Determinants of Substitute Child Care Practice

Correspondence to Dr Matthew Colton, Department of Social and Administrative Studies, Barnett House, Wellington Square, Oxford CX1 2ER Summary The first part of this paper attempts to examine the factorswhich help to define foster and residential care practices.The discussion is informed by a comparative study of fosterhomes and Children's Homes, which was reported in the previousissue of this journal (BJSW 18:1). Overall, care practices inthe foster homes compared very favourably with those observedin the Children's Homes. It is argued that this finding owesmuch to the bureaucratization of Children's Homes. The secondsection considers the implications of my work for policy andpractice in the field of substitute child care. Use is madeof the insights provided by the preceding section to suggestways by which the major shortcomings identified by empiricalresearch might be ameliorated. This statement includes an argumentin favour of a significant expansion of family placement forolder children in public care, and a proposal for a child-orientedalternative to the sorts of Children's Homes visited.     

Birth Mothers and their Mental Health: Uncharted Territory

Correspondence to Janette Logan, Department of Social Policy and Social Work, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester Summary This article reports the findings of a study commissioned bythe Mental Health Foundation which examined the experiencesand needs of birth mothers who relinquished a child for adoption.Historically, birth mothers have been neglected in the Britishliterature; their experience is considered to have ended atthe time of placement. This research however, indicates thelong-term implications of relinquishment are severe—particularlyin relation to mental health. They demand that the complexityand uniqueness of relinquishment as a form of loss be more fullyunderstood, birth mothers' reactions to those experiences arenot pathologized and professionals learn to respond more positively.GP's in particular need to develop a more sensitive understandingof their needs and in so doing could prevent the medicalizationof some birth mothers.     

Maintaining Sibling Relationships--Neglected Dimension in Child Care Practice

Correspondence to Marjut Kosonen, 80, Grove Road, West Ferry, Dundee DD5 1LB, UK Summary This article describes some of the findings of a study undertakento evaluate all foster and adoptive placements in one localauthority social work department in Scotland. The numbers, characteristicsand care experiences of children in foster and adoptive carewere considered. The study found that for the majority of childrenplacement in foster care led to separation from siblings. Thechildren were most vulnerable to separation at points of entryand leaving care. Separation from brothers and sisters can havelifelong consequences for the child and his or her siblings,as few of the children were found to have plans which includedreunification with their siblings. A fragmented picture emergedconcerning siblings' living situations. Children were foundto have siblings living in a variety of situations, both inand outwith the care system. Social workers lacked full informationabout the family composition where contact with parents waslost or siblings had moved from the area. Children were mostlikely to be placed with siblings in temporary and relativefoster placements.     

Matches and Mismatches: The Contribution of Carers and Children to the Success of Foster Placements

Correspondence to Professor Ian Sinclair, Social Work Research and Development Unit, University of York, York YO10 5DD. E-mail: acs5{at}york.ac.uk Summary Data were collected on 472 foster children at an interval of14 months. The children's social workers, the family placementsocial workers and the foster carers reported on disruptions,and the reasons for placement success or lack of it. These views,combined with comments from the children, led to hypothesesabout the origins of successful placements. Statistical testsof these hypotheses suggested that success depended on threeaspects of the placement. First of these was the children'scharacteristics. Children, who wanted to be fostered (had attractivecharacteristics and low levels of disturbance), did better.Second were the qualities of the foster carer. Placements withwarm, child-oriented carers were more successful. Third wasthe interaction between carer and child. The findings emphasizethe crucial importance of the foster carers to outcomes. Theyalso support the need to pay close attention to children's views,and the potential importance of early intervention to preventnegative spirals of interaction between carer and child.     

Children in Secure Accommodation

Correspondence to Professor Robert Harris, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Department of Social Policy and Professional Studies, The University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX. Summary This paper describes the characteristics of a sample of children(N = 399) being held in secure accommodation in eleven localauthorities prior to the implementation of the Children Act1989. It is argued that secure accommodation cannot be divorcedfrom other aspects of child care policy and practice; that anyconfidence that problems of excessive or variable usage canbe removed by more restrictive legislation is largely misplaced;that when social workers resort to secure accommodation it isoften through a combination of ‘worry’ about anunpredictable child and uncertainty as to what else to do; andthat since not all children in secure accommodation wish toleave it (and the more secure accommodation constitutes goodquality child care the more children are likely to want to stay)a ‘rights’ framework, though necessary, is not asufficient moral or conceptual basis for developing secure accommodationpolicy and practice.     

