Parliamentary inquiry into asylum support for children and young people

The publication of the Report of the Parliamentary Inquiry into Asylum Support for Children and Young People, on 30.1.13, provided a damning account of the treatment of asylum seeking families. 

"We believe that successive governments have failed children by delivering an 

asylum support system that keeps children in poverty, leads to dependency on 

the state and denies asylum seeking families the resources they need to meet 

their needs. Not only must the levels of support be increased to make sure no 

child is condemned to poverty, but many other aspects of the asylum support 

system which prevent children and families from having a dignified existence 

need to be addressed. We hope that the government will consider our report and 

recommendations." (Children's Society).

Pocket Guides from BASW

BASW have produces 5 downloadable pocket guides with basic information, hints and tips for practicing professionals and students of social work. The guides are:

• Alcohol and other drugs
• Children families and alcohol use
• Mental health and substance use
• Alcohol and older people
• Young people and alcohol

PDFs for all five can be downloaded from the link above.

Family Group Conferences

Todays Guardian online contains an articles on How Family Group Conferences Have the Power to Change Lives. prinicpally by gathering extended family groups together in an informal setting to find solutions for children's problems within the family. Problems addressed might include the finding alternative accomodation for children rather than being fostered by social services, help with education, substance misuse or getting into trouble with the police. Although the article makes reference to services in England, facilitated by the voluntary organisation Daybreak, Family Group Conferences, also known as Family Group Meetings are also facilitated in Scotland by Children 1st among others. For further reading see Examining the Use and Impact of Family Group Conferencing (2007),  research project conducted by researcher's from Stirling University on behalf of the Scottish Government.

The Kilbrandon Lectures - reflections on Care and Justice for Children in Scotland

The Kilbrandon Child Care Lecture series was set up to commenorate the Kilbrandon Report (1964), which led to the establishment of the Children's Hearings System.This publication brings together the first ten lectures exploring the children's hearings system, children's rights, families and processes in other countries.

The lectures (links to full list) are:
Sandford J. Fox (1991). Children's hearings in the international community. 
Fred Stone (1995). Advent of the Children (Scotland) Act in 1995.
Donalds Dewar (1997). Justice for Scotland's children.
Anthony Clare (1999). The Lost Boyhood of Judas.
Neil MacCormick (2001). A Special Conception of Juvenile Justice: Kilbrandon's legacy.
Maud de Boer-Buquicchio (2003). Justice for Europe's Children.
Trond Waage (2005). Modern Childhood: The image of the child in our society .
Bjorn Cronstedt (2007).Children in Conflict with the Law: An International Perspective.
Kathleen Marshall (2009). Children's Hearings and the Love that Binds: Reflections on Community, Discipline and Exile. 
Harry Burns (2011). Healthier Lives: Better Futures. 

Social Work at the Movies

Here is a link to the trailer for Jim Loach's film Oranges and Sunshine, about a Nottingham social worker's investigation of the forced migration of UK childen to Australia, and her work to release information leading to the reuniting of separated families. The film opens in the UK on 1st April.

New E-documents on safeguarding children

Mariathasan, J & Hutchinson, D. (2010). Children talking to childline about parental alcohol and drug misuse. Childline/NSPCC.
Atkinson, M., Lamont, E. & Wright, B. (2010). The role of primary mental health workers in education. NFER.
Hicks, L. & Stein, M. (2010). Neglect matters: a multi-agency guide for professionals working together on behalf of teenagers. DCSF.
Rees, G. et al. (2010). Safeguarding young people: responding to young people ages 11to 17 who are maltreated. Children's Society.

Children on the front line of UK Border Control

Safe at last? : children on the front line of UK Border control (2010), published by Refugee and Migrant Justice outlines the alleged inhumane and illegal experiences of unaccompanied children at the hands UK Border Control Agency, on entering the UK, and the new Statutory duty of the agency to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

New publications form the Department for children, Schools and Families

Farmer, E. & Lutman, E. (2010). Case management and outcomes for neglected children returned to their parents: a five-year follow up study. Department for children, Scools and Families research Brief 214. Key findings of this study include that there is a tendency over a long period of time of intervention for abuse and neglect to be minimised in reporting leading to insufficient action to protect children; that outcomes were much better for younger children, for whom intervention tends to be more proactive, and that in two fifths of cases children were not adequately safeguarded, often because of over-optimistic views of the possibility of parental change.
Carpenter, J. et al (2010). Outcomes of inter-agency training to safeguard children: final report to the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department of Health. This study examines the evidence base for inter-agency training and. assesses the efficacy of training in safeguarding children.

