Residential child care features in nearly all of the contributions this month, but in quite a variety of different ways.
Vic Citarella calls on residential child care workers to take control of their own profession by becoming members of the Institute of Child Care and Social Education (ICSE), set up to establish high standards of child care, and keen to see new developments such as social pedagogy and restorative practice adopted across the country.
Keith White has been rethinking attachment theory, pointing out how every new child adds to the social dynamics of its family
The gruelling story of Aaron’s life in residential child care continues, in Beyond Caring, written by A.J. Stone.
Stuart Hannah addresses the puzzle of creating a solid future for a young person with problems in residential care.
We have a news item about an event in Blyth that challenges accepted thinking about Approved Schools, looking at signs of success demonstrated in the long-term impact of Wellesley’s nautical training
Under the Child Care History banner there is a brief history of events and trends in the residential care of young offenders in the UK.
Our Editorial this month is on trust, a vital ingredient in work with children and families.
Robert Shaw’s Key Texts are:
- Bruno Bettelheim’s A Home for the Heart, which summarised what he had learnt from his years in the residential treatment of disturbed behaviour, and
- Frederick George Lennhoff’s Exceptional Children, about the residential treatment of emotionally disturbed boys at Shotton Hall.
There are two Book Reviews:
- Uprooted, about the shipment of poor children to Canada from 1867 to 1917 by Professor Roy Parker, and
- The God Squad by Paddy Doyle, a classic about Industrial Schools in Ireland, written some time ago but still grim reading.