Adoption & Fostering

Improving outcomes for looked after children and young people has been a longstanding concern in Wales. This article reports the findings of a scoping study which sought to identify interventions aimed at improving outcomes for looked after children that are effective or promising. The study was commissioned by an independent funding body to inform a £5 million investment programme for Wales. It comprised a rapid review of literature, informed through consultation with an expert advisory panel and groups of young people who had been in care. The article outlines the rapid review method, provides details of shortlisted interventions and describes the interventions subsequently approved for investment. It concludes that although there are many promising interventions which address the factors associated with poor outcomes for looked after children, the evidence base is weak. It is argued that decision-making on interventions should be informed by appraisal of the empirical evidence available, but should also be guided by professional judgement that considers the needs, priorities and preferences of service users, carers, practitioners and policy-makers.

This article is a case study and analysis of the death of a foster carer in Scotland at the hands of the child for whom she was caring. The death was the subject of a Fatal Accident and Sudden Deaths Inquiry in 2015. The case study explores whether or not this was a unique case, its messages for understanding child on parent violence, the adequacy of foster carer training, approval for blanket or specific age ranges, information about children provided to foster carers, meeting the needs of traumatised children and birth family contact when children have access to social networking sites. It considers if there are lessons that can and should be drawn from this case.

This study aimed to increase understanding of the impact of the parenting task in a representative sample of adoptive and non-adoptive parents in the UK. Cross-sectional data from two UK samples were collected: (1) 86 adoptive parents and (2) 167 biological parents, of children aged 3–11 years. Parenting stress and parent-reported child internalising, externalising and attachment-related behaviour difficulties were assessed via online questionnaires. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, correlation and analysis of covariance. Compared with their biological counterparts, adoptive parents described higher parenting stress, which was explained by their reports of greater child difficulties, including attachment-related problems. The same was found for biological parents but with lower levels of stress and child difficulties. Thus, the unique nature of the adoptive parenting task indicates that parenting stress should be considered a risk factor when difficulties are present in adoptive families. Furthermore, service thresholds may be better informed by this understanding, particularly as this study found that while just under half of children had high levels of difficulties, under one-third of parents reported receiving services.

The quality of the caregiver–child relationship is key to the well-being of children but assumptions based on research in western countries about the benefits of different types of substitute care may be questionable when applied elsewhere. This study assessed the quality of caregiver–child relationships and their association with child abuse in foster and residential care in Nigeria. The findings are relevant to European and North American countries as 4% of those looked after and 6% of care entrants in England are of African heritage and it is too easy to draw wrong conclusions about the care they might have received in their own countries. The study scrutinised 314 children aged 7–17 years from foster (157) and residential care settings (157) and assessed the caregiver–child relationship using the Positive Relationship Scale. The child abuse measure covered physical, sexual and emotional components and aggregated these into a single score. The subsequent analysis explored differences in child abuse between foster and residential care and the significance of other factors influencing levels of child abuse. It was found that the children in residential care had more positive relationships with caregivers than did those in foster care, even though abuse occurred in both settings. There were no gender differences in experiences of child abuse in either setting but children under the age of 12 were significantly more likely to have been abused while in care than those over this age. For children in residential care, age was the most significant factor associated with abuse. As these findings provide a perspective on children in substitute care in a West African city, they may be useful to social workers elsewhere who are responsible for children of African heritage, as they suggest that abuse often occurs in foster homes and that child–carer relationships in residential establishments can be good.

International adoption can be a rewarding way for parents to build a family and many varied factors contribute to a positive adoption outcome. In particular, the period of adjustment just prior to and following an international adoption is a major transition for the adoptive family. Positive outcomes are related to both lower parental stress and higher marital satisfaction of the adoptive parents, and strong marital support is a protective factor (Mainemer, Gilman and Ames, 1998). Examining the marital relationship during this time of transition may bring understanding of the effects of the adoption process on the parents’ marital relationship; identifying characteristics that indicate susceptibility to marital discord and possible areas for intervention increases the chances of a positive adoption outcome. This study examined 49 mothers’ perceptions of marital satisfaction, marital happiness and personal stress in the weeks preceding and the months following an international adoption. Women are often the primary caregivers of the newly adopted child and mothers tend to indicate distress during this period, therefore this investigation focused on the maternal viewpoint. The sample included children who had been designated as special needs in the country of origin as well as others who had not. The findings suggest that marriages with positive perceptions and satisfaction prior to adoption fare best during the early months post-adoption. Older women reported less positive perceptions of their marriages and spouses; therefore, mothers beyond childbearing age may benefit from further support.

This study focuses on access to school related resources for young people (13–18 years old) in foster and residential care. The aim is to examine the degree to which environments for young people in foster and residential care provide them with relevant resources for their schooling. The study employs a welfare perspective and the concept of level of living, where, given adequate resources, young people are seen as agents with the potential to exercise self-determination in their own lives. The data are retrieved from a survey of the level of living for young people placed in out-of-home care in Sweden, an exercise that replicates national surveys of children living at home. Access to resources is then compared for the two groups. This shows that young people in care, especially residential care, lack central school related resources. Based on these results, the article discusses looked after young people’s potential to exercise determination while in care.