Journey of Data Collection: My Experience Narrative of Working with Destitute Children Residing at Children’s Home

This article represents a narrative description of my data collection journey and the experience of working with children residing at Child Care Institution (CCI) like children’s home. It outlines my experience in a creative language and also draws attention to the challenges I faced, be it seeking permission from the concerned authorities or visiting the children’s home to actually working with the children. The procedures to access these children are quite lengthy and strenuous. Overall, this article highlights my experiences as a researcher, working with the children, the lessons I learnt and dealing with challenges imposed by COVID-19. In conclusion, through this experience article, I intend to make my fellow researchers aware of the procedures and challenges involved in dealing with this population, data collection process, which could benefit them to prepare accordingly, and to recommend to the caretakers and stakeholders the need for research in this area and promote activities to enhance mental health conditions.

Individual-Inclusive Ecosystem Model of Rehabilitation for Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Childcare Institutions

In childcare institutions (CCIs) in India, children with mild or moderate levels of disability are often placed with non-disabled children for care and protection. Generally, children with intellectual disability (ID), learning disability, hearing and speech impairment and multiple disabilities with ID are found to be living in these CCIs. In this best practice article, the challenges faced by these children with disabilities and the potential for inclusion within the CCI are discussed based on the field action project intervention of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, with selected government CCIs. The article suggests a multi-pronged intervention approach for the Children with disability (CWD) at the levels of the individual CWD, peer group, CCI and the juvenile justice (JJ) System, which are together recognised as the stakeholders of an ‘inclusive ecosystem’. The article arrives at the ‘Inclusive Ecosystem Model of Rehabilitation’ by drawing from the individual–environment interaction model of disability.

Institutional Care and Family Reintegration: The Transition Process in the Voices of Young Brazilians

This article aims to present reflections on the transition from being institutionalised to autonomous life, from the perspective of deinstitutionalised young Brazilians. Five young adults participated in the pilot study. The Piagetian clinical method was used. Through semi-structured interviews, the following were investigated: causes of institutionalisation, preparation for transition, deinstitutionalisation and perspectives of present and future life. The results indicate that there was no effective preparation for transition from the institution to the family and/or independent life. Biological families have difficulties in achieving (re) integration and overcoming conflicts between parents and children. In conclusion, when leaving institutions, some young people manage to build their own arrangements for a new life trajectory, while others return to contexts of risk and life on the street. Public policies to assist these young people should be prioritised.

What Does International Research Identify as the Best Practice Housing Pathways for Young People Transitioning from Out of Home Care?

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.

Bringing Donors Along on the Journey: A Preliminary Investigation of Organisational Strategies in Transitioning from Residential to Family Care for Children

Research suggests that children develop best in families. However, millions of children live in residential care centres worldwide. Many residential centres desire to transition their programs from a residential to a family-based model of care, but face barriers surrounding funding and donor support. Little research exists on how organisations address these concerns. The current article investigated the financial impact of transitioning to a family-based model of care, donor engagement practices used in this process, and changes in donor support resulting from the transition. Twenty-six organisations that had fully or partially transitioned their model completed a brief survey. Data revealed an initial increase in cost per child, but long-term the cost of services decreased. Further, findings suggested that involving donors early and using multiple methods and types of communication led to better long-term donor support. Based on these findings, five recommendations were made for organisations planning to transition their care model.

Unpacking the Possible: A Qualitative Case Study of Inclusive Teacher Practice in India

