This rapid review of the literature on residential care for looked-after children in the UK aims to describe the use of residential care for children within the child welfare systems of England and other relevant countries; review the evidence on children’s outcomes from residential care; and review the quality of the evidence and identify gaps in the evidence base in order to inform future research priorities.

Volume 2 of the Children Act 1989 Guidance and Regulations provides guidance, primarily addressed to local authorities and their staff in England, about their functions under Part 3 of the Children Act 1989 which concerns the provision of local authority support for children and families. In particular it describes how local authorities should carry out their responsibilities in relation to care planning, placement and case review for looked after children.

This article from the Irish Times explains that the Council of Europe has ruled that the lack of a clear ban on corporal punishment in Ireland is a violation of children’s rights and the European Social Charter.

Norway’s child welfare agency (Barnevernet) has come under recent scrutiny for its practices regarding children of immigrant parents. According to the article, children of immigrant parents make up 40% of foster care placements.

UNICEF is calling for the rights and wellbeing of migrant children to be at the heart of Europe’s immigration policy.

This report was developed as part of a mapping study aimed at analysing the situation of alternative care and family support in the Baltic Sea Region, assessing the achievements since the 2005 Ministerial Forum and identifying relevant opportunities and challenges for the future.

This report provides an overview of the two-day expert meeting on alternative care and family support in the Baltic Sea Region that took place in Tallinn, Estonia in May 2015.

This background paper was developed as part of a regional study which gathered relevant data and information on family support and alternative care in the eleven Member States of the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS).

Government representatives, experts and professionals from the Baltic Sea Region including Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, the Russian Federation, Sweden and wider Europe gathered at a two-day expert meeting in Tallinn, Estonia and, together, endorsed a set of recommendations and action plan on alternative care and family support on 6 May 2015.

This guideline covers how organisations, professionals and carers can work together to deliver high quality care, stable placements and nurturing relationships for looked-after children and young people in England.