Search results

Care leavers are identified as a vulnerable group within UK society and, unsurprisingly, are more susceptible to mental health problems. Research highlights inadequacies among UK Government provisions combined with poorer outcomes for care leavers. This paper aims to measure the effectiveness of provisions on mental health when transitioning from the care system to adulthood.

A systematic review was conducted to identify and highlight the inadequacies of provisions in place to aid a care leaver’s transition and the effects on their mental health. Of the 211 studies identified from the search, six studies met the eligibility criteria and were deemed eligible by the researcher for further exploration of themes.

The findings identified feeling isolated, training given to care professionals and caregivers, collaboration, lack of preparation and support and access and gaps in provisions as the five key themes. The overarching theme of interconnectedness and interplay between subthemes, mental health and a care leaver’s transition, is strongly presented throughout. Many participants within the individual studies reported negative findings illustrating the weaknesses of provisions and the negative effect on their mental health. Furthermore, the findings emphasise the unique nature of everyone’s experience transitioning out of the care system.

A limitation of the review is the selection of key words, which may have restricted the results produced during the main search, subsequently affecting the amount of relevant data extracted and synthesised. Finally, less emphasis on grey literature and more on empirical studies reduces the probability of discovering null or negative findings, therefore increasing the chances of publication bias (Paez, 2017). A small number of eligible studies increase the risk of not making important comparisons, prompting a wider search to be conducted in the future. An unequal ratio between national and international research in the systematic review restricts fresh perspectives and strategies concerning the mental health of care leavers.

Care leavers are identified as a vulnerable group within society and, unsurprisingly, are more susceptible to mental health problems. The UK Government enforces national and local policies to support young adults leaving the care system and transitioning to independence. However, previous research highlights inadequacies among provisions, combined with poorer mental health outcomes for care leavers.

Following on from gaps in the current findings, an investigation into regional disparities across provisions aimed at assisting care leavers transitioning to independence would produce useful information for the field and policymakers. Although current research addresses the essence of interplay between mental health and transitioning, further research is required to help build a supporting argument for adaptations and improvements in policies and practice.

This study supports the argument for an increase in attention from the UK Government and policymakers to improve the quality and quantity of support for a population often underserved and marginalised, especially in terms of reducing poorer mental health outcomes.

Considerable attention has been given to the vulnerability of young people leaving care in the UK in their transition to adulthood. To date, however, there has been limited focus on the perceptions of care leavers about what factors enable and inhibit effective practice. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

This systematic literature review sought to elicit the views of UK care leavers in identifying barriers and facilitators to the process of transition to adulthood. Qualitative studies in the care-leaving field were identified, of which seven met inclusion criteria and were included in the final synthesis.

The findings yielded a range of facilitators, including authentic and consistent relationships with those acting in the role of corporate parent; and flexible systems, which accommodated personal readiness for leaving care. Barriers included insufficient recognition of, and a lack of support for, the psychological dimensions of transition, exacerbated by insufficient support networks.

This literature search yielded seven qualitative papers, some with small sample sizes, meaning that the findings may not be representative of a wider population or directly relevant to international contexts.

Suggestions for enhancing the transition process are posited. In particular, the potential usefulness of an “interdependence” transition approach for UK care leavers is proposed.

This study analyses qualitative data, thus constituting a response to policy calls for care leaver views to be central to transition processes.

This paper aims to report on the findings of a qualitative study that explored the views of 53 service providers assisting Indigenous young people (known in Australia as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth) transitioning from out-of-home care (OOHC) in Australia.

A qualitative approach was adopted involving semi-structured interviews and focus groups with 53 representatives of state and territory government departments, non-government organisation service providers and Aboriginal community-controlled organisations (ACCOs) across Australia. The project was designed to gain the perspectives of those working within the system and their views on how it interacts with Indigenous care leavers. Interview questions aimed to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of the leaving care support systems available to this cohort, as well as the key challenges facing service providers in supporting them. Finally, the study aimed to make recommendations for policy development in this area and identify potential best practice service responses.

The study found that the OOHC service systems continue to fail Indigenous care leavers, their families and communities. Study findings revealed that Indigenous care-leavers face substantial challenges and that the support systems for those leaving OOHC are often culturally insensitive and ineffective. Many Indigenous OOHC leavers lacked the supports they needed to develop safe and ongoing relationships with their traditional Country, family and communities. To promote more positive transitions and outcomes, effective practice responses were identified, including culturally safe programmes and proportional funding for ACCOs to advance greater self-determination.

This research is the first national study in Australia to examine the specific transition from care pathways and experiences of Indigenous young people. The findings add to the limited existing knowledge on Indigenous care leavers globally and should inform practice and policy innovations with this cohort in Australia and beyond.

This article takes a fresh look at the duties to care leavers, focusing on the overlap with adult services in relation to young care leavers over the age of 18.

Research on caregivers’ experiences of and perspectives on preparing young people to leave care in Africa is lacking. A clearer understanding of caregivers’ practice and experience is important for developing improved care-leaving services. The aim of this study is to describe the experiences and perceptions of caregivers providing care-leaving services at one residential care institution in Addis Abba, Ethiopia.

A qualitative description research design was used to examine the perspectives of seven caregivers and three key informants concerning the preparation of female care-leavers for leaving care and their readiness to lead an adult life in Ethiopia. Participants were purposively selected and data were collected through focus group discussions and in-depth interviews. The generated data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Caregivers are passionate about their work, seeing it more as a calling than as a job, and think of themselves as parents to the children. Most reported receiving at least some training, albeit informal or ad hoc, and faced challenges because of lack of resources. Regarding their preparation of the girls for leaving care, caregivers reported inadequate success in financial literacy and savings, continued schooling, cooking, cultural literacy and aftercare support.

This study thus underscores the absence of a preparation for leaving care practice guideline and an independent policy that guides care-leaving in Ethiopia. Policy improvement on caregiving that recognises and values the complexity of the job of caregiving, and thus the need for greater education, is highly needed. This paper sheds light on the issue of supporting caregivers’ attempt to mentor female care-leavers in Ethiopia.

The purpose of this study is to explore the contribution of what the authors have termed, “managed opportunities for independence” (MOI) in building the resilience of young people in care.

The study used a qualitative, grounded theory methodology. Nine child and youth care workers were purposively sampled from various child and youth and care centres in South Africa.

Findings indicate that MOI contribute to the development of resilience of young people in care.

Care-leaving literature recognizes that too much protection does not adequately prepare young people for independent living. There is also increasing attention to the resilience processes that enable care-leavers to thrive during the transition from care to independent living. However, there is limited empirical research that looks at how in-care programmes develop young people’s resilience. In addition, very little is said about what it means for child and youth care practice. This study’s focus on the contribution of “managed opportunities for independence” in building the resilience of young people in care provides a foundation for understanding the care-leaving process better.

This article sets out the views and experience of children and young people on selected major aspects of their lives which are governed by provisions in the Children Act 1989. It draws on extensive statutory consultations with children in care, receiving children's social care services, or otherwise living away from home, carried out over the past eight years by the Children's Rights Director for England. Two key themes from children are featured in particular: the extent to which the intentions of the Act are actually experienced by children in practice, and the extent to which delivery of the intentions of the Act is individualised according to each child's needs, wishes and feelings. Children's views, experiences and, in some cases, proposals for the future are explored in relation to ascertaining and taking into account children's wishes and concerns in decision‐making, selection of placements, support to care leavers, family contact, care planning and reviews, and complaints and representations. The issues of private fostering and the intentions and development of the role of the Independent Reviewing Officer are discussed from the child's perspective and in the light of the subsequent Children and Young Persons Act 2008.

This paper seeks to explore three key aspects of the education of children in care: the composition of that population of children and the extent to which they differ from the general population of children due to difficulties most of them have experienced prior to as well as after entering care; issues relating to the identification of causal relationships and the extent of “underachievement” by children in care; and any evidence that care may provide more positive opportunities than is often supposed.

The paper's approach is an extensive literature review of existing published research into social policy and practice of caring for looked after children.

The significant factors that contribute to better achievement for children in care are: placement stability and support at school but for some children therapeutic help and specialist assessments are necessary to improve outcomes. Different analyses produce different results and the scrutiny of children's trajectories indicates better outcomes than one‐off comparisons with children not in care.

Extensive research has established that children in care achieve less educationally than their peers not in care, but does not explain why. This paper helps to fill this gap.

The government’s ambition is to have three million more apprentices by 2020. The newness of degree apprenticeships and insufficient data make it difficult to assess their relative importance in boosting the UK economy, meeting higher skills needs of employers, closing educational attainment gaps, increasing social mobility and supporting under-represented groups into professional employment. The purpose of this paper, led by the University of Winchester and delivered by a new collaboration of private and public sector partners, is to build a pipeline between those currently failing to progress to, or engage with, degree apprenticeships and employers seeking higher skills and a broader pool of applicants.

The paper provides an analysis of collaborative initiatives and related research in England as the context for university involvement in degree apprenticeships. The case study illustrates the benefits of collaboration in targeted outreach initiatives within the local region to address gaps in progression to degree apprenticeships.

This paper illustrates how establishing a regional picture of degree apprenticeship provision, access and participation can inform effective partnerships and build capacity locally to deliver the higher skills employers need, further demonstrating the potential benefits of university involvement in degree apprenticeship provision in contributing to local and national policy ambition. It also shows how effective targeted interventions can help under-achieving groups, including those in social care and women in digital enterprises.

The authors believe this paper is the only academic analysis of the impact of Degree Apprenticeship Development Fund activity in the region.

The authors give a view from the Probation Service in Inner London about the potential impact of the Government's Supporting People proposals on the care of offenders in the community.