Overcoming by degrees: exploring care leavers' experiences of higher education in England

Existing research has shown that care leavers are one of the most disadvantaged groups in society and are at particular risk of experiencing negative long-term outcomes including unemployment, homelessness and mental health problems. This thesis makes a contribution to knowledge in this area by focusing upon a group of care leavers about whom very little is currently known: care leavers in higher education. These are young people who despite the odds, have succeeded educationally and are overcoming their early disadvantage to make a successful transition from care into adulthood. This thesis uses Bourdieu's theory on transformation and reproduction in society and the concepts of capital, field and habitus to explore care leavers' experiences of higher education. It considers how the support available to care leavers from their local authorities and higher education institutions has developed since Jackson and colleagues (2005) Going to University from Care study first highlighted deficits in the level of support provided to care leavers. This thesis also compares the experiences of care leavers with students from other disadvantaged backgrounds to understand where care leavers have specific support needs as a result of not being supported at university by their birth parents. Finally, this thesis considers the impact of the Buttle UK Quality Mark, developed in response to the findings of Jackson and colleagues (2005) and awarded to universities demonstrating a commitment to supporting care leavers

Looking for long-term outcomes: What early interventions are needed for children and young people at risk of maltreatment in England?

The Safeguarding Children Research Initiative (Davies & Ward, 2012) was a programme of fifteen studies commissioned by the Department of Health and what is now the Department for Education, each of which explored a different aspect of safeguarding children. This paper brings together the findings of these studies to explore the types of strategies that have been shown to promote positive long-term outcomes for children and young people at risk of maltreatment. The authors highlight the potential harm caused to children when they are exposed to maltreatment and demonstrate the range of interventions that have been developed to improve their long-term outcomes. The paper provides examples of universal, targeted and intensive services with a strong evidence base for success. The most effective intensive interventions are found to be those that prevent the occurrence or re-occurrence of maltreatment, address the underlying factors associated with maltreatment and the various stages associated with the process of change. The authors also examine the supplementary issues practitioners need to be aware of when considering the choice of intervention, including some of the obstacles to providing support, such as the nature of the evidence base, the extent to which different agencies work together to provide services for vulnerable children and families, the availability of resources and the ways in which children and families move between different parts of the child welfare system. If practitioners are to make best use of the available interventions, it is important that they select those underpinned by robust evidence showing that positive outcomes have been achieved for families in similar circumstances

Looking for long-term outcomes: what early interventions are needed for children and young people at risk of maltreatment in England?

The Safeguarding Children Research Initiative (Davies & Ward, 2012) was a programme of fifteen studies commissioned by the Department of Health and what is now the Department for Education, each of which explored a different aspect of safeguarding children. This paper brings together the findings of these studies to explore the types of strategies that have been shown to promote positive long-term outcomes for children and young people at risk of maltreatment. The authors ighlight the potential harm caused to children when they are exposed to maltreatment and demonstrate the range of interventions that have been developed to improve their long-term outcomes. The paper provides examples of universal, targeted and intensive services with a strong evidence base for success. The most effective intensive interventions are found to be those that prevent the occurrence or re-occurrence of altreatment, address the underlying factors associated with maltreatment and the various stages associated with the process of change. The authors also examine the supplementary issues practitioners need to be aware of when considering the choice of intervention, including some of the obstacles to providing support, such as the nature of the evidence base, the extent to which different agencies work together to provide services for vulnerable children and families, the availability of resources and the ways in which children and families move between different parts of the child welfare system. If practitioners are to make best use of the available interventions, it is important that they select those underpinned by robust evidence showing that positive outcomes have been achieved for families in similar circumstance

Assessing parental capacity to change when children are on the edge of care: an overview of current research evidence

Assessing Parental Capacity to Change when Children are on the Edge of Care is an overview of current research evidence, bringing together some of the key research messages concerning factors which promote or inhibit parental capacity to change in families where there are significant child protection concerns. It is intended to serve as a reference resource for social workers in their work to support families where children’s safety and developmental functioning are at risk. Its purpose is also to assist social workers and children’s guardians in delivering more focused and robust assessments of parenting capability and parental capacity to change, and assist judges and other legal professionals in evaluating the quality of assessment work in court proceedings. The report brings together research findings from a wide range of disciplines, which are not otherwise readily available in one location for social workers, family justice professionals and other practitioners with safeguarding responsibilities. [Continues

Eight-year-olds identified in infancy as at risk of harm: report of a prospective longitudinal study

Eight-year-olds identified in infancy as at risk of harm: report of a prospective longitudinal stud

Overcoming self-reliance and lack of expectation among care leavers in higher education in England: the role of inter-agency working

This paper reports on a study exploring care leavers’ experiences of higher education in England. Although a range of support is available from local authorities and higher education institutions to care leavers, there is a tendency towards self-reliance and lack of expectation of being supported. The findings suggest that by recognising their respective strengths and weaknesses and working together, local authority and higher education staff can engage care leavers more effectively, increasing levels of expectation and reducing the need for self-reliance

Evaluation of the No Wrong Door innovation programme

A report on the programme's effect on improving support for young people who are in care or on the edge of care

Taking care: practice framework for reunification. Evaluation report

Despite return home from care being the most common outcome for looked after children (Department for Education, 2014a); research suggests that significant numbers of children experience abuse and neglect when returning home from care. In response to this, the NSPCC developed the Taking Care practice framework: an evidence-informed risk assessment and planning framework for use by local authority social workers when deciding whether a child can be returned home. The Taking Care practice framework is designed to provide a more robust assessment and decision-making process and also to inform and support work with children and families throughout the reunification process, including once a child has returned home. Between its implementation in 2012 and November 2014, the Taking Care practice framework has been used to support 325 children across nine pilot local authorities. The NSPCC commissioned the Centre for Child and Family Research to undertake an independent evaluation of the Taking Care framework. The evaluation findings will be relevant to practitioners, managers, researchers and policy makers with an interest in improving social work practice, and the implementation of practice frameworks in local authorities. NSPCC are currently working in partnership with the University of Bristol to revise the practice framework to be applicable for any local authority to implement. The revised framework and implementation materials will be available from summer 2015