This introduction to social work with children and young people who are looked after (in care or accommodated) by statutory or voluntary agencies is the only textbook on the subject which addresses this area of work across all four nations of the UK. Providing a clear theoretical and ethical basis, it introduces and develops a set of core themes, reflective of contemporary developments including: • the influence of, and tensions between, dominant discourses that shape the social work service (relationship-based practice, early intervention and prevention, social innovation, evidence-based practice and outcomes) • the use and abuse of concepts of ‘children’s needs’ and ‘best interests’; • ideas of parenting and parental responsibility, and the relationships between children, families, communities and the state; • the importance of recognising that children and young people have rights and considering their views; • trauma, trauma-informed practice, transitions and resilience. With chapters addressing a sequence of topics – assessment and planning, residential and foster care, leaving care, and permanence – there is a specific focus on working with disabled children, children from minority ethnic communities, and marginalised groups of children and young people including refugees and asylum seekers, LGBTQIA+ children and those who have been trafficked. Packed full of useful pedagogical features including material on the legal and policy context, summaries of research evidence, notes for good practice, group teaching exercises, references to legislation and guidance, and guides to further reading, it will be core reading on any child and family care modules, general preparation for practice courses, Frontline, Step Up, as well as for all social work practitioners.

This fully-updated and revised third edition addresses the changes to law and practice in relation to adoption and permanency, the children’s hearing system and the implications of the provisions of the Children and Young People (S) Act 2014 and other related matters, including the National Practice Model of GIRFEC. This is the only text to provide coverage of the new legal, policy and practice landscape of social work with children and families in Scotland, and as such, it is an indispensable guide for students, newly-qualified social workers, managers and practice teachers and a range of other professionals in health, education, the police and others in cognate disciplines.

A solid, theory-to-practice guide to contemporary mezzo and macro social work Written by a renowned team of scholars, Social Work Practice with Groups, Communities, and Organizations focuses on the contemporary theory and practice of social work. Each chapter delves deeply into the key theoretical considerations surrounding a particular practice area, exploring the clinical implications of each. Spanning the full range of both mezzo and macro practice areas, the authors thoroughly look at the assessment of and interventions with group, community, organizational, and institutional settings. The most authoritative book in this field, Social Work Practice with Groups, Communities, and Organizations features: A focus on evidence-based approaches to assessment and intervention for each practice area discussed Comprehensive coverage of the most important new and emerging practice technologies in mezzo and macro social work Current and emerging demographic, social, political, and economic trends affecting mezzo and macro practice An array of pedagogical aids, including Key Terms, Review Questions for Critical Thinking, and Online Resources Content closely aligned with social work accreditation standards (EPAS) Providing a solid review of the entire scope of contemporary mezzo and macro social work practice, Social Work Practice with Groups, Communities, and Organizations is both an indispensable educational text for students and a valuable working resource for practitioners who work with groups, communities, and organizations of all sizes.

Find out how group care for children has changed in the last 20 years Group Care Practice with Children and Young People Revisited focuses on the core issues that shape the quality of care that’s provided in institutional and residential care settings, as well as day care services that rely on the group process. Leading authorities on residential group care practice from around the world examine practice concepts centered on three broad themes: working directly with children; working indirectly to support children and their families; and organizational influences on practice. This unique book offers valuable insights for dealing with the daily challenges of working with young people in responsive group care. Group Care Practice with Children and Young People Revisited builds on contemporary themes that were explored by the editors more than 20 years ago in Group Care for Children: Concept and Issues, and Group Care Practice with Children, both out of print. Contributors to this updated collection put a fresh spin on the original material, as well as cross-cultural analysis from both sides of the Atlantic, Australia and New Zealand, Malaysia, China, and the United Arab Emirates. They revisit the key issues identified in the earlier books and provide personal and professional reflections on what has happened to their practice themes since the early 1980s. Special attention is paid to how social policy imperatives—normalization, de-institutionalization, mainstreaming, least restrictive environment, minimal intervention, and diversion—have reshaped the field, group care methods and skills needed for direct and indirect care, and group care as an occupational. Group Care Practice with Children and Young People Revisited examines (and re-examines): the relationships between group care practice and education how group care programs can become hostile to families primary care in secondary settings the importance of shared language in a group care center group development how group composition can influence the overall functioning of the group managing occupational stresses in group care practice patterns of career development in child and youth care economic influences that impact group care challenges facing the future of group care services for children and much more Group Care Practice with Children and Young People Revisited is a must-read for youth case workers, child and youth care educators, and anyone working in child welfare, including youth justice managers, administrators, and policymakers.

