Outcomes from early child maltreatment prevention program in child protective services

Lina Sapokaite Millett - Children and Youth Services Review

This study sought to determine whether the Parent Support Outreach (PSO) program, an early Child Protective Services (CPS) response and service model to screened-out reports and other high-risk families in Minnesota's child welfare system, resulted in less subsequent CPS involvement, increased use of mental health and substance abuse services, and improvement of family's economic well-being.

Young people’s suggestions for the assets needed in the transition to adulthood: Mapping the research evidence

Ann Hagell, Rakhee Shah, Russell Viner, Dougal Hargreaves, Jennifer McGowan, Michelle Heys - Health Foundation

This paper explores the extent to which the existing research literature has addressed four key assets to a successful transition to adulthood identified by care-experienced young people - skills and qualifications, personal connections, financial and practical support, and emotional support - and if so, what it showed about the asset’s role in a transition to adulthood.

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Looked After Children: The Reluctant State and Moral Salvation

Mark Cronin - Genealogy

The main argument in this article is that the rationale for the state’s growing interest in children (in particular those children who are considered a social problem) and the emerging social policy solutions, i.e., foster care, are driven by particular political and economic agendas which have historically paid little attention to the needs of these children and young people.

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Stop the War on Children: Protecting Children in 21st Century Conflict

George Graham, Mariam Kirollos, Gunvor Knag Fylkesnes, Keyan Salarkia and Nikki Wong - Save the Children

This report from Save the Children provides an overview of the impacts of armed conflict on children, the efforts that Save the Children and others are making to address the needs of children affected by armed conflict, and a series of recommendations for governments and others.

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Out of the Shadows: Supporting LGBTQ Youth in Child Welfare through Cross-System Collaboration

Martin, M., Down, L., & Erney, R. - The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP)

This report highlights the research on the disparities that exist between LGBTQ foster youth and their nonLGBTQ peers, as well as the compounding effects these factors have in relation to other intersecting factors including race, ethnicity, culture and language.

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Maltreatment history, trauma symptoms and research reactivity among adolescents in child protection services

Randall Waechter, Dilesha Kumanayaka, Colleen Angus-Yamada, Christine Wekerle, Savanah Smith and The MAP Research Team -

This open access study compared self-reported impact of research participation against maltreatment history and current post-traumatic stress symptomatology among a randomly selected group of adolescents (< 18 years old) in the child protection service (CPS) system.

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Understanding the experience and outcomes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care during the Twentieth Century

Elizabeth Fernandez, Jung-Sook Lee and Patricia McNamara - UNSW Sydney

This report details a component of the UNSW national Long-term Outcomes of Forgotten Australians Study reported in No child should grow up like this which explored the in-care and after-care experiences of adults who spent their childhoods in institutions and foster care during the period 1930 to 1989. In this report, the focus is on Stolen Generations survivors and other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals who participated in the research.

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A case study of policy inaction: Young people transitioning from out of home care in Victoria

Philip Mendes - Social Work and Policy Studies: Social Justice, Practice and Theory

This paper explores the leaving care policies of the Australian state of Victoria, and the reasons for policy "inaction" on providing post-care support to youth leaving care until the age of at least 21 years old.

Supporting LGBTQ+ Foster Teens: Development of a Relationship-Focused,Self-Guided Curriculum for Foster Families

Amy M. Salazar, Kevin P. Haggerty, Susan E. Barkan, Rachel Peterson, Madeline E. Furlong, Eunsaem Kim, Janice J. Cole, Jessica M. Colito - Sexuality Research and Social Policy

This study has three aims: (1) to provide an overview of a module designed to support relationship building between LGBTQ+ youth in foster care and their caregivers, (2) to describe the theater testing procedure used to assess usability of the developed module with foster caregivers and adults, and (3) to share the results of the theater test.

Repatriation of War Orphans in Bosnia: Narratives of Nationhood and Care in Refugee Crises

Burcu Akan Ellis - Migration Letters

This study highlights the plight of children in state orphanages during conditions of war and its aftermath, in order to explore how state narratives trap children between contested notions of the best interests of the child, national belonging, and familial rights.

Regulatory and Institutional Aspects of the Protection of Young People Leaving Alternative Care on the Grounds of Age

Mariana Ianachevici & Maria Orlov - Fiat Iustitia

In this paper, the authors analyze the national regulatory framework of the Republic of Moldova in light of its compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, in the context of commitments made in support of young people who leave the alternative care on the grounds of age.

