Moral anguish and systemic failure: Notes on state child care and protection in Australia

1997 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 22-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Bessant ◽  
Richard Hil
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Equal Opportunity ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Vulnerable Children ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
State Child ◽  
The Media ◽  
Provision Of Care

A recent, widely-publicised report based on a two year inquiry by the Australian Law Reform Commission and the Equal Opportunity Commission highlighted a range of serious shortcomings in the provision of care and protection for some of Australia’s most vulnerable children and young people. According to the report, Australia’s child protection system has failed in its basic duty of protecting children and young people from abuse and exploitation. The report confirms the argument presented in this paper that the abuse and neglect experienced by children and young people while under the care and protection of the state is systemic and widespread. While the media prefers to devote attention to ‘spectacular’ instances of departmental failure in regard to care and protection, the extent of the failures is far more routine than was initially apparent. One of the more vulnerable groups of young people ‘in care’ are state wards. Unfortunately the government’s record in respect to these young people indicates that many may be placed at greater risk in terms of their health, safety and general well-being after they have been taken into state ‘care’.

The new face of exploited children in Europe

2021 ◽  
pp. 73-80
Author(s):  
Olivier Peyroux
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
Sexual Trafficking ◽  
Refugees And Asylum Seekers ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Physical And Sexual Abuse

Children and young people are often trafficked for financial gains as a consequence of trafficking for physical and sexual abuse. The number of such refugees and asylum seekers is almost impossible to determine accurately. Children can be used to smuggle drugs across countries. Although small networks for local crime built around drug dealing, cigarette sales, or the resale of stolen goods use children and young people, there are also highly evolved and structured organizations specializing in drug and sexual trafficking. These challenges require new and different ways of approaching them so that mental health and well-being of children and young people can be maintained. Furthermore, it will be helpful to change the terms of child protection, strengthening structures of support, creating community and street teams with appropriate linguistic competencies, better links between countries of origin and European countries, and better cooperation between police, justice, social workers, and non-governmental organizations. Better approaches are indicated.

Children and Young People in Out-of-Home Care: Treating and preventing individual, programmatic and systems abuse.

1992 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 17-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo Cavanagh
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Home Care ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Vulnerable Children ◽  
Developmental Needs ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
Child Protection Services ◽  
Out Of Home Care ◽  
The Family

It is well recognised that the maltreatment of children results from a range of factors; some residing within the person, their family history and background, and others, clearly attributable to social stress and difficulties originating external to the family. In the last few decades, child welfare efforts have centred on the improvement of Child Protection Services and raising the prevention of child abuse as a community concern. More recently, attention has been focussed on strengthening the capacity of families to nurture and protect their own as the best means of meeting the developmental needs of children. However, our best efforts to assist families may still necessitate removal to protect the child.Research has identified that children removed for their own protection may be at even greater risk in out-of-home care. (Ryan 1987, Dawson 1984) Whether the incidence of abuse of children in out-of-home care is currently equivalent or higher than for the general population, is at this point a secondary concern. Out-of-home care is an essential and complex service. It is imperative to acknowledge that abuse can occur within the very system entrusted with the responsibility of protecting and caring for vulnerable children and young people.

scholarly journals Impacts of school closures on physical and mental health of children and young people: a systematic review

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Russell Viner ◽  
Simon Russell ◽  
Rosella Saulle ◽  
Helen Croker ◽  
Claire Stansfeld ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Systematic Review ◽  
Young People ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Service Use ◽  
Hospital Admissions ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
High Quality ◽  
School Closures ◽  
Children And Young People

AbstractBackgroundThe well-documented links between education and health mean that school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic are likely to be associated with significant health harms to children and young people (CYP). A systematic review of the evidence is needed to inform policy decisions around school closures and re-openings during the pandemic.MethodsWe undertook a high-quality systematic review of observational quantitative studies (published or preprint) of the impacts of school closures (for any reason) on the health, wellbeing and educational outcomes of CYP, excluding impacts of closure on transmission of infection (PROSPERO CRD42020181658). We used a machine learning approach for screening articles, with decisions on inclusion and data extraction performed independently by 2 researchers. Quality was assessed for study type. A narrative synthesis of results was undertaken as data did not allow meta-analysis.Results16,817 records were screened, of which 151 were reviewed in full-text and 72 studies were included from 20 countries. 33% were cohort studies using historical control periods; 19% pre-post studies; and 46% cross-sectional studies which assessed change by comparison with population reference data. 63% were high-quality, 25% medium-quality and 13% low-quality. Cause of closure in all studies was the first COVID-19 pandemic wave with the exception of 5 influenza studies and 1 teacher strike.27 studies concerning mental health identified considerable impacts across emotional, behavioural and restlessness/inattention problems; 18-60% of CYP scored above risk thresholds for distress, particularly anxiety and depressive symptoms. Two studies reported non-significant rises in suicide rates. Self-harm and psychiatric attendances were markedly reduced, indicating a rise in unmet mental health need. Child protection referrals fell 27-39%, with a halving of the expected number of referrals originating in schools.19 studies concerning health service use showed marked reductions in emergency department (ED) presentations and hospital admissions, with evidence of delayed presentations and potential widening of inequalities in vaccination coverage. Data suggested marked rises in screen-time and social media use and reductions in physical activity however data on sleep and diet were inconclusive. Available data suggested likely higher harms in CYP from more deprived populations.ConclusionsSchool closures as part of broader social distancing measures are associated with considerable harms to CYP health and wellbeing. Available data are short-term and longer-term harms are likely to be magnified by further school closures. Data are urgently needed on longer-term impacts using strong research designs, particularly amongst vulnerable groups. These findings are important for policy-makers seeking to balance the risks of transmission through school-aged children with the harms of closing schools.

