Transitions From Care To Independence

This textbook provides a greater understanding of the lived effect that social policies have on service users and carers. While service user and carer involvement has become more and more prominent in social policy over recent years, it is rarely the case that the perspectives of service users and carers goes beyond consultation to truly meaningful involvement and co-production. This book is unique in that it has ten substantive co-produced chapters with service users and carers who have direct lived experiences of social policies. The chapters include lived experiences of direct payments, domestic violence and abuse, looked after children, being a foster carer, receiving long term health and social care, welfare to work, mental health, the transition to leaving care and being a carer. The ground-breaking textbook draws on these lived experiences to highlight key lessons that are relevant to social policy, and will provide an impetus towards changes to make such polices better support service users and carers. We hope that this book will inspire academics, policy makers, students and practitioners but, most importantly, it will encourage service users and carers to come forward with their own narratives to further shape social policy.

Poor outcomes have long been associated with children and young people in care despite them having positive aspirations for their future (NSPCC, 2014). The transition process for Care Leavers towards independence is one of disadvantage and limited life chances (Stein, 2006). The aim of this study is to compare Care Leavers aspirations to the reality of their situation as they transition from being in care to being independent. The study employs a qualitative methodical approach based on systematic review procedures of existing literature and research which results in five selected studies being utilised for this this review. An interpretative analysis allows participants' experiences and voices to remain at the forefront of the study. Three higher order themes emerge from participants' accounts: social isolation of Care Leavers, Care Leavers lack the skills ready for independence and lack of and inappropriate use of resources for Care Leavers. The study draws attention to the importance of social inclusion and life skills while raises the need for improved pathway planning to accommodate the needs of Care Leavers during their transition and tailoring specialist services and wider interagency collaboration with a view of allowing them to gradually transition to independent living.

This important book focuses on the critical role of educational achievement for the wellbeing and success of vulnerable youth in adulthood. It is concerned with three interconnected issues: the support which is or should be afforded to youth ageing out of state care to enable them to fulfil their academic potential; the interdependence of social aspects of ‘care’ and educational attainment for children growing up in state care; and the conditions which are pre-requisite for transition to fully autonomous adulthood, together with the implications of these for the state’s responsibilities to care leavers. These issues are addressed through a review of international literature based on the educational outcomes and life-chances of youth graduating from state care, analysis of the findings of a three-year qualitative study following the educational transitions of young people, and the use of theoretical frameworks to explore the complexities of children’s experiences of the state care system. In doing so the book balances predominantly needs-based discourses with a children’s right perspective, focusing on competence rather than vulnerability and promoting the development of the skills needed for autonomous adulthood. Reconceptualising Transitions from Care to Independence should be considered essential reading for researchers, practitioners and policy makers in the fields of education, childhood studies and adoption and fostering services. Additionally, the issues addressed are of wider relevance to youth transitions to adulthood. Youth ageing out of care provide a particularly insightful case study into the broader cohort of young people entering the workforce in an era of a globalised economy and austerity.

This book challenges and revises existing ways of thinking about leaving care policy, practice and research at regional, national and international levels. Bringing together contributors from fifteen countries, it covers a range of topical policy and practice issues within national, international or comparative contexts. These include youth justice, disability, access to higher education, the role of advocacy groups, ethical challenges and cultural factors. In doing so it demonstrates that, whilst young people are universally a vulnerable group, there are vast differences in their experiences of out-of-home care and transitions from care, and their shorter and longer-term outcomes. Equally, there are significant variations between jurisdictions in terms of the legislative, policy and practice supports and opportunities made available to them. This significant edited collection is essential reading for all those who work with young people from care, including social workers, counsellors, and youth and community practitioners, as well as for students and scholars of child welfare.

Drawing on original research, this theoretically grounded book offers important insight into the experiences of vulnerable youth at a critical time in their personal and educational lives. It sets its analysis of policy and practice in full international context and redresses the balance between needs- and rights-based perspectives.

This comprehensive book thoroughly addresses all aspects of health care transition of adolescents and young adults with chronic illness or disability; and includes the framework, tools and case-based examples needed to develop and evaluate a Health Care Transition (HCT) planning program that can be implemented regardless of a patient’s disease or disability. Health Care Transition: Building a Program for Adolescents and Young Adults with Chronic Illness and Disability is a uniquely inclusive resource, incorporating youth/young adult, caregiver, and pediatric and adult provider voices and perspectives. Part I of the book opens by defining Health Care Transition, describing the urgent need for comprehensive transition planning, barriers to HCT and then offering a framework for developing and evaluating health care transition programs. Part II focuses on the anatomic and neuro-chemical changes that occur in the brain during adolescence and young adulthood, and how they affect function and behavior. Part III covers the perspectives of important participants in the HCT transition process – youth and young adults, caregivers, and both pediatric and adult providers. Each chapter in Part IV addresses a unique aspect of developing HCT programs. Part V explores various examples of successful transition from the perspective of five key participants in the transition process - patients, caregivers, pediatric providers, adult providers and third party payers. Related financial matters are covered in part VI, while Part VII explores special issues such as HCT and the medical home, international perspectives, and potential legal issues. Models of HCT programs are presented in Part VIII, utilizing an example case study. Representing perspectives from over 75 authors and more than 100 medical centers in North America and Europe, Health Care Transition: Building a Program for Adolescents and Young Adults with Chronic Illness and Disability is an ideal resource for any clinician, policy maker, caregiver, or hospitalist working with youth in transition.

An authoritative text highlighting the key issues affecting young people taking the step from leaving care to adulthood. Covers relevant research, policy and practice, and advises on how best to understand, prepare and support young people.