Working with Young People offers a new outlook on social, cultural, and educational work with young people. It utlizes the perspective of social pedagogy--a theoretical and practical perspective that has been developing in continental Europe over the last 150 years--in placing young people at the center of socio-educational work and giving value to their decisions and actions. The text supports youths' process of personal construction within the framework of the community in which they live. The book is organized into three large blocks of chapters. The introduction aims to prepare readers for the social pedagogy approach to work with young people. It briefly outlines its current situation in the world and, relate it to the main professions in which it is embodied in different socio-cultural contexts: social pedagogy, social education, and social work. The first block presents the framework and socio-pedagogical, theoretical, and practical parameters in which work with young people takes place in Europe and Latin America. The second block of chapters deals with youth policies and the training and professionalization of educators and those who work with young people. The last block focuses on some socio-educational practices with young people that include youth justice, social inclusion process, youth participation in digital life or transition to adult life. The book is based on a wide perspective of young people from cultural diversity.

Society holds a popular perception that links children in public care with criminal activity, but this connection is largely assumed. This book addresses the lack of evidence supporting this potentially damaging assumption. It begins by analysing past research, critically examining current policy and combining theoretical insights from the disciplines of childcare and criminology in order to form a theoretical framework for research. The empirical evidence of thirty-nine interviews with young people who have been through the care system is then drawn upon to highlight key findings and conclusions about the relationship between care and crime, and the implications towards current policy. Addressing issues such as: the residential care experience developing secure attachments in the context of care experiences of education life after care, these powerful examples show the flaws, failures and successes of the various childcare services by offering insight into the reality of young peoples experiences. This book is highly relevant to new legislation and the current political agenda, and will prove an eye-opening read for policymakers and practitioners in the fields of child care and criminology, social workers, and students of social work, social policy and criminology.

This book explores shifts in international social policies, looking at how they affect national trends and the context for social work practice. It investigates the responsibilities for social welfare held by the state, the market and civil society, elaborating a concept of citizenship-based social work.

1. The book sets a context for the background of the care population in Wales, and charts research that explores educational experiences, outcomes, and the interventions put in place that seek to alleviate the educational disadvantages experienced by children and young people in care. 2. The book draws on empirical research to explore the lived experiences of care experienced children and young people, in a range of contexts and sites, including the home, the school, alternative educational institutions, contact centres, and the natural environment. 3. The book documents the ‘doing’ of research and methodological approaches that work directly with participants, involving participatory, qualitative, reflexive and collaborative techniques and innovative research methodologies.

It is now clear that if professionals are to make a real difference for children and young people, they must be able to engage and communicate with children themselves, not just their parents and carers. Practitioners must be able to listen to children, support them, keep them informed, and fully involve them in matters which concern them. This timely book aspires to prepare social workers and other practitioners for this challenging set of roles and tasks. In particular, it aims to enthuse readers to develop the most powerful resource they have to offer in their direct work with children: themselves.

The first of a two-volume series, Child and Youth Care across Sectors covers a comprehensive, critical, and forward-looking examination of the continuously evolving child and youth care field in Canada. This edited collection guides readers through a wide range of settings and contexts where practitioners are engaged with young people, their families, and their communities. By drawing on a variety of experiences, the authors address crucial topics in today’s child and youth care practice, including gender diversity, anti-oppression, anti-Black racism, and colonialism.This groundbreaking series is the first of its kind to cover the breadth of Canadian child and youth care in its full diversity. Volume 1 considers traditional sectors such as residential care and foster care; often neglected contexts and groups such as French-language services, trans youth, autistic young people, and Deaf communities; and newly emerging and innovative sectors such as cyberspace and outdoor adventure settings. Bringing together top scholars and practice leaders from across Canada, this collection is an invaluable resource for students, practitioners, and educators in the field of child and youth care.