A Kind of Loving: A Model of Effective Foster Care

Correspondence to Professor Kate Wilson, Centre of Social Work, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD. E-mail: kate.wilson{at}nottingham.ac.uk Summary The article builds on a companion statistical paper, which drewon the findings of a large sample of foster placements and analysedfactors leading to a successful placement and the avoidanceof disruption. A model of successful foster care was developedwhich suggested that outcomes depend on three aspects of thefoster placement, those that relate to the child, the fostercarer and the interaction between the two. Here, a concreteexample in the form of a case study drawn from interviews undertakenas part of the study is used to illustrate the relevance ofthe model to practice. The qualities that make up the interactionbetween the carer and the child are elaborated through the conceptof ‘responsive parenting’. The analysis is takenfurther by identifying the processes involved in a way thatis detailed and precise and has relevance to theory. The paperargues that the case study provides material that could informboth training and the theories that underpin practice.     

Predictors of outcome for unrelated adoptive placements made during middle childhood

This paper reports on a follow‐up to adolescence of two longitudinal prospective studies of children placed from public care with non‐related adoptive families in the UK. Factors associated with outcome are presented for 99 children (one index child per adoptive family) who were between 5 and 11 years of age at placement. Information concerning the children's backgrounds and care histories was obtained shortly after placement (T1), from social workers. Adopters were interviewed at T1 and again at the end of the first year (T2). A further follow‐up was conducted an average of six years after placement (T3). Outcomes at T3 were classified as either disrupted, which was true for 23%, continuing and ‘positive’ (49%) or continuing but ‘difficult’ (28%). Bivariate analyses revealed a number of attributes, related to both the child and the adoptive parents, which were associated with differential outcomes. Logistic regression produced five predictors of placement disruption: age at placement, behavioural problems, preferential rejection, time in care and the child's degree of attachment to the new mother. Differences were found between ‘positive’ and ‘difficult’ outcomes in continuing placements as well as between continuing and disrupted placements. The analysis suggests that adoption should certainly be considered as an option for children over 5 years of age while recognizing the need for both preparation and post‐placement support. Evidence of differential outcome in continuing placements provides support for efforts to reduce the number of placements and returns home that a child at risk experiences.     

An Evaluation of Social Support Intervention with Depressed Mothers in Child and Family Care

Correspondence to Professor Michael Sheppard, Department of Social Policy and Social Work, University of Plymouth, Drake Circus, Plymouth, Devon PL4 8AA, UK. Summary The significance of maternal depression to social work practicein child and family care has become increasingly apparent inrecent years. Social support, furthermore, is a concept (aswell as a reality) which provides a major focus for social workpractice. Indeed, social support, it is also clear, is of considerableimportance in helping prevent depression. This paper seeks toexamine social support work carried out by social workers inrelation to depressed mothers in child and family care. In particularit seeks to evaluate the quality of that intervention in thelight of key problem areas associated with high levels of supportneeds, the extent to which social workers target support needsthrough direct, indirect and informal supports, and the extentto which particular interventions are associated with a higheradequacy of support experienced by these depressed women. Thepaper finds a certain degree of haphazardness in social workers’targeting of support needs, although in some areas of indirectsupport, in particular, their targeting is reasonably accurate.There is little evidence of any one form of intervention beingassociated with more adequate support with one significant exception,relief care of children. The paper concludes that social workersneed to develop a keener awareness of support deficits so thatthey are targeted better; they need to monitor more carefullyinterventions carried out by other agencies and professionals;and they should look to relief care of children as a major formof intervention to support these women.     

Intergenerational pathways leading to foster care placement of foster care alumni's children

This study examined a path model that postulated intergenerational relationships between biological parent psychosocial functioning and foster care alumni mental health, economic status and social support; and from these to the likelihood of children of foster care alumni being placed in foster care. The sample included 742 adults who spent time in foster care as children with a private foster care agency and who reported having at least one biological child. A full pathway was found between poorer father's functioning to greater alumni depression, which was in turn associated with negative social support, and then a greater likelihood of child out‐of‐home placement. Other parent to alumni paths were that poorer father functioning was associated with alumni anxiety and post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and poorer mother's mental health was associated with PTSD; however, anxiety and PTSD were not implicated as precursors of foster care placement of the child. Findings support the need for increased practice and policy support to address the mental health needs of parents of children in or at risk of foster care, as well as the children themselves, as family history may have a lasting influence on quality of life, even when children are raised apart from biological parents.     