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Raising Government Children: A History of Foster Care and the American Welfare State

Catherine E. Rymph - The University of North Carolina Press

Analyzing the ideas, debates, and policies surrounding foster care and foster parents’ relationship to public welfare, this book reveals the framework for the building of the US foster care system and draws out its implications for today’s child support networks.

A Qualitative Exploration of Parental Separation and Coping: Attachment Disruptions Among Newcomer Immigrant Adolescents

Holly A. Muller, Thomas A. Brewer, Sita G. Patel, Dhru Desai - Journal of Adolescent Research

In this study, qualitative interview data were used to explore parental separation and coping strategies among newcomer immigrant adolescents in the US.

Corruption affects Ugandan children

The National Child Protection Working Group (NCPWG)

This brief from the National Child Protection Working Group (NCPWG) examines the types of corrupt practices experienced by children in Uganda and what can be done to close the loop holes that allow such corrupt practices. The brief highlights the impacts of corruption on children's wellbeing including "instances of falsifying birth histories of children to qualify for orphan status and consequently eligibility for international adoption."

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Courts, care proceedings and outcomes uncertainty: The challenges of achieving and assessing “good outcomes” for children after child protection proceedings

Jonathan Dickens, Judith Masson, Ludivine Garside, Julie Young, Kay Bader - Child & Family Social Work

This open access paper draws on empirical research into the outcomes of care proceedings for a randomly selected sample of 616 children in England and Wales, about half starting proceedings in 2009–2010 and the others in 2014–2015. The paper considers the challenges of achieving and assessing “good outcomes” for the children.

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Exploring the relationship between interparental conflict and emotional security: What happens with adolescents in residential care compared to those living with their families?

Silvia López-Larrosa, Paula Mendiri, Vanesa Sánchez-Souto - Children and Youth Services Review

In this study, the authors examined adolescents' emotional security and insecurity (preoccupation and disengagement) determined by dimensions of interparental conflict (IPC). These results have implications for researchers and for practitioners when addressing family reunification for adolescents in residential care (RC) or risks in community samples.

Intergenerational Trauma: The Relationship Between Residential Schools and the Child Welfare System Among Young People Who Use Drugs in Vancouver, Canada

Brittany Barker, Kali Sedgemore, Malcolm Tourangeau, Louise Lagimodiere, John Milloy, Huiru Dong, Kanna Hayashi, Jean Shoveller, Thomas Kerr, Kora DeBeck - Journal of Adolescent Health

This study investigated the relationship between familial residential school system (RSS) exposure and personal child welfare system (CWS) involvement among young people who use drugs (PWUD).

Participation of Children, Birth Parents and Foster Carers in the Matching Decision. Paternalism or Partnership?

Kirti Zeijlmans, Mónica López López, Hans Grietens, Erik J. Knorth - Child Abuse Review

This open access research paper examines the influence of children, birth parents and foster carers on the matching decision from a practitioner's perspective.

Poverty‐aware social work in the child protection system: A critical reflection on two single‐case studies

Yuval Saar‐Heiman - Child & Family Social Work

Based on the ongoing, rigorous documentation of the author's experience, as a social work practitioner in a community child protection centre, this article presents two single‐case studies that describe and conceptualize the potential contribution of the poverty‐aware paradigm to the creation of a social framework for child protection practice.

Federal Election Priorities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children

SNAICC – National Voice for our Children

This brief from SNAICC – National Voice for our Children highlights the issue of the disproportional numbers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care in Australia, which has reached "national crisis proportions," and outlines key steps that need to be taken to address this issue.

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Intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment: Predictors of child emotional maltreatment among 11 to 17 years old children residing in communities of Karachi, Pakistan

Maryam Pyar Ali Lakhdir, Apsara Ali Nathwani, Naureen Akber Ali, Salima Farooq, Syed Iqbal Azam, Asif Khaliq, Muhammad Masood Kadir - Child Abuse & Neglect

This study aimed to determine the relationship of intergenerational abuse with child emotional maltreatment (CEM) among 11–17 years old children residing in peri-urban and urban communities of Karachi, Pakistan.

Intensive oversight of youth residential treatment: Staff perspectives on the New York State Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs

Yvonne Smith & Lex Colletta - Child Abuse & Neglect

This study investigates staff perspectives on a new form of intensive oversight developed in New York State to prevent maltreatment of youth in care facilities.

Feasibility investigation: Leveraging smartphone technology in trauma and behavior management-informed training for foster caregivers

Alexandra Sullivan, Nicole Lafko Breslend, Jessica Strolin-Goltzman, Amy Bielawski-Branch, Jennifer Jorgenson, Abigail H. Deaver, Greg Forehand, Rex Forehand - Children and Youth Services Review

As technology enhancements effectively augment family-based interventions, the purpose of this study was to pilot a smartphone application (app) in the context of a trauma and behavior management-informed training for foster and kinship caregivers.

