Holidays for children and families in need: an exploration of the research and policy context for social tourism in the UK

Abstract

Although provision of holidays for families in need has been mainstreamed within the social care policies of many countries in the rest of Europe, ‘social tourism’ has yet to be adopted in the United Kingdom. This article reports on a scoping study of research and policy in this area. While there is limited robust research on the impact of holidays, emerging evidence supports a range of claims for benefits to children and families. The article concludes that both political emphasis on social inclusion and pan‐European initiatives on ‘Tourism For All’ currently provide an opportunity for the provision of holidays for families in need to be placed firmly on the social care agenda.

The benefits of holidaying for children experiencing social exclusion: recent Irish evidence

“…Everything was intended to enable the children to relax, have fun, make friends, develop new relationships and new skills, and experience different ways of living in an environment that was largely happy, positive and supportive. As such, the research broadly supports existing knowledge about the positive contribution that holidaying makes to well-being, relaxation, social interaction and social bonding found in the general literature (Hobson andDietrich 1994, Richards 1998) in that dealing with people experiencing disadvantage (Hughes 1991, Voysey 2000 as well as in that which deals specifically with families and youth/children in disadvantaged contexts (Lewis 2001, Hazel 2005, Corlyon and La Placa 2006.…”

“…Some researchers have speculated that the benefits accruing to the individual and the family can contribute to financial and social benefits for society in general (Corlyon andLa Placa 2006, Hazel 2005). Hazel (2005), for example, suggested that improved access to holidays could reduce the pressure on health and social services, citing the Canadian Council on Social Development (1984) which found that holiday participation improved relationships, reduced drug abuse and mitigated against youth crime. Benefits might also reduce the societal burden of children becoming involved in drug abuse or youth crime (Stephenson 2000;ETB 1976, cited in Hazel 2005.…”

“…Hazel (2005) argues that the reason there has been so little research on the benefits of holidaying is precisely because of the broadly accepted assumption that holidaying is good for everyone. Underlying this assumption, however, are a number of issues that require further explanation.…”

“…An important matter rarely clarified, for instance, is the definition of the word 'holiday'. While Hazel (2005) suggests that 'holiday' is most commonly defined in literature and policy as a recreational break of four or more nights away from home, very often, researchers use the term in a very generic way and without consistent reference to defining criteria like duration, location, group composition, etc.…”

“…To date, there have been inferences in the literature that a lack of holiday opportunities may compound social deprivation, reinforce social problems and heighten social exclusion. Hazel (2005), for example, has argued that the risk of holiday non-participation leads to a feeling of deprivation and social exclusion in young people and others. Furthermore, as Hughes (1991) suggests, it may be those most in need of a holiday that are being excluded.…”