Experiences of Children in Kinship Care (CKC) in Ghana

Cudjoe, Ebenezer; Abdullah, Asm; Chiu, Min‐Sen

doi:10.1177/0192513x20921523

Cited by 10 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 33 publications

(57 reference statements)

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“…Kinship care has been arranged informally throughout recorded history and is now recognised as having many advantages within the formal structures of child protection, most notably the preservation of family, promotion of cultural identity, and reduced separation trauma [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. Support for children remaining with family (kin) is based on the basic principle that it is in their best interest.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applying Universal Principles of ‘Best Interest’: Practice Challenges across Transnational Jurisdictions, Cultural Norms, and Values

Littlechild

Housman

2023

Children

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This article sets out key issues in determining and upholding the best interests of children, in need of social service support, who have family networks that span outside of the UK. These issues are then analysed against whether and how child protection professionals take these into account along with an overall consideration of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child’s (UNCRC) ‘best interests of the child’, when assessing and planning for those needs in kinship care cases. Building on these themes, the findings of an exploratory study on international kinship care cases carried out by Children and Families Across Borders (CFAB), the UK branch of the non-governmental organisation, International Social Service, as well as CFAB’s associated Freedom of Information Requests to the UK government, are examined. These are then analysed in relation to legal and policy documents in England. Agency case records are analysed to identify a range of factors for children placed with ‘kinship’ carers across national borders, relating to the cultural relativity of the ‘best interest’ principle, the availability of family support in different social service structures, the understanding and application of legislation and policy in transnational contexts, and the availability of markers to track and analyse the scale of children crossing borders to join family.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applying Universal Principles of ‘Best Interest’: Practice Challenges across Transnational Jurisdictions, Cultural Norms, and Values

Littlechild

Housman

2023

Children

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“…The practice of kinship care predates current child welfare practices (Leinaweaver, 2014); in many countries, its use was replaced by a formal foster care system that involves child welfare organizations hiring people, generally unknown to a family, to care for a child. Over time, however, kinship care has internationally come to be the preferred placement option for children, and the literature suggests that its use is increasing (Brisebois & Lee, 2012; Cudjoe et al, 2021; Houston et al, 2017; Malinga-Musamba, 2015).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wisdom from the Elders: kinship care that honors traditional Indigenous ways

Burke

2023

AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples

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This study describes insights shared by Indigenous Elders in British Columbia, Canada, who were asked about kinship care practices involving Indigenous children. It arises from a community-guided research study that set out to explore how child welfare organizations that work with Indigenous children and families can develop kinship care practices that honor traditional Indigenous values, beliefs, and practices around kinship care. In-person interviews took place with eight Elders in the fall of 2022. Thematic analysis revealed three themes: (a) kinship care as a traditional practice, (b) kinship care and current child welfare systems, and (c) creating kinship care practices that uphold traditional Indigenous values, beliefs, and practices. This article discusses these themes and their sub-themes and offers suggestions for child welfare organizations, policy-makers, and practitioners.

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“…In addition to commonly known factors like the risk of abuse and neglect, other factors including opportunities for children to attend better schools in the cities, provision of support with household chores or encouraging relationship building between younger children in the family, influence the decision to move children into the care of kin (Ariyo, Mortelmans, & Wouters, 2019; Malinga‐Musamba, 2015; Maundeni & Malinga‐Musamba, 2013; Olusanya & Hodes, 2000). Although children in kinship care in Ghana may have negative experiences like inadequate parental attention and emotional bonding (Kuyini, Alhassan, Tollerud, Weld, & Haruna, 2009), children appear to experience more positives (Abdullah, Cudjoe, & Manful, 2020; Cudjoe, Abdullah, & Chiu, 2020). For example, when compared to their peers in institutional care, children in kinship care have better emotional and behavioural outcomes (Wu, White, & Coleman, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Regulating the traditional kinship care practice in Ghana: Reflections from young people with kinship care experience

Abdullah

Cudjoe

Young

et al. 2021

Child

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Background Kinship care has become a favourable alternative care option for orphans and vulnerable children without adequate parental care in Ghana. However, kinship care practices in Ghana are considered informal cultural practices without formal regulations. The absence of formal regulations could have consequences on the health and development of children due to the lack of proper supervision and empirical assessment of children's needs. In line with recent policy discussions on mechanisms to regulate informal kinship care practices, this study aimed to identify how the State could be involved in improving kinship care experience for children. Methods Qualitative in‐depth interviews were conducted with 22 young persons (aged 18–23) who had been received into kinship care to share their experiences on how the State could be involved in improving kinship care experience for children. Narratives from the young people were analysed following the constructivist grounded theory approach. Results Introduction of a welfare scheme for kinship caregivers, policy on child care, provision of start‐up capital and training for caregivers, were measures suggested by the young people to improve kinship care practice. Providing start‐up capital to kinship caregivers was identified to mitigate caregivers' unemployment challenges, which could have ripple effects on the well‐being of children by escalating caregiver stress. Conclusion The study's findings suggest that the State has a significant role to ensure that caregivers are equipped with the needed resources to provide adequate care for children. Regulating kinship care practices should embrace a strength‐based empowerment model that builds on the capacity of the caregivers to ensure better outcomes for children. Studies that explore the views of policy makers and caregivers in a larger sample may yield promising results to complement the current findings.

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Experiences of Children in Kinship Care (CKC) in Ghana

Cited by 10 publications

References 33 publications

Applying Universal Principles of ‘Best Interest’: Practice Challenges across Transnational Jurisdictions, Cultural Norms, and Values

Applying Universal Principles of ‘Best Interest’: Practice Challenges across Transnational Jurisdictions, Cultural Norms, and Values

Wisdom from the Elders: kinship care that honors traditional Indigenous ways

Regulating the traditional kinship care practice in Ghana: Reflections from young people with kinship care experience

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