This open access book critically explores what child protection policy and professional practice would mean if practice was grounded in human rights standards. This book inspires a new direction in child protection research – one that critically assesses child protection policy and professional practice with regard to human rights in general, and the rights of the child in particular. Each chapter author seeks to approach the rights of the child from their own academic field of interest and through a comparative lens, making the research relevant across nation-state practices. The book is split into five parts to focus on the most important aspects of child protection. The first part explains the origins, aim, and scope of the book; the second part explores aspects of professionalism and organization through law and policy; and the third part discusses several key issues in child protection and professional practice in depth. The fourth part discusses selected areas of importance to child protection practices (low-impact in-house measures, public care in residential care and foster care respectively) and the fifth part provides an analytical summary of the book. Overall, it contributes to the present need for a more comprehensive academic debate regarding the rights of the child, and the supranational perspective this brings to child protection policy and practice across and within nation-states. .

This book explains and discusses how a child’s right to freedom of expression is upheld through practice and decision-making in Child Protection Services (CPS). Using the right to expression as stipulated in Article 12.2 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) as a point of departure, it explains what CPS practices should look like and how they must operate to uphold and enforce the rights of the child by providing "the opportunity to be heard" in any administrative practice. Current research literature documents extensively, and across countries, how either the voice of the child is not heard or, alternatively, the existence of a pro forma/tokenistic approach to listening to the child throughout CPS practices. Taking a three-fold approach, this book establishes a clearer connection between rights and professional practice according to Article 12 extrapolates how rights-based practice is achieved during CPS practices provides a comprehensive answer to the challenge of implementing Article 12.2 through policy and legislation. It will be of interest to all students, academic and professionals working within child protection including social workers, probation officers, health and social care workers, lawyers and teachers. The Open Access version of this book, available at www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

Considering the rