Outcomes for looked after children: life pathways and decision-making for very young children in care or accommodation
Department for Education and Skills
Following on from our longitudinal cohort studies of children, this study concentrated on 42 of the babies in this sample who were admitted to care or accommodation before their first birthday and were still looked after 12-24 months later.
The study aimed to explore the decision-making process that influences the experiences of very young children who remain looked after away from home for long periods of time
The researchers undertook a case file search in order to trace chronologically all the changes experienced by each of the 42 babies from birth until they ceased to be looked after. Policy documents were also reviewed and interviews held with key personnel.
- Many of the children in the study experienced a lack of continuity and stability prior to being looked after, whilst looked after, and after the care episode. In many cases being looked after offered little more stability – although considerably more safety – than remaining with birth parents might have done.
- Over half of the babies had mothers who experienced problems with drug and alcohol misuse, domestic violence or mental illness. Only one of these children returned to the care of their mother.
- By the end of the study (at least five years after admission), 23 of the children had been adopted, 14 had returned to birth parents, two had returned to other relatives and three were still looked after.
- The administrative data concerning length of time looked after can be misleading, as many of the children achieved permanence well before they left care, and 18 achieved permanence within 12 months of entry to the system.
- Delay was caused by the preference for a child to return to birth parents as a first choice of care plan. This was exacerbated by a lack of twin tracking or concurrent planning.
- Court directions for additional assessment, shortages of expert witnesses, judges and court time were also causes of delay.
- There was a reluctance to consider foster carers as potential adopters, due partly to the fear of losing foster carers, but there were also concerns that some foster carers would not meet the more stringent requirements required of adopters.
Findings have several implications for practice and show that: there is a need for better training on attachment in very young children, parental drug misuse, its consequences and timetables for rehabilitation; accurate information is required about a child’s previous experience in order to inform future decision-making; and it is also necessary to obtain better information about how far the authority has been able to match children with appropriate carers, so that time is not lost waiting for the unattainable.
Professor Harriet Ward and Emily Munro.
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