An Act of Empowerment: The Children, Young Persons and their Families Act (1989)

Correspondence to Marie Connolly, Department of Social Work, University of Canterbury, Christchurch 1, New Zealand. Summary In 1989, New Zealand introduced child protection legislationthat embraces a model of family decision making. The model,based on traditional indigenous decision-making practices, hasrevolutionized social work with children and families in thechild care and protection area. This paper considers the developmentof the legislation in terms of its antecedent factors and itsvision. It looks particularly at some of the care and protectionprovisions of the legislation, and explores, by use of casestudy, some of the issues of using a family decision-makingprocess as a practice model.     

Cognitive-Behavioural Social Work with Children

Correspondence to: Dr Tammie Ronen, The Bob Shapell School of Social Work, Tel-Aviv University, Ramat-Aviv, Tel-Aviv 69978, Israel Summary The paper aims to explore the complex and important links betweeninterventions with children, cognitive therapy, and social work.Although children comprise about half of the referrals to socialwork services, they do not generally receive direct treatmentin these settings. Social workers are involved with childrenin the roles of mediator or counsellor and as the supervisorwho is concerned with the placement of the child in appropriatesettings. When the need for direct therapeutic interventionarises, children are usually referred to educational or clinicalpsychologists. Social work as a profession has been foundedupon a psychodynamic approach; however, social workers havealways been concerned with effective treatments, the definitionof clear goals, and the clarification of client needs. Thesefeatures link social work to cognitive-behavioural therapy.Cognitive therapy, although not frequently used with children,is presented in this paper as a means for conducting directinterventions with children which fulfil social work's basictargets and needs.     

Residential and Foster Care in the European Community: Current Trends in Policy and Practice

Correspondence to Dr Matthew Colton, Department of Social Policy and Applied Social Studies, University College, Swansea SA2 8PP. Summary This article compares residential care, foster care and theiralternatives in the countries of the European Community. Thefollowing common trends in policy and practice are examined:the decline of residential child care; changes in the populationof separated children; the trend towards small-scale provision;the development of an ecological perspective; increasing differentiationof care provision; professionalization; and alternatives toresidential and foster care. The pace of development is uneven across EC countries. Overall,the trends high-lighted are more apparent in the northern countriesthan in the southern states.     

Videotaped Evidence of Children: Application and Implications of the Memorandum of Good Practice

Correspondence to Penelope Welbourne, Senior Lecturer, Department of Social Policy and Social Work, University of Plymouth, Devon PL4 8AA, UK. E-mail: p.welbourne{at}plymouth.ac.uk Summary A sample of videotapes carried out in accordance with the ‘Memorandumof Good Practice’ in one Child Protection Unit was evaluatedto ascertain any factors associated with disclosure of abuseduring the interview. The sample of children selected for interviewwas compared with the group of all children referred to theUnit during the study period. It was found that such interviewsare used primarily for victims of suspected sexual abuse. Onlyvideotaped interviews of children who had made a prior disclosureof abuse contained disclosures on video. It is argued that useof the Memorandum as an investigative technique in child protectionand criminal justice is problematic because of the inflexibilityof the Memorandum procedures. It is proposed that they be reviewedin light of information now available about the impact of theirapplication.     

The Children's Family Trust: a Unique Approach to Substitute Family Care?

Summary This article outlines the contribution made to child care since1945 by the Children's Family Trust in providing substitutefamily homes. Reference is made to some Trust policies whichhave aroused controversy over the years. Recruitment and supportof the substitute Parents is discussed, and a brief analysismade of the children for whom placement with the Trust may bemost appropriate. Comparisons are drawn between staff turnoverin Trust families and other residential homes, and between successand failure rates of placements with the Trust and in long-termfoster-homes. The final section assesses the role of the Children'sFamily Trust and its philosophy in contemporary child care.     

