This presentation to the 2012 Sofia Conference by Paul Martin introduces family support mechanisms and services to better equip parents to care for their children.

This presentation to the 2012 Sofia Conference by Kevin Browne, Institute of Work, Health, and Organizations (I-WHO), School of Community Health Services at the University of Nottingham, introduces the collective findings of his research studies on the harmful effects of institutionalization of young children and major causes of child abandonment in Europe and prevention methods.

This literature review by the Rees Centre for Research in Fostering and Education at the University of Oxford was undertaken to identify the ways in which carers’ children might be more effectively prepared and supported when their families are fostering.

This report provides a summary of work undertaken by Lumos - together with governmental authorities, international partners, local medical professionals and families - to ensure that all children born with hydrocephalus receive the life-saving treatment they need, and which is their fundamental human right. 

This study funded by Big Lottery and undertaken in partnership between the University of Bristol and Buttle UK, a grant-giving charity for vulnerable children, aims to fill gaps in understanding about the experiences of children living with kins, and in particular how children in informal kinship care view their situation.

This guide provides professionals in the UK with information about registering as a children’s social care provider. It helps those considering registration to decide whether to apply and what processes their applications will go through before a decision is made as to their suitability to be registered.

In this TED talk, Lemn Sissay recalls his experiences of the care system, the search for his birth family and the insights this has given him.

This article reports on the findings of research conducted by the TV Programme Panorama on some of the current practices and standards in the children’s residential care system in England, which were described by a charity representing children in care as “extremely worrying”.

This report, published by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) in the UK, highlights the need to improve outcomes for children leaving care and returning to parents or families. The NSPCC provides recommendations for policymakers and practitioners to improve the quality of assessment, planning, and preparation regarding when and if a child should be returned home from care and to increase the support for children and their families once they return to their families.

This guidance aims to raise awareness of the importance of children and young people in alternative care settings being able to make, influence and participate in decisions about their own lives, and other matters affecting them.