No abstract

The role of residential care for children has developed very differently internationally, but in all cultural contexts there are questions about the extent to which it can help young people recover from high risk backgrounds. In the UK, residential care has come to be seen as the placement of last resort, yet new government guidance on permanence has suggested that residential care can provide security and a sense of belonging. Narrative analysis of interviews with 20 care leavers identified their different pathways from birth families through residential care to early adulthood. Some experienced a transformation from a negative sense of self as victims or ‘bad children’ to survivors, while others continued to struggle. Key to successful turning points were four interacting factors, all associated with resilience; connection, agency, activity and coherence. These narratives revealed the importance of nurturing relationships and a sense of ‘family’, but also the role of support after leaving residential care, when transitions workers helped them to move on but stay connected. The study highlighted how residential care leavers from adverse backgrounds attribute very different meanings to their experiences, which affects identity construction, resilience and the need for support

Although there is improved recognition of the pernicious long-term harm that stems from living with neglect during childhood, neglect is rarely associated with child fatality. This article offers a re-analysis of neglect in serious case reviews (cases of child death or serious injury related to maltreatment) in England (2003-11) from four consecutive government-commissioned national two-yearly studies. It draws on anonymised research information from 46 cases out of a total of over 800 cases. Each case was examined in depth using an ecological transactional approach, grounded in the child's experience, which promotes a dynamic understanding and assessment of the interactions between children and their families and the helping practitioners. The qualitative findings reported explore how circumstances came together when neglect had a catastrophic impact on the child and family presenting in six different ways (deprivational neglect, medical neglect, accidents with elements of forewarning, sudden unexpected deaths in infancy, physical abuse combined with neglect and young suicide). Each of the six categories raised particular issues over and above a common core of concerns around the relationship between the child and his or her parent or carer, and between parents/carers and professionals.

No abstract

The experiences and needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) young people in care have been overlooked in England, in both policy and research. This paper reports on findings from the first study of LGBTQ young people in care in England and focuses on the nature of foster carers' experiences and perspectives on caring for LGBTQ young people. Qualitative interviews regarding the fostering role in caring for LGBTQ young people were conducted with a sample of foster carers (n = 26) and analysed thematically. Foster carers described the importance of offering LGBTQ young people not only the nurturing relationships that all children in care need but also availability, sensitivity and acceptance to help young people manage stigma and other challenges associated with minority sexual orientation and gender identity. The Secure Base caregiving model provided a framework for analysing the different dimensions of these relationships. Understanding caregiving roles and relationships for LGBTQ young people in care has important implications for recruiting, training, matching and supporting foster carers to care for LGBTQ young people effectively.