This policy brief demonstrates how UNICEF's Better Start and Better Care frameworks complement one another to strengthen child wellbeing through integrated early childhood development and child protection systems in Ukraine. It explains that Better Start focuses on universal and targeted services for children from pregnancy to age six, while Better Care provides progressive support for children at risk of family separation or living in alternative care.

This article presents a research protocol for the first comprehensive, multi-method study examining the quality, experiences, and outcomes of residential out-of-home care for children and young people in Austria. It aims to identify factors influencing children’s well-being and development while generating evidence to improve child welfare practice, quality assurance, and policy.

This scoping review examines the prevalence and impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) among children and adolescents living in institutional care, finding that childhood adversities are widespread and strongly linked to mental health challenges, social difficulties, and reduced quality of life. It highlights significant gaps in the research, including inconsistent definitions, limited standardized measurement tools, and the need for more longitudinal and culturally responsive studies to inform effective interventions.

This article explores how professionals in Portuguese residential care settings perceive the factors that support or hinder the development of children’s social-emotional competencies, emphasizing the importance of relationships, staff stability, and supportive working conditions. It finds that while strong relational practices and collaboration facilitate progress, gaps such as limited training, high workloads, and the absence of structured protocols remain key barriers, pointing to the need for more consistent and sustainable approaches.

This article examines compassion as a relational institutional ethos within alternative residential child care in Nepal. Drawing on qualitative case study research conducted in a children’s home operating in collaboration with local and international non-governmental organisations, the study explores how Tibetan Buddhist ethical principles intersect with contemporary safeguarding and governance frameworks.

This brief examines how armed conflict affects children’s development and family life, drawing on attachment theory and insights from the war in Ukraine. It highlights both the harms of war and the resilience of families, emphasizing the need for targeted support to help caregivers and professionals provide safe, stable care for children during and after conflict.

This article reviews research on the psychological well-being of children and adolescents in residential care, examining how individual strengths, relationships, and care environments interact to influence developmental outcomes. It argues for a shift away from isolated risk-and-protection models toward a relational and ecological approach that recognizes stable caregiving relationships, supportive environments, and trauma-informed practices as essential to children’s well-being.

This study of children in residential care in Pakistan finds that perceived institutional neglect is strongly linked to attachment insecurity, emotional dysregulation, and conduct problems, with attachment insecurity acting as a key mediating factor. The study highlights the importance of enhanced caregiver training, emotional support mechanisms, and the establishment of nurturing and stable environments within residential institutions to promote children’s psychological well-being and social adjustment.

This study explores how minors in out-of-family care in Belgium experience placements and what improvements they recommend, based on interviews with youth in residential facilities. It finds that placements are often confusing and disruptive, and emphasizes the need for more child-centered, developmentally appropriate care that addresses both emotional needs and everyday living conditions.

The Vanam Vasapadum initiative evaluated an arts-based, trauma-informed social-emotional learning program for children in institutional care in Tamil Nadu, finding significant improvements in self-esteem and psychological well-being over three years. Both quantitative and qualitative results highlight that creative, holistic interventions can enhance emotional regulation, resilience, and social skills among vulnerable adolescents, suggesting strong potential for broader mental health promotion.