The Statutory Framework after 1968

2020 ◽  
pp. 42-84
Author(s):  
Kenneth McK. Norrie
Keyword(s):  
Child Protection ◽  
Local Authority ◽  
Vulnerable Children ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Social ◽  
International Conventions ◽  
Provision Of Care ◽  
Hearing System

After an examination of the Kilbrandon Committee’s work in the early 1960s, this chapter will offer an analysis of the major changes to the Scottish child protection process brought about by the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 – including that Act’s increased focus on preventive measures, a greater involvement of the child’s family, and the clarification and enhancement of the role of the local authority. There follows the lead up to and enactment of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, with its increased focus on participation rights and the restructuring of local authority duties towards vulnerable children and those who are now “looked after”. Thereafter, the new regimes regulating the provision of care in residential establishments and in foster care (the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 and the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010) are explored in detail, as is the development of “GIRFEC” as the major Governmental tool. The chapter ends by exploring the restructuring of the children’s hearing system by the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011, and the failed “named person” scheme in the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014. Contemporary international conventions are described.

Safeguarding children

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.C. Harris ◽  
R. Welbury
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Child Maltreatment ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Growing Up ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
Life Chances ◽  
Evil Spirits ◽  
Church Law ◽  
Severe Punishment

It is essential that everyone who provides dental care for children has an understanding of other factors that affect children’s lives. This includes non-dental aspects of their health and wider issues that affect children’s development and well-being. Child maltreatment is one such issue. Abuse and neglect are forms of maltreatment of a child. Child maltreatment involves acts of commission or omission which result in harm to a child. When health professionals work with others to take action to protect children who are suffering, or are at risk of suffering, significant harm as a result of maltreatment, this is known as ‘child protection’. Child protection sits within the context of a wider agenda to ‘safeguard’ children. Safeguarding measures are actions taken to minimize the risks of harm to children and young people. These include: • protecting children from maltreatment • preventing impairment of children’s health or development • ensuring that children are growing up in a safe and caring environment. This should enable children to have optimal life chances and to enter adulthood successfully. The foundation for the success of such work is an acceptance and understanding of children’s internationally agreed human rights. In this context the term ‘child’ includes children and young people up to the age of 18. Violence towards children has been noted between cultures and at different times within the same culture since early civilization. Infanticide has been documented in almost every culture, and ritualistic killing, maiming, and severe punishment of children in an attempt to educate them, exploit them, or rid them of evil spirits has been reported since early times. Ritualistic surgery or mutilation of children has been recorded as part of religious and ethnic traditions. In the seventeenth century values started to change and incest was seen as a crime under church law, but until the eighteenth century society viewed children as possessions of their parents who were at liberty to treat them in any way they wished. In fact, legislation to protect animals was introduced before children were afforded the same ‘privilege’.

Ecosystems of Educational Disadvantage: Supporting Children and Young People receiving Child Protection and Welfare Services in Ireland

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Flynn
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Literature Discussion ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
Welfare Services ◽  
Educational Disadvantage ◽  
The Republic

Theoretically-informed focused commentary on the literature in this paper, considers the position of children and young people, as embedded within socio-ecological systems. The specific focus is on the educational disadvantage of children and young people susceptible to involvement from child protection and welfare services in the Republic of Ireland. To inform this, the utility of socio-ecological theory is emphasised, and from here, a Personal–Cultural–Structural (PCS) analysis is applied, to achieve an ecologically sensitive anti-discriminatory framework. Following a qualitative thematic review of literature, discussion addresses the question of what practitioners can do to promote the educational welfare of children and young people. The article is timely and necessary as existing evidence indicates that factors associated with educational disadvantage also increase susceptibility for involvement with child protection and welfare services. Yet, despite the compounded disadvantage this implies, little is understood about how these factors interact in practice. Overall, better understanding of educational underachievement is required, in the context of its negative and pervasive long-term effects, including decreased well-being, poorer health, and unemployment.

The impact of algorithmic decision-making processes on young people’s well-being (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elvira Perez Vallejos ◽  
Liz Dowthwaite ◽  
Helen Creswich ◽  
Virginia Portillo ◽  
Ansgar Koene ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Negative Experiences ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
Online Platforms ◽  
Internet Users ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND Algorithms rule the online environments and are essential for performing data processing, filtering, personalisation and other tasks. Research has shown that children and young people make up a significant proportion of Internet users, however little attention has been given to their experiences of algorithmically-mediated online platforms, or the impact of them on their mental health and well-being. The algorithms that govern online platforms are often obfuscated by a lack of transparency in their online Terms and Conditions and user agreements. This lack of transparency speaks to the need for protecting the most vulnerable users from potential online harms. OBJECTIVE To capture young people's experiences when being online and perceived impact on their well-being. METHODS In this paper, we draw on qualitative and quantitative data from a total of 260 children and young people who took part in a ‘Youth Jury’ to bring their opinions to the forefront, elicit discussion of their experiences of using online platforms, and perceived psychosocial impact on users. RESULTS The results of the study revealed the young people’s positive as well as negative experiences of using online platforms. Benefits such as being convenient and providing entertainment and personalised search results were identified. However, the data also reveals participants’ concerns for their privacy, safety and trust when online, which can have a significant impact on their well-being. CONCLUSIONS We conclude by making recommendations that online platforms acknowledge and enact on their responsibility to protect the privacy of their young users, recognising the significant developmental milestones that this group experience during these early years, and the impact that technology may have on them. We argue that governments need to incorporate policies that require technologists and others to embed the safeguarding of users’ well-being within the core of the design of Internet products and services to improve the user experiences and psychological well-being of all, but especially those of children and young people. CLINICALTRIAL N/A

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