 5
Looked-after Children in the United Kingdom 8
Abuse of Children in Care 10
The Purpose and Organisation of the Book 11
References 14
2 Ordinary Children in Extraordinary Circumstances 17
Jane Aldgate
Introduction 17
Children in Need 17
Recent Child-development Thinking 18
The Ecological Perspective 19
Recognising the Uniqueness of Individual Children 20
The Well-ness Approach 21
Resilience and Strengths 21
An Optimistic View of Child Development 22
Children as Actors in their Own Development 23
Aspects of Children's Development of Special Relevance to
Looked-after Children 24
Children's Attachments 24
What Is Attachment? 25
Children and Multiple Attachments 26
Continuities and Discontinuities of Working Models 27
The Impact of Loss on Children's Development 28
Counteracting the Impact of Loss and Separation with Contact and Connectedness 30
Attachments and Socio-genealogical Connectedness 31
Counteracting the Impact of Separation with Stability 32
A Permanency Planning Approach 33
What Can Help Promote Children's Development in Practice? 33
References 35
3 The Importance of Developing Emotional Bonds between Parents and Children 41
Emma Larkin
Introduction 41
What Is Bonding? 41
Bonding and Attachment 43
What Influences the Bonding Process? 44
The Bonding Process and Care Careers 48
Facilitating the Bonding Process for Alternative Care-providers 53
Summary 54
References 55
4 Children in Alternative Care: Are their Rights Being Met? 61
Rosemary Kilpatrick
Introduction 61
Children's Rights 62
Articles Associated with Alternative Care 63
Processes Leading to Care Orders 65
Care Orders 66
Foster Care 67
Residential Care 69
Secure Accommodation 71
Conclusion 73
Acknowledgements 75
Notes 75
References 75
Part II Pathways to Permanency 79
5 Outcomes of Long-term Foster Care: Young People's Views 81
Colette McAuley
Introduction 81
Improving Outcomes for Looked-after Children 82
Outcomes of Long-term Foster Care 83
Children's Rights and Researching Children's Views 84
The Pathways and Outcomes Study 85
Interviews with the Young People: Key Messages 86
Implications for Policy and Practice 92
Conclusion 93
References 94
6 Kinship Care as a Route to Permanent Placement 99
Una Lernihan and Greg Kelly
Introduction 99
Children Cared For by the Kinship and Traditional Foster Parents 100
The Placement of Children in Kinship Foster Care 102
The Motivation of Kinship Carers 102
Contact between the Children and their Birth-families 104
Contact with Birth-fathers 105
Kinship Foster Carers and Contact 105
Relationship between Birth-mother and Fostering Household 106
Care Plans 108
Adoption 109
Residence Orders 109
Conclusion 110
References 112
7 Exploring Regional Trends in Pathways to Permanency 113
Dominic McSherry and Emma Larkin
Introduction 113
Placement Trends in Northern Ireland: Policy and Practice 114
Placement Trends in Northern Ireland: Statistical Information 116
Research on Regional Placement Variation 117
Examining Regional Variations 119
Variations in Placement Patterns over Time 120
Discussion of Results 124
Conclusion 127
Acknowledgements 127
References 128
Part III Residential and Mixed Care 131
8 Developments in Residential Care in Northern Ireland 133
Dominic McSherry and Emma Larkin
Introduction 133
Setting the Context for Change – Residential Care in England and Wales 134
Setting the Context for Change – Residential Care in Northern Ireland 137
Discussion 140
Conclusion 142
Acknowledgements 143
Note 143
References 143
9 The Mental-health Needs of Looked-after Children 147
Tom Teggart
Introduction 147
Looked-after Children and Mental Health 148
Understanding Looked-after Children's High Levels of Mental-health Needs 152
Are We Meeting the Mental-health Needs of Looked-after Children? 155
Models of Mental-health Service Delivery to Looked-after Children 158
Conclusion 161
References 163
10 Changing Lives or Just Changing Location? Planning for Adolescents in Substitute Care 169
Helga Sneddon
Introduction 169
Background 169
The Planning Process for Children Placed in Residential or Foster Care 171
Conclusion 178
References 179
11 Making Use of Positive Psychology in Residential Child Care 183
Stan Houston
Introduction 183
An Introduction to Positive Psychology 185
Goleman and 'Emotional Intelligence' 188
Therapeutic Aspects of 'Emotional Intelligence' 190
Csikszentmihalyi and 'Flow' 193
Therapeutic Aspects of 'Flow' 196
Conclusion: Positive Psychology at Work 197
References 199
Part IV Court and Family Support Pathways to Substitute Care 201
12 Pathways to Permanence: Accommodation, Compulsion, and Permanence under the Children (NI) Order (1995) 203
Theresa Donaldson
Introduction 203
The Study 205
Care Order Application or Accommodation? 207
Parents' 'Co-operation' 210
Implications for Permanence Planning 215
References 217
13 Care Planning in Care Proceedings: A Case Study Perspective on Achieving Permanency 219
Dominic McSherry
Introduction 219
Care Planning 220
Parallel Planning 220
Concurrent Planning 221
Permanency Planning and Attachment 221
Case Studies 222
Discussion 230
Acknowledgements 232
References 232
14 The Participation of Looked-after Children in Public Law Proceedings 235
Karen Winter
Introduction 235
Who Are Looked-after Children? 236
Looked-after Children and Public Law Proceedings 237
Definitions of Participation 238
Reasons for the Increased Emphasis on Participation 239
Mechanisms and Provisions for the Participation of Looked-after Children in Public Law Proceedings 240
Effectiveness of Existing Mechanisms and Provisions Regarding the Participation of Looked-after Children in Public Law Cases 242
Room for Improvement 244
Ways Forward 246
Conclusion 251
References 251
Part V Messages from Research 257
15 Messages from Research 259
Dorota Iwaniec and Helga Sneddon
Introduction 259
Pathways to Permanency 259
Kinship Care 261
Permanency through Adoption 262
Building Attachments and Bonding 263
Children's Rights and Participation of Children in Public Law Proceedings 264
Care Planning, Assessment, and Intervention 266
Legal and Voluntary Pathways to Substitute Care 267
Difficulties and Costs of Legal Proceedings 268
Conclusion 269
References 270
Index 273
