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Looked After Children (looked + after_child)
Selected AbstractsEmotional well-being and mental health of looked after children in EnglandCHILD & FAMILY SOCIAL WORK, Issue 2 2009Colette McAuley ABSTRACT The national prevalence studies of the mental health of looked after children in Great Britain provide sobering reading. Forty-five per cent of looked after children in England were found to have a diagnosable mental health disorder. In contrast, this is to one in 10 in the general population. Carers estimated that mental health problems were even more widespread. Children with mental health disorders were also more likely to have education, health and social issues. This paper discusses the findings and argues for early intervention along with inter-departmental and interdisciplinary approaches. The recent Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Review clearly indicates that issues of access to appropriate and timely Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services remain. However, the introduction of evidence-based approaches is encouraging. Young people's views on the services they want and on what is important for emotional well-being and mental health are important considerations. [source] Promoting stability and continuity of care for looked after children: a survey and critical reviewCHILD & FAMILY SOCIAL WORK, Issue 1 2005S. Holland ABSTRACT This paper reports on a two-pronged research study: a critical review of reported research concerning continuity and stability for children looked after away from home, and a telephone survey of UK managers responsible for looked after children. The review found limited research in this specific field that met the criteria of the critical review, but reports some evidence in favour of sibling co-placement, kinship care, parental participation, professional foster care and individualized, multidimensional support. The survey revealed a culture of innovation in this field in the UK voluntary and statutory sectors, but with little evaluation of the independent effects of new interventions. The paper places the research in the context of current policy initiatives in the UK and discusses the implications of the findings for research and practice. [source] Working with managers to improve services: changes in the role of research in social careCHILD & FAMILY SOCIAL WORK, Issue 1 2004Harriet Ward ABSTRACT The setting of specific objectives for children's services and the identification of key outcome indicators, together with the development of a core information specification for children's services with its practical application in the implementation of the Integrated Children's System, all mean that substantially more data are now available to child welfare agencies. Not so long ago in the UK it was the role of research teams to collect and analyse such data. Now that so much of it is already available to agencies, are researchers who work in this area of applied social policy research becoming redundant? Using data from the cohorts of looked after children being studied at the Centre for Child and Family Research, Loughborough University, the paper demonstrates how researchers can work in consultation with the managers of child welfare agencies to make better sense of the data at their disposal. It considers three issues: what additional variables need to be explored to help agencies better understand their performance; how groups of children could be identified who follow predictable pathways through social care; and how qualitative information is necessary to gain a true picture of what is happening. All of these examples demonstrate a fundamental role for researchers in working with social services personnel to identify how services can be improved. [source] Investing in children's futures: enhancing the educational arrangements of ,looked after' children and young peopleCHILD & FAMILY SOCIAL WORK, Issue 1 2000Francis This paper reports on selected findings of a small-scale study which examined the educational experiences of a group of children ,looked after' away from home in the former Lothian Regional Council. While it is claimed that the advent of a new Scottish parliament heralds an opportunity to construct a more inclusive society in Scotland, it is clear from all the research conducted to date that one excluded group, children who are in public care, experience significant educational disadvantages and that both the scale and persistence of the problem demand urgent measures. A brief review of the literature is offered and a number of explanations for the poor educational performance of this group of children are considered. It is argued that the difficulties experienced by looked after children arise from the interplay of a variety of social, structural and professional factors and that efforts to redress the disadvantages must take account of all these factors. The paper briefly considers the origins and philosophy of the Scottish Children's Hearings System and argues that it could fulfil a more proactive role in safeguarding and promoting looked after children's educational interests. Finally, the key features of a strategic approach are outlined, highlighting the need for effective collaboration in policy and practice. [source] Obesity in looked after children: is foster care protective from the dangers of obesity?CHILD: CARE, HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 6 2008S. C. Hadfield Abstract Background Obesity in all age groups of children has become an increasing concern in recent years. Children looked after by the Local Authority (LA) should be protected from health problems while being accommodated. These studies assess the effect on weight of looked after children (LAC) in the care of a Midlands County Council. They assess the frequency of obesity or overweight problems in looked after children following receipt into care and review changes in body mass index (BMI) while in the care of the LA. Method The height and weight measurements of all 106 children who had statutory health assessments while in the care of the LA between 1 January 2004 and 30 December 2004 were used to calculate their BMI. The data were plotted onto standard Growth Foundation charts and the International Obesity Task Force Paediatric cut-offs were determined to distinguish overweight and obese children and young people. The date that the child had come into the care system and the number of moves of placement was obtained for each child from the social care. This was related to the total group and the overweight group of looked after children. Result Looked after children are more likely to be overweight and obese compared with standard norms, and there are a number of children (35%) whose BMI increases once in care. Outcome Looked after care did not protect a child from the national problem of increasing weight gain and obesity. [source] More than the sum of its parts? inter-professional working in the education of looked after childrenCHILDREN & SOCIETY, Issue 3 2004Rachael M. Harker This article highlights work underway in three English local authorities to promote effective inter-agency collaboration around the education of looked after children. Insight drawn from these local authorities is used to review previous literature concerning inter-agency collaboration in a variety of contexts. The relevance of previous research to issues concerning the education of looked after children is discussed and key factors associated with effective collaboration are highlighted. Barriers which have served to obstruct joint working and strategies adopted to deal with these are also discussed. [source] | ||||||||||