Exploring the Perceptions of Young People in Care and Care Leavers of the Health needs

This paper presents findings from a research study into the health needs and concerns of young people in care and leaving care (aged 14 to 24 years) carried out in Glasgow during 2001 (Scottish Health Feedback 2001). The study was commissioned by Glasgow Alliance Care Leavers Social Inclusion Partnership (known as the big step), which was set up in 1999 as part of the Scottish Executive's Social Inclusion Strategy. The paper discusses the findings and draws implications for future policy and practice

Matching, Ethnicity and Identity. Reflections on the practice and realities of ethnic matching in adoption.

Ethnicity and adoption have taken centre stage in the Coalition Government's focus on child care social policy in the UK. The current political perspective is one of promoting the placement of children of minority ethnic heritage with white families, in order to avoid delay in adoption where no families of a similar ethnic heritage are available. John Wainwright and Julie Ridley reflect on the contemporary debate by discussing the findings from a commissioned service evaluation of an adoption agency that specialised in recruiting families of black, Asian and dual heritage, and placing children of black and minority ethnic (BME) heritage. This service evaluation provides evidence that focusing on recruiting BME individuals and families and matching them with children of similar heritage can be effective. The evaluation utilised mixed methods, including interviews with staff in the service, prospective and current adopters, and statistical information that informed an understanding of the type of ethnic matches made. Comparison was also made with a general adoption service within the commissioning agency using the same data collection methods

How do teachers manage topic and repair?

A case study is presented of a ten-year-old child described as having comprehension difficulties, in conversation with a specialist teacher, a mainstream teacher and a peer. Tape recordings of social talk between the child and the adults and peer were made in the school setting. The data are subjected to detailed sequential analysis, drawing on some of the insights gained into the management of topic and repair by researchers working in the tradition of conversation analysis. We find that both our subject’s specialist teacher and the mainstream peer use some helpful devices to extend the topical material produced by the child and to repair ‘troubles’ in the conversation. We consider the language learning potential of these turns and the implications for classroom teachers working with children with language needs

Self-directed Support: Personalisation, Choice and Control

Since the late 1990s, there has been a concerted policy drive across social care towards cash based modes of support and strategies to personalise services. Support for this shift was initiated by the disabled peoples’ movement, both in the UK and globally. Policies introducing direct payments in lieu of provided services have been secured gradually as a central plank of the campaign for independent living. Successive governments have promoted a shift towards personalisation as part of a wider focus to develop local care markets and to facilitate enhanced choice and control in service provision. In Scotland, this has been pursued through new legislation for self-directed support. The authors examine some of the key themes and debates emerging from the implementation of this policy. These include a look at the evolution of this concept and its development within the wider personalisation agenda, as well as the changing roles for users, carers, local authorities and service providers. The authors focus on the impact of change for front-line workers and reassess the progress of personalisation across the UK and in Europe during a time of widespread austerity and financial cuts. Written for professional and academic audiences Self-directed Support: Personalisation, Choice & Control will stimulate those wrestling with these themes from policy and professional perspectives and provide essential analysis for those studying health and social policy

Themes, Issues and Practice Dilemmas in Ethnically Matched Adoption Placements

The issue of ethnicity and adoption in children’s social work services is a controversial and complex area of child care practice. Ethnic matching has been regarded as a successful way to place children and provide BME (Black and minority ethnic) children with a stable and settled placement. Crucially, it is argued that ethnically matched placements encourage and nurture a positive black identity within BME children, which is perceived as central to their well-being. Using the findings from a service evaluation in the UK, this paper explores themes and issues, as well as policy, and practice dilemmas inherent in the practice of ethnic matching in adoption. Research has rarely examined this process in any depth, nor has it prioritised the views and experiences of adopters from BME communities. The field is dominated by the discourse surrounding trans ethnic adoption (the placement of BME children with white adopters). Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to evaluate practice in a specialist BME adoption service and to compare this to a mainstream adoption service within the same organisation. Results indicated the specialist focus was important. However, it also posed conceptual and practice dilemmas. The increasingly complex nature of ethnicity in modern society underlines the importance of services engaging directly with the challenging fluidity of ethnic and cultural identity