While there is ample literature on children in care, there has been very limited research around older young people (15–17 years) entering care for the first time. Being able to ascertain the common characteristics, circumstances and support needs of this cohort of young people and their families will enable better understanding of contributing factors to care entry, and how to potentially address these through earlier interventions and prevent care entry. This article provides findings from a scoping review exploring the extent of knowledge around this cohort of first-time entrants into out-of-home care (OOHC) following the Arksey and O’Malley (2005) framework and PRISMA guidelines for scoping reviews (Tricco et al., 2018). A final sample of 5 studies met all inclusion criteria. The review identified multiple gaps in the evidence base around this distinct group of young people. The limited available literature points to multiple and often complex child-related factors and support needs contributing to a first-time care entry among older young people, combined with a range of parental concerns, including absent parenting. The available evidence, based solely on quantitative studies, highlights the need for further research, including qualitative and mixed-methods research, to address remaining gaps in knowledge.