Understanding Adolescent Female Prostitution: A Literature Review

Correspondence to Dr Jill Jesson. Aston Business School, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B47 7ET. Summary Sexual behaviour and sexuality are currently topical issuesof concern for child care social workers. Social workers arespending more and of more of their time with children who comeinto care because of sexual abuse, or who have an involvementin the ‘rent’ scene or Prostitution. In additionmany teenage young women come into care because of social orparental concern over their lsquo;promiscuous’ behaviour.The review of research on adolescent prostitution offers severalexplanations for involvement in prostitution. which vary accordingto the discipline of the author. Explanations vary from pathologicaland personal psychology factors to the wider social aspectsof the family and local environment. This literature reviewwas used as a basis for research which examined the incidenceof female prostitution for a social services department. Thisis a relatively new field of interest and consequently thereis very little British research published on the issue of adolescentprostitution, or on under age (16) prostitution. There is nopublished research on girls in care and prostitution. We needto know much more about the reality of young people's livesbefore social workers can offer a meaningful response.     

The Chairperson of Child Care Reviews in Scotland: Implications for the Role of Reviews in the Decision Making Process

Correspondence to Dr A. J. Kendrick, Research Fellow, Department of Political Science and Social Policy, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 4HN, Scotland. Summary This article is based upon the first stage of a research projecton statutory child care reviews in Scotland and explores therole of reviews in the decision-making processes for childrenin local authority care. We have argued that the position ofchairperson of reviews has an important role in locating childcare reviews in the organïzational structures of the SocialWork Departments. The designation of the chairperson also hasimplications for the objectivity of the child care review. Thenature of conclusions of child care reviews is also exploredand we show that this is a complex issue reflecting the childcare review's relationships to other decision-making bodiesand the manner in which the delegation of authority for thechairing of reviews is structured. While this research is basedupon the twelve Scottish Social Work Departments we believethat the issues discussed have a general relevance.     

Placing Children on Child Protection Registers: Risk Indicators and Local Authority Differences

Correspondence to Dr David Gordon, School for Policy Studies, University of Bristol, 8 Woodland Road, Bristol BS8 1TN, UK. Summary Wide variation in rates of children on protection registersin different authorities has led to doubts about the reliabilityof local decision making. A study of 1,752 referrals, for suspectedabuse or neglect in eight English local authorities, found thatindicators of child and family vulnerability were more importantthan local area in explaining selection for initial child protectionconference and placement on registers. There appeared to beagreement on ‘common-sense’ risk indicators butstronger measurements of risk would enable child protectionprocedures to be better targeted.     

Research Note: Developing Outcome Measures in Child Care

Correpondence to Dr Harriet Ward. Research Associate, University of Bristol, Social Policy and Social Planning. The Alfred Marshall Building, 40 Berkeley Square, Bristol BS8 1HY. Summary The complexity of the concept of outcome has discouraged researchinto the impact of the care experience on the child. This Notesummarizes the conceptual thinking behind a comprehensive systemof assessment which is being piloted in four local authorities,and reports on the preliminary results.     

Adopted Children in Care

Correspondence to David Howe, School of Economic and Social Studies, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ. Summary Four local authority social services departments were surveyedto determine the number of adopted children who were currentlyin their care. The biographical characteristics of these childrenand the reasons for them entering care are reported. The adoptivedimension is discussed as a possibly relevant factor in theassessment and treatment of these children and their families.It is concluded that appropriate practice in this field requiresspecialist skills and understanding.     

Parental Participation in Child Protection Work: Rethinking the Rhetoric

Correspondence to Brian Corby, University of Liverpool, Department of Sociology, Social Policy and Social Work Studies, Eleanor Rathbone Building, Myrtle Street, PO Box 147, Liverpool L69 3BX Summary Parental participation and, to a lesser extent, that of childrenat child protection conferences is seen as an important elementin resolving some of the conflicts that beset child protectionwork. Using data from a study of participation in one metropolitanborough, those outcomes that are generally regarded as positivein this respect are critically examined. Our findings suggestthat the optimism of advocates of participation is not whollyjustified. While at a basic level, parents are better informedthan before, their involvement in all aspects of the decision-makingprocess remains very limited. We conclude by arguing that thereis a need for more realism about the extent to which all parentscan be actively involved in making decisions about the futureprotection of their children. We point to the need for greaterrecognition of conflicts of interests between parents, professionalsand children and to the need for changes in the child protectionconference system in order to ensure more ethical and effectiveparticipation.