Forty Years of Research, Policy and Practice in Children's Services PDF Download

Author: Nick Axford
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 047001475X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
Founded in 1963, Dartington Social Research Unit conducts scientific research into child development within the context of children?s services with a view to informing interventions for children in need. Originating from a festschrift to celebrate the work of Roger Bullock, one of Dartington?s first researchers and a Fellow of the Centre for Social Policy, this book from a prestigious author team examines developments in children?s services over the past forty years, providing a context for future policy making. Ten key areas are covered including foster care and family support, while two overview chapters explore ?40 years of Social Research? and ?Gaps in the Knowledge and Future Challenges?.

Author: Robert J. Chaskin
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0195314085
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 193

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Book Description
Across the social welfare and human services fields, interest is growing in how to apply research to influence policy and practice; simultaneously, with globalization's advance, it is clearer than ever that an international perspective is vital in understanding how social, political, and institutional contexts affect research and dissemination practices. This volume, with contributions from an array of eminent researchers and practitioners, provides valuable insight into effective research practice and the factors involved in putting research findings to use.Leading with experience - narratives of six child welfare case studies from the UK, Ireland, Israel, South Africa, and the US - the book frames those cases in the context of relevant literatures to build up a cross-case analysis that distills lessons, throws enduring questions into relief, and lays a foundation for informing future practice. It mines the cross-national experience to develop perspective for a better understanding of the importance of different policy and cultural environments, while nonetheless emphasizing issues that are applicable across borders. The ground prepared by the case studies allows the volume to tease out themes and lessons, placing the empirical findings against relevant theoretical frameworks and developing guidelines for improving research practice in this arena.Researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and advocates concerned with promoting effective policy and practice will find this book a vital aid in understanding how to apply knowledge to the real world and bring about in ways that can inform and contribute to social change.

Author: Roy Parker
Publisher: Policy Press
ISBN: 1447334426
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
This collection of 12 new and revised essays on child care and children’s services, written by leading child welfare historian Roy Parker, draws on his lifetime of research in this area. By exploring various topics these essays explain significant political, economic, legal and ideological aspects of this history from the mid-1850s. This unique and lasting review of child care services allows readers to understand how the services for some of society’s most vulnerable children have become what they are, how well they have met and now meet the needs of those children. The collection provides a high-quality, historical reference resource that will inform and capture the interest of social work and social policy students as well as social and legal historians, political scientists and those involved in administration and government, struggling with the issues of the day.

Author: Gerald P. Mallon
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231511167
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 785

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Book Description
This up-to-date and comprehensive resource by leaders in child welfare is the first book to reflect the impact of the Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA) of 1997. The text serves as a single-source reference for a wide array of professionals who work in children, youth, and family services in the United States-policymakers, social workers, psychologists, educators, attorneys, guardians ad litem, and family court judges& mdash;and as a text for students of child welfare practice and policy. Features include: * Organized around ASFA's guiding principles of well-being, safety, and permanency * Focus on evidence-based "best practices" * Case examples integrated throughout * First book to include data from the first round of National Child and Family Service Reviews Topics discussed include the latest on prevention of child abuse and neglect and child protective services; risk and resilience in child development; engaging families; connecting families with public and community resources; health and mental health care needs of children and adolescents; domestic violence; substance abuse in the family; family preservation services; family support services and the integration of family-centered practices in child welfare; gay and lesbian adolescents and their families; children with disabilities; and runaway and homeless youth. The contributors also explore issues pertaining to foster care and adoption, including a focus on permanency planning for children and youth and the need to provide services that are individualized and culturally and spiritually responsive to clients. A review of salient systemic issues in the field of children, youth, and family services completes this collection.

Author: Axford, Nick
Publisher: Policy Press
ISBN: 1847423396
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 271

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Book Description
Policy reforms to children's services in the UK and elsewhere encourage a greater focus on outcomes defined in terms of child well-being. Yet for this to happen, we need not only a better understanding of what child well-being is and how services can improve it, but also the ability to measure child well-being in order to evaluate success. This book investigates the main approaches to conceptualising child well-being, applies them to the child population using household survey and agency audit data, then considers the implications for children's services. The author: provides a clear conceptual understanding of five perspectives on well-being: need, rights, poverty, quality of life and social exclusion demonstrates the value of each perspective charts levels of child well-being in an inner-London community, including violated rights and social exclusion sets out the features that children's services must have if they are to improve child well-being defined in these terms This book should be read by everyone involved in developing, implementing and evaluating children's services, including researchers, policy makers and practitioners.

Author: Bruce B. Henderson
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1003809634
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 141

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Book Description
Is residential care 'inherently harmful'? This book argues that this conventional wisdom is wrong and is, itself, harmful to a significant number of children and youth. The presumptive view is based largely on overgeneralizations from research with infants and very young children raised in extremely deprived environments. A careful analysis of the available research supports the use of high-quality residential care as a treatment of choice with certain groups of needy children and youth, not a last resort intervention. The nature of high-quality care is explored through child development theory and research and two empirically supported models of care are described in detail. It will be of interest to all scholars and students of child development, child welfare, youth work, social work and education as well as professionals working within these fields.

Author: Nick Axford
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 135194570X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 552

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Book Description
Need is a popular but controversial concept in social policy. 'Needs-led' has become a mantra in children's services in recent years, yet theorists still argue about the meaning and value of the concept of 'need'. There are lots of needs assessment at the individual child and population levels, but case files vary enormously in quality and reports of need analyses frequently gather dust on shelves. How, then, should we define and measure children's needs, and how should this influence the design of services? This edited collection answers these questions in order to help policy makers, managers, practitioners and researchers with identifying and serving children in need. It offers a critical appraisal of the state of play regarding the theory of need, the needs that children have, methods for assessing children's needs at the individual and group levels, and approaches to designing services to meet identified needs.

Author: Mariela Neagu
Publisher: Policy Press
ISBN: 144735799X
Category : Abandoned children
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
This book sheds light on the 'Romanian orphans' including those who stayed in institutions throughout their childhood as well as those who were adopted, reporting on their experiences in children's homes, foster care, domestic adoption as well as intercountry adoption and providing new evidence on what is important for children in care today.

Author: Cynthia Franklin
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0197603416
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 881

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Book Description
A practical resource book for school social workers and mental health professionals. This third edition will appeal to practicing professionals in schools and become a popular textbook for graduate level students enrolled in school social work and school counselling courses.

Author: Rebecca Brown
Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
ISBN: 0857004816
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
Safeguarding babies and very young children is a highly complex process, involving difficult decisions surrounding their needs, care, and whether they need to be separated from their families. This book, based on a research study which followed babies who were identified as likely to suffer significant harm before their first birthdays until they were three years old, explores key issues surrounding the safeguarding process. These include how the decision whether to remove children from their families are made, whether social work interventions work and the impact they have on children's life pathways. It also examines the role various participants, including parents, have in decision-making. The findings of the study show a close link between decisions, maltreatment and children's developmental problems, and provide key implications and recommendations for policy and practice. This significant book will be essential reading for all those involved in safeguarding children, including practitioners and policymakers, academics and researchers.