Since the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child's assertion that the child 'be heard' in matters affecting them, international best practice in child welfare has been to increase engagement and participation of children and young people in affairs related to their care. Research has demonstrated that children and young people benefit from being included in care related processesyet this continues to be a struggle in social work practice. To date, research has focused primarily on children's engagement while in care; thus, very little is known about the experience of young people ageing out of care as it relates to their engagement in and experience of the planning-to-leave-care process. This paper examines young people's experiences of the aftercare planning process in Ireland based on data drawn from the first phase of a qualitative longitudinal study of young people leaving care. Sixteen young people were recruited nationally and interviewed in depth. Baseline interviews were open-ended and encouraged young people to talk about their experiences of care, aftercare planning and their broader life circumstances (e.g. experiences of education, employment, housing, and their peer and family relationships). This investigation is timely since legislation mandating aftercare planning for young people ageing out of care was recently implemented in Ireland, creating a need to reflect on and develop practice knowledge in this area. The findings indicate considerable diversity in how young people 'make sense' of and attach meaning to the transition out of care. The accounts also reveal complexities surrounding youth participation in the leaving care planning process and uncover a number of distinct barriers and facilitators to participation. The paper concludes with learnings and suggestions for practice.

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There is a well-documented association between histories of state care and housing instability. This paper examines care leavers' experience of securing housing during the transition out of care through the lenses of liminality, Recognition theory, and precarity. Conducted in Ireland, sixteen care-experienced youth were recruited to a qualitative longitudinal study. The findings demonstrate how aftercare policies and a lack of affordable housing combined to create precarity for many, which also had implications for their feelings of recognition as young people. For those who remained in their foster care placements or transitioned to supported lodgings, housing stability engendered feelings of being cared for by creating a liminal space where growth was supported. Those, on the other hand, who left their foster care placements at the age of 18 or were forced to leave time-limited aftercare housing were pushed into precariousness, placing them at high risk for homelessness and housing exclusion. These young people felt misrecognised and disrespected by the state and the aftercare system. The findings highlight the deleterious consequences of time-limited aftercare supports for care leavers' sense of security and their ability to achieve valued life goals. The implications of the study's findings for leaving care and aftercare policies are discussed.

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