Young People S Transitions From Care To Adulthood

The transition from care into adulthood is a difficult step for any young person, but young people leaving care have a high risk of social exclusion, both in terms of material disadvantage and marginalisation. In Young People's Transitions from Care to Adulthood leading academics gather together the latest international research relating to the transition of young people leaving care, outlining and comparing the range of legal and policy frameworks, welfare regimes and innovative practice across 16 countries. The book also highlights the variations that exist between different groups leaving care. Featuring key messages for policy and practice, this book will give academics, practitioners and policymakers valuable insights into how to encourage resilience and improve outcomes for care leavers.

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.

The transition to adulthood is a longer and more complex process than it was just a few decades ago, and a growing number of youth and young adults experience significant challenges in the establishment of an autonomous and independent lifestyle when compared to previous generations. Successful high school graduation followed by employment is no longer the inevitable trajectory for young people, especially in the current socio-economic context where jobs are less accessible and more demanding in terms of specialized skills and higher academic qualifications. Unable to rely on family for emotional and financial support, vulnerable youth, who grow up in substitute care, are especially effected by the lengthening of this transition to adulthood. The dismal outcomes for youth growing up in care are by now well-documented, and more recently, a range of models have been proposed to help advance our understanding of these outcomes and how to forestall them. However, the literature on leaving care has long suffered from the absence of theory that could guide meaningful intervention. In response to this gap, Leaving Care and the Transition to Adulthood offers a comprehensive overview of the newest contributions to this area in relation to theory, in addition to the Theory of Emerging Adulthood, while also featuring cutting-edge research and best practices that support adjustment across a range of domains for this population. International in scope, this book focuses on bringing together major advances that span the literature on transitioning to adulthood within the care system, offering a unique and important contribution to the field.

Mentoring for Young People in Care and Leaving Care offers a rich exploration of the theory, research and practice relating to youth mentoring as a means of essential social support. Brady, Dolan and McGregor ground their work on the premise that the informal social support provided through a high-quality mentoring relationship can help young people in care to sustain positive mental health, cope with stress and fulfil their potential through adolescence and into adulthood. It provides an up-to-date synthesis of research findings in relation to natural mentoring, formal mentoring and youth-initiated mentoring for children in care and explores the challenges and considerations relating to practice in this area. Illustrated with the details of original research with care-experienced young people, it offers much-needed insight into how young people interpret and make sense of their experiences in care and of mentoring. Written to be accessible by those with limited knowledge of youth mentoring, this timely publication will be essential reading for academics, policy makers and practitioners in the fields of adolescent development, social care, social work and youth work.

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.

Young adulthood - ages approximately 18 to 26 - is a critical period of development with long-lasting implications for a person's economic security, health and well-being. Young adults are key contributors to the nation's workforce and military services and, since many are parents, to the healthy development of the next generation. Although 'millennials' have received attention in the popular media in recent years, young adults are too rarely treated as a distinct population in policy, programs, and research. Instead, they are often grouped with adolescents or, more often, with all adults. Currently, the nation is experiencing economic restructuring, widening inequality, a rapidly rising ratio of older adults, and an increasingly diverse population. The possible transformative effects of these features make focus on young adults especially important. A systematic approach to understanding and responding to the unique circumstances and needs of today's young adults can help to pave the way to a more productive and equitable tomorrow for young adults in particular and our society at large. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults describes what is meant by the term young adulthood, who young adults are, what they are doing, and what they need. This study recommends actions that nonprofit programs and federal, state, and local agencies can take to help young adults make a successful transition from adolescence to adulthood. According to this report, young adults should be considered as a separate group from adolescents and older adults. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults makes the case that increased efforts to improve high school and college graduate rates and education and workforce development systems that are more closely tied to high-demand economic sectors will help this age group achieve greater opportunity and success. The report also discusses the health status of young adults and makes recommendations to develop evidence-based practices for young adults for medical and behavioral health, including preventions. What happens during the young adult years has profound implications for the rest of the life course, and the stability and progress of society at large depends on how any cohort of young adults fares as a whole. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults will provide a roadmap to improving outcomes for this age group as they transition from adolescence to adulthood.

The transition to adulthood is a longer and more complex process than it was just a few decades ago, and a growing number of youth and young adults experience significant challenges in the establishment of an autonomous and independent lifestyle when compared to previous generations. Successful high school graduation followed by employment is no longer the inevitable trajectory for young people, especially in the current socio-economic context where jobs are less accessible and more demanding in terms of specialized skills and higher academic qualifications. Unable to rely on family for emotional and financial support, vulnerable youth, who grow up in substitute care, are especially effected by the lengthening of this transition to adulthood. The dismal outcomes for youth growing up in care are by now well-documented, and more recently, a range of models have been proposed to help advance our understanding of these outcomes and how to forestall them. However, the literature on leaving care has long suffered from the absence of theory that could guide meaningful intervention. In response to this gap, Leaving Care and the Transition to Adulthood offers a comprehensive overview of the newest contributions to this area in relation to theory, in addition to the Theory of Emerging Adulthood, while also featuring cutting-edge research and best practices that support adjustment across a range of domains for this population. International in scope, this book focuses on bringing together major advances that span the literature on transitioning to adulthood within the care system, offering a unique and important contribution to the field.