Research on teachers and inclusive education in India has largely been conducted using standardised, quantitative measures of teacher attitudes, efficacy and behaviour. There is little focus on teachers’ perspectives on their practice. Such findings promote a deficit view of teachers, recommending interventions to ‘correct’ teacher attitudes and behaviour, with little attention to institutional and policy contexts within which the teachers operate. The existing studies focus on what is absent or lacking, rather than what is possible. The present study attempts to offer a perspective of what is possible in inclusive education in the Indian context. The purpose of this intrinsic case study research is to better understand the inclusion of girls with disabilities in Kolkata, India, at a home and school for orphan girls. Non-institutionalised, inclusive, community-based care is rare in India, specifically for individuals with disabilities. The overall case study involved interviews ( N = 32) with students, teachers and staff, observations and document analysis, and this focuses on the n = 7 teacher interviews. All transcripts were analysed using structural and in vivo codes. These findings are centred on teacher voices and perspectives – identifying best practices, dilemmas and challenges. However, teacher perspectives are discussed within a larger school and institutional context. An important feature is the description of teachers’ inclusive practice as an iterative process, supported by feedback and input from the school leader. The findings highlight how the school provides and serves as a space of familial bonding, allowing teachers to challenge the views of educability, within the backdrop of a community that stigmatises disability. It is in this way that these teacher-centred voices demonstrate resilience in their teaching and conceptualisation of inclusion and disability.

The Journey of Developing, Mandating and Applying the National Quality Standards for Care Homes in Egypt

Institutional care is one of the most prevalent alternative care forms in Egypt. There were more than 500 registered care homes when Wataneya Society started its journey in 2008. Care homes in Egypt are managed by civil society and supervised by the government. However, their management system and quality of care vary from one place to another depending on the managers’ background and beliefs. Care homes need intensive and constant technical support to be able to provide a healthy environment that promotes the physical and psychological well-being for children and youth without parental care, an environment that secures their good education, employment and social integration. Therefore, standardising and unifying the care system was crucial to ensure that children received quality of care inside these care homes. As a result, since 2008, Wataneya Society has pioneered the development of the national quality standards for care homes in collaboration with the Egyptian Ministry of Social Solidarity, international and local non-governmental organisations (NGOs and INGOs) working in the alternative care sector. The national quality standards were mandated nationwide by the Ministry of Social Solidarity in 2014. Prior to that, in Egypt there were no standards, there was only a set of outdated guidelines and regulations dating back to 1977. The national quality standards were driven from, (a) UN Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children (2009); (b) best practices in the field of alternative care; and (c) Wataneya Society’s field experience in piloting the standards with seven care homes for four years starting in the year 2009. Wataneya Society continues to assist care homes to apply the national quality standards to be able to provide a safe environment for children and youth. This article will discuss the journey of developing, mandating and applying the national quality standards for care homes in Egypt.

Harness the Hidden Treasure! Freeing Knowledge, Energies and Learning Opportunities in Child and Youth Homes to Benefit Children, Youth, Staff, Leaders and the Organisation as a Whole

Daily life in a child and youth home is created jointly by staff, children, youth and leaders. However, three important resources often remain unavailable for the development of the organisation and its promotion of the young people: (1) the knowledge of the organisation, and different perspectives on the organisation, that these persons hold, (2) the energies freed when they perceive the quality of the child and youth home as a matter of shared interest and join forces to develop it, and (3) the organisation and the processes of shaping it as learning opportunities in themselves, especially for children and youth. By participating in shaping the organisation that they live in, they not only make a contribution to its quality that only they can make, but also strengthen important competences for their independent lives. Examples from practice and research in Brazil, Hungary and Switzerland illustrate the three resources and how they can benefit both the organisation and all the persons in it, especially the children and youth. Readers are encouraged to harness the ‘hidden treasure’ that these resources represent, for the benefit of the child and youth homes as well as the children and youth in their care.

Home Thrive ScaleTM: Case Management Tool Towards Preventing Family Separation and Ensuring Children Thrive in Family-based and Alternative Care Options

Case management can be a complex process where multiple factors must be considered for the safety and well-being of a child in any care option. Miracle Foundation’s proprietary Home Thrive ScaleTM is a strengths-based assessment tool that makes it easier to identify strengths, risks and address areas of support within a family home over time. A home’s safety is measured based on five well-being domains—family and social relations, health and mental health, education, living conditions and household economy—with the child and family’s thoughts at the core. Intervention options are then offered to put assessments into action. The tool serves to both prevent family breakdowns and reintegrate children from institutions back into families (or other family-based or alternative care options). Here, we provide an overview of the tool, including its purpose, set-up and functionality within a case management system. The use of the tool is illustrated with the COVID-19 situation in India where masses of children were rapidly placed from institutions back into families without preparation.