The importance of parents in the lives of children in the care system

Thomson, Jane; Thorpe, Rosamund

doi:10.1017/s1035077200005551

Cited by 28 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Every year in NSW, a growing number of children are removed from their families, and placed in the care of the Department of Community Services (The Boston Consulting Group, ; Zhou, ). The circumstances faced by these families, and which contribute to their involvement with child protection services, are well documented: poverty, social disadvantage, problematic drug and alcohol use, mental health issues and domestic and family violence (Bromfield, Lamont, Parker & Horsfall, ; Buchbinder & Bareqet‐Moshe, ; Burgheim, ; Butler, McArthur, Thompson & Winkworth, ; Mathews & Burton, ; Thomson & Thorpe, ). Once in care, the issues faced by these children have also been the source of extensive research (Sammut, ; Scott, O'Neill & Minge, ).…”

Section: Families Whose Children Have Been Removed: the Australian Comentioning

confidence: 99%

Groupwork for Parents whose Children are in Care: Challenges and Opportunities

Battle¹,

Bendit²,

Gray³

2014

Aust N Z J Fam Ther

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Until recently, the focus for child protection in NSW has been on risk assessment, supportive measures for parents, and 'the best interests of the child'. The needs of the birth families, once their children have been removed have not received the same attention. An emerging body of research indicates a growing awareness of the importance of the link between good outcomes for children in care and positive ongoing links with their birth parents. Biological parents of children who have been removed invariably continue to have parenting relationships, if not with the removed child, then with subsequent birth children, step children and children in their extended family. Service provision for this group of parents is critical given the complexity and scale of their emotional needs, and the implications for the children they will care for. In this paper, we describe one such intervention: Kids in Care, a group program offered at Relationships Australia NSW, and consider the arising issues and dilemmas for both parents and group workers. Developed to address the particular needs of parents whose children have been taken into care, the group creates an environment of acceptance and support. This opens up possibilities for parents to consider issues of grief, stigma and trauma, as well as to develop skills in communication, assertiveness and emotional regulation.

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Section: Families Whose Children Have Been Removed: the Australian Comentioning

confidence: 99%

Groupwork for Parents whose Children are in Care: Challenges and Opportunities

Battle¹,

Bendit²,

Gray³

2014

Aust N Z J Fam Ther

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“…Nevertheless, repeated themes appear in the small number of studies on this topic. These include loss and grief; the importance of contact to both parents and children, but the many difficulties with this; feelings of powerlessness in the face of the child welfare system; and a lack of social or professional support (Thomson & Thorpe ; O'Neill ; Klease ; Malet et al . ; Taplin & Mattick ).…”

Section: Research With Parents Of Children In Carementioning

confidence: 99%

A tangled web: parental contact with children in kinship care

Kiraly

Humphreys

2013

Child & Family Social Work

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Contact between parents and children in care is a contested area. Parental contact is recognized to be important, yet may present protective issues; in the kinship care environment, it brings the particular challenges of complex family relationships. Seeking the parents' perspective in a child protection context is difficult and therefore under‐researched. This paper describes a nested study within an Australian research project on family contact in kinship care in which the perspectives of 18 mothers and 2 fathers were sought via in‐depth interviews. Mothers and fathers described strong feelings of disempowerment in the context both of their family and the child protection system. The relationship between parent and caregiver emerged as a significant issue. All of the parents wished to remain in contact with their children in a meaningful way, whether or not they were likely to resume their children's care; however, contact arrangements presented many difficulties for them. Mothers articulated the need for services that are more empowering and respectful, rather than oriented towards them as failed parents. In order to build appropriate models of support and intervention, we argue for a more inclusive conceptual frame for family life that gives greater recognition to the role of non‐custodial parents in the lives of their children.

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“…Crisis theory tells us that people are poised for change in the flux of a crisis -this opportunity should be embraced in practice, by supporting workers in persistent attempts to engage parents in this emotionally turbulent time. This persistence aims to avoid the real risk that parents will succumb to a fog of despair and hopelessness, and retreat from their child's life (Fernandez, 1996;Thomson & Thorpe, 2003). Working with parents to focus on early reunification does not mean ignoring risks to children -realistic assessment of risk enables strategies to be designed to reduce and manage it.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Playing it safe? Opportunity is knocking!

Sultmann¹

2014

Children Australia

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Has child protection in Queensland suffered from a risk-averse approach? The recent Child Protection Commission of Inquiry found that a risk-averse culture was one contributing factor to systemic failure in the State’s child protection system. Somewhat paradoxically, such an approach to child protection work can bring its own risks for children and young people. This commentary considers this and asks us to consider what a less risk-averse approach might look like in practice.

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The importance of parents in the lives of children in the care system

Cited by 28 publications

References 3 publications

Groupwork for Parents whose Children are in Care: Challenges and Opportunities

Groupwork for Parents whose Children are in Care: Challenges and Opportunities

A tangled web: parental contact with children in kinship care

Playing it safe? Opportunity is knocking!

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