Foster care as a form of out-of-home care for separated asylum seeking children: The experiences of young people and carers in the Republic of Ireland

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muireann Ni Raghallaigh
2015 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leah Bonfili

This article seeks to expand the conversation started in the primary article by Stephen Gay in this volume entitled ‘The Choice Between Adoption and Foster Care as Child Protection Responses’. It discusses the need for stability and permanence of care arrangements for children and young people living in out-of-home care in Part II before moving on in Part III to consider the option of widening the choice of care arrangements to better meet their needs. The importance of listening to the voices of children and young people and giving them a say in where they live and how they are cared for is also explored in Part IV.


Author(s):  
Claire Cameron

This conceptual critique elaborates on the phrase ‘experts in everyday life’, which the author first used in 2015 in connection with recognising the contribution of foster carers and residential care workers to the education of children in out-of-home care (OHC). The article examines the case for greater recognition of the children’s workforce in OHC, and situates the concept of ‘expertise’ in the rise of recognition of children’s status as competent social actors, as well as in professionalisation debates. The article examines two examples, drawing on the author’s prior research in residential care and foster care, of expertise in everyday life in OHC. It concludes that, viewed from a social pedagogical perspective, expertise in everyday life refers to the complex milieu, or environment, in which the activity is taking place, as well as the relational encounters and activities themselves. It refers to the capacity for supporting young people in the mundaneness and predictability of everyday events and routines. Recognition of practitioners as experts in everyday life is not a substitute for changes to the structural conditions of employment but is a first step towards it.


Author(s):  
Jacinta Chavulak ◽  
Philip Mendes

Young people transitioning from out-of-home care (often called care leavers) are globally a disadvantaged group who can be particularly vulnerable to experiences of housing instability and homelessness. This article presents a scoping review of international scholarly literature pertaining to housing pathways for care leavers from 2015–2020. The 15 publications identified were analysed according to location, methodology, sample accessed, key findings regarding housing pathways and outcomes, and recommendations for policy and practice reform. Our findings suggest that good transition planning, continuing support from responsible adults, the availability of safe and affordable housing and extended care till at least 21 years should enable more positive housing transitions.


Author(s):  
Philip Mendes ◽  
Bernadette Saunders ◽  
Susan Baidawi

This chapter reports on exploratory research in Victoria, Australia, involving focus groups and interviews with service providers and Indigenous care leavers to examine the impact of existing support services. Indigenous children and young people are highly overrepresented in the Australian out-of-home care system. To date, neither specific research focusing on this group’s experiences as they transition from care nor an assessment of the Indigenous-specific and non-Indigenous supports and services available to them have been undertaken. Findings suggest that Aboriginal Community Controlled Organizations (ACCOs) play a positive role in working with non-Indigenous agencies to assist Indigenous care leavers. Participants identified a few key strategies to improve outcomes, such as facilitating stronger relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous services and improving ACCO resourcing.


Author(s):  
Robbie Gilligan

This chapter discusses resilience in the lives of care leavers. Youth transitions can be especially challenging for young adults who face major adversity in their lives as they negotiate early encounters with adult life. One such group is young people leaving out-of-home care at the official age, in many jurisdictions, of 18 years. Young people leaving care often do not have the luxury of extending the timing of their transitions, as may be the case for their peers not in care; circumstances force them to make early transitions and, typically, without the level of support their more fortunate peers may be able to call on. Yet many young adults leaving care do quite well; they manage to display resilience. They find resources in their social ecology which help them to manage the process of their transitions. This chapter explores the background to such displays of resilience and how former caregivers and other concerned adults may help to stimulate and sustain such resilience. It also argues that support from concerned adults in arenas such as education and work may be especially helpful in promoting resilience to adversity among youth transitioning to adulthood from care.


2012 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 1081-1083 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katharine Dill ◽  
Robert J. Flynn ◽  
Matthew Hollingshead ◽  
Auriole Fernandes

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