Synergies and tensions in child protection and parent support: policy lines and practitioners cultures¹

Abstract

A B S T R AC TSocial workers' interventions in support of children and their families have often proved a minefield of sort, filled up with conflicting demands, expectations and tasks. This paper sets the resulting debate in the context of both social policy orientations and social work cultures. It argues that partnerships between families and practitioners have to be understood as the result of a complex set of factors. Data from a qualitative study of social work professional cultures suggest that among practitioners, policy orientations intertwine with different styles of conceiving social work; accordingly, professional cultures play an important part in connecting, or failing to connect, child protection and family support.

Current Debates on Variability in Child Welfare Decision-Making: A Selected Literature Review

“…Fargion [43] adds to this description, stating that child protection orientations define children's best interests narrowly in terms of children's protection, reify 'abuse' as something objectively apprehendable and utilise standardised assessment tools. Significantly, she claims this approach "treats difficulties as signals of risks" ( [43], p. 2).…”

“…Fargion [43] adds to this description, stating that child protection orientations define children's best interests narrowly in terms of children's protection, reify 'abuse' as something objectively apprehendable and utilise standardised assessment tools. Significantly, she claims this approach "treats difficulties as signals of risks" ( [43], p. 2). A further emerging direction is a "child focussed" orientation, one that directs policy focussed on promoting the rights and wellbeing of individual children; however, a significant downside of this orientation is that children can become viewed as entirely separate from the context of their social relationships [41].…”

“…Within a child welfare orientation, the best interests of the child are closely linked to the interests of the family as a whole, and assessments include strengths, as well as difficulties. Its purpose is preventive, and the focus within this approach is to "…create those material and social conditions within which all children are given sufficient opportunities to reach their full potential" ( [43], p. 2; [44]). Thus, a child welfare orientation offers a broad-based prevention policy framework, based on a long-term understanding of epidemiology, rather than focussing on a single risky event [45].…”

Collaborative practice in statutory in child protection practice: Parental agreements and procedural justice

“…For example, the statutory authority and communitybased services may promote different cultures towards practice (Fargion, 2014). Child protection authorities in Anglophone countries are often considered to adopt forensic, child-focused and risk-adverse practices to protect children from their parents (Fargion, 2014). In contrast, the community sector, due to the lack of statutory authority, often has greater scope to view child welfare in a broader context of family wellbeing and needs (Spratt, 2001(Spratt, , 2003.…”

“…Within the context of statutory child protection, these factors may be challenging to implement in practice. For example, the statutory authority and communitybased services may promote different cultures towards practice (Fargion, 2014). Child protection authorities in Anglophone countries are often considered to adopt forensic, child-focused and risk-adverse practices to protect children from their parents (Fargion, 2014).…”