Department for Children, Schools and Families (2010). Parenting and Family Support: guidance for local authorities in England. Non-statutory guidance for service commsioners, managers and decsion makers.
Langer, S. et al (2010). A report on themes emerging from qualitative research into the impact of short break provision on families with disabled children. DCSF research report conducted by the Centre for Disability research, Lancaster University.
Robertson, J. et al (2010). The impacts of short break provision on disabled children and families: an international literature review. DCFS Research report 222

Safeguarding Children

Singleton, R. (2010). The chief Advisor on the Safety of children: first annual report to Parliament 2010. Outlines the changing environment in which safeguarding professionals are working, the increased demand for services and concerns from the sector.
Depatment for children, Schools and Families (2010). Working together to safeguard children: a guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. Covers statutory guidanceand non-statutory practice guidance for agents working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in accordance with the Chidlren Act 1989 and the chidlren Act 2004.

Nature builds resilience

Harrison, T., (2010). Lessons from the natural world. Special Children, Feb/March 2010, pp. 18-20. Harrison is one of a team from Camphill School, Aberdeen, running the Nature Nurture project, which aims to build the resilience of young children from families affected by alcohol/substance misuse, poverty or domestic violence, though play in the natural world. Find it at Jordanhill serials 371.9.

Forced Child migration

This week Gordon Brown will formally apologise on behalf of the British state for the forced migration of children, some orphaned, but many separated from their parents for social or economic reasons, to former Brtiish colonies in a period which ended as recently as 1967. An article in the Guardian, February 20, 2010 looks a the work of the Child Migrants' Trust, which offers suport to the victims of forced migration.

Arrest and Detention of Children Subject to Immigration Control

The Children's Commissioner for England yesterday released a follow up report detailing concerns over the treatment of children during arrest and transportation procedures leading to detention and the failure of the UK Border agency to ensure that adequate measures are in place to access the psychological well being of the 1000 children detained each year at Yarls Wood detention centre.
You can add your name to the petition to the UK government calling for the end to detention of children in immigration centres.

Accomodation for Runaways

Rees, G. et al (2009)Commissioning, Delivery and Perceptions of Emergency Accomodation for Young Runaways, Dept for Children, Schools and Families is a research report by members of the Children's Society and the Social Policy Unit at the University of York. The scope of the report includes England, Scotland and Wales.

Are mother and baby units the best option?

Doing time with mum. Beth Gardiner meets women bringing up theri babies in prison. Guardian 19 December.

Substance Exposed Infants - Paper from the USA

Substance-exposed infants: state responses to the problem
It might be interesting to contrast this paper from the US. Department of Health and Human Services, National Centre on Substance Abuse and Child Welfare with current practice in the UK.

Children's Centres in Rural Areas

Insights from users and providers of children's centres in rural communities: a summary report. Commission for rural communities

Care Knowledge highlights - new Scottish content this week

Care knowledge is useful in highlighting new e-documents and acting as a gateway to reports across a variety of sources.
From the Scottish executive:
The Capacity of disability organisations to engage with public authorities.
A resource guide to engagement standards, guidance and tool kits.
Mapping Scotland's disability organisations.
Older people living in the community - nutritional needs, barriers and interventions: a literature review.
Other highlights from Careknowledge this week:
Targeted violence and hostility against people with mental health conditions.
Healthier children safer communities.
Young black people and the criminal justice system.

New E-documents on the web

Who's child now? Fifteen years of working to prevent the sexual exploitation of children in the UK. Barnardo's (2009).
UK Manifesto for Children. Unicef (2009).
United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child: priorities for action. Department for Children, Schools and Families (2009).
Working together achieving more: a joint commitment to take action in response to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child's concluding observations. Department for Children, Schools and Families (2009).
Keeping children out of harmful institutions: why we should be investing in family based care. Save the Children (2009).
Together we can end violence against women and girls: a strategy. Home Office (2009).
Improving safety, reducing harm: children, young people and domestic violence: a practical toolkit for frontline practitioners. Department of Health. (2009).
Conceptualising the prevention of sexual assault and the role of education. Carmody, M. (2009). Australian Centre for the Study of Sexual Assault.

Immigration camps are harmful to children

A joint statement by the Royal Colleges of Paediatricians, GPs and Psychiatrists and the UK Faculty of Public Health is to be presented to ministers today. The report concludes that the detention of vulnerable children seeking asylum, at Yarl's Wood is harmful physically and psychologically. See reports in the Independent & BBC.