Search

This paper uses first person inquiry and presentational form to argue the case for a sensory approach to understanding professional connection and disconnection with children who may be being abused. The approach is underpinned by an epistemology or theory of knowledge which stems from a participatory world-view where appearances are not permanent or separate from us: the act of perception takes place between the active sensible world and our own bodies, where "otherness" expresses itself directly to our senses. Thus perception, conceived in this way, can lead to right action in the moment; or discounting what is actually being said by a child and disconnection. Buber's notion of the "I-You" is used to explore feelings and the movement to relation when professionals witness children's "stories of suffering" (Buber, 1965; Laub, 1992; Jones, 2008). The paper concludes by arguing the case for practitioners to become researchers of their own practice in rigorously facilitated inquiry groups. It is argued that this form of practitioner-research serves to quality assure frontline practice, and create new knowledge (or practice wisdom) such that feelings can be constructively worked with to improve connection with the lived reality for children.

Outlines the impact of legislative changes in England and Wales following implementation of the Children Act 1989. Notes the central role of partnership to the act. Focuses on preventive practice and partnership with parents for child protection, exploring the balance between collusive and oppressive child welfare practice. Concludes with a case analysis and implications for child protection. (BAC)

Over the past few years, first line managers in child care have faced mounting pressure on their time from both the national performance management agenda and the professional demands associated with the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families and Working Together to Safeguard Children: A Guide to Inter-Agency Working to Safeguard and Promote the Welfare of Children. This paper briefly discusses the policy context surrounding this period of unprecedented change and focuses on the potential erosion of the reflective space in supervision as first line managers struggle to cope with the ever-increasing expectations. An argument is made for the creative use of multi-agency action learning/research projects within the workplace to supplement individual supervision and promote reflective multi-agency child care practice; some examples of successful projects are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores professional decision-making in cases of child neglect within the context of child protection practice in Britain. The literature on the nature of neglect is reviewed. Difficulties associated with decision-making are then examined within a framework that addresses the social, political and organizational context of child protection practice. It is argued that the current system, which focuses on incidents of abuse rather than the context of children's lives, provides inadequate protection for many children experiencing chronic neglect. Conclusions are drawn with regard to the development of practice that supports vulnerable parents while still remaining the child's welfare as paramount. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing the over-representation of Aboriginal children in the child protection system is a key target for the Australian government. We aimed to provide more recent evidence on the population-level cumulative incidence of contacts for Aboriginal children with child protective services (CPS) in Western Australia (WA). Linked administrative data was provided for WA CPS between 2000 and 2015 for 33,709 Aboriginal children born in WA between 2000 and 2013. Descriptive summaries and cumulative incidence estimates were used to examine changes in CPS contact trends over time and within sibling groups. There was an increase in early-childhood contacts for children born more recently, with 7.6 % and 2.3 % of children born in 2000–2001 having a notification and placement in out-of-home care by age one, respectively, compared to 15.1 % and 4.3 % of children born in 2012–2013. Among sibling groups where at least one sibling had a CPS contact, approximately half of children had their first contacts on the same date as another sibling. For children born after one of their siblings had been placed in out-of-home care, 31.9 % had themselves been placed in out-of-home care by age one. Multiple children tend to be placed into out-of-home care when at least one sibling is, which is likely to have a significant impact on families affected. The additional risk of placement also carries over to children born after the first removal in a sibling group, highlighting the need for further support to prevent future removals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]