Cross-Ethnic Measurement Equivalence of the Children’s Depression Inventory Among Youth in Foster Care

Melinda A. Gonzales-Backen, Jamila E. Holcomb, Lenore M. McWey - Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

In the current study, the authors examined the factor structure of the Children’s Depression Inventory in an ethnically diverse sample of adolescents in foster care in the US and examined the configural invariance of the measure across ethnic groups.

"Baby Factories": Exploitation of Women in Southern Nigeria

Jacinta Chiamaka Nwaka & Akachi Odoemene - Dignity: A Journal on Sexual Exploitation and Violence

This paper examines the development and proliferation of baby-selling centers in southern Nigeria and its impacts on and implication for women in Nigeria. It demonstrates how an attempt to give protection to unwed pregnant girls has metamorphosed into “baby harvesting” and selling through the notorious “baby factories,” where young women are held captive and used like industrial machines for baby production.

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Mental health screening for children in care using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the Brief Assessment Checklists: Guidance from three national studies

Michael Tarren-Sweeney, Anouk Goemans, Anna Sophie Hahne, and Matthew Gieve - Developmental Child Welfare

The present article proposes a first-stage mental health screening procedure (calibrated for high sensitivity) for children and adolescents (ages 4–17) in alternative care, which children’s agencies can implement without clinical oversight using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and Brief Assessment Checklists (BAC).

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Fostering stability through ‘Fostering Connections: the Trauma-informed Foster Care Programme’

Maria Lotty - Foster, Issue 7

This article describes some of the research outcomes and the ongoing work of the research collaboration between University College Cork (UCC) and Tusla – Child and Family Agency which sought to make a contribution to fostering stability through applying the approach of traumainformed care.

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Child trafficking victims and legal guardians: Exploring the fulfilment of the EU trafficking directive in the context of the UK modern Slavery Act 2015 – Best practice or not fit for purpose?

Amy Weatherburn & Yvonne Eloise Mellon - New Journal of European Criminal Law

This article will consider the extent to which the protection of child trafficking victims under the jurisdiction of the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 is sufficient to fulfil the legal positive obligations imposed by EU Law.

Foster parents' needs, perceptions and satisfaction with foster parent training: A systematic literature review

Jannike Kaasbøll, Eva Lassemo, Veronika Paulsen, Line Melby, Solveig O. Osborg - Children and Youth Services Review

This current systematic literature review aims to examine what is known about foster parents' needs, satisfaction and perceptions of foster parent training.

Statement delivered to the Human Rights Council at the annual full-day meeting on the rights of the child: Empowering children with disabilities for the enjoyment of their human rights, including through inclusive education

Child Rights Connect

Child Rights Connect delivered a written and oral statement to the UN Human Rights Council on 4 March 2019 at an event to promote the empowerment of children with disabilities to enjoy their full human rights, including through inclusive education. In the statement, Child Rights Connect says that children with disabilities "are much more likely to grow up in alternative care and face heightened risk of violence."

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Exploring the Experiences of Child Welfare-Focused Therapeutic Service Providers

Marianna L. Colvin & Heather M. Thompson - The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research

The importance of mental and behavioral health for child welfare clients is well-documented; yet, little is known about the challenges therapeutic service providers (TSPs) experience working in child welfare practice. To explore this topic, five focus groups were conducted with 40 TSPs in a contracted mental and behavioral health agency and data were analyzed following an inductive thematic process.

The contribution of supervision orders and special guardianship to children’s lives and family justice

Professor Judith Harwin, Dr Bachar Alrouh, Ms Lily Golding, Ms Tricia McQuarrie, Professor Karen Broadhurst and Dr Linda Cusworth - Centre for Child and Family Justice Research, Lancaster University

This report is about the use of ‘family orders’ to support family reunification and placement with family and friends as outcomes of S31 care and supervision proceedings brought under the UK Children Act 1989. The over-arching aim of this study is to understand the opportunities, challenges and outcomes of these orders, and their use at national and regional level.

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Educational pathways in and out of child and youth care. The importance of orientation frameworks that guide care leavers' actions along their educational pathway

Maria Groinig & Stephan Sting - Children and Youth Services Review

The increasing importance of higher levels of formal education and training leads to an extended transition phase to adulthood in Austria. This article explores how care leavers are confronted with new disadvantages and with a lack of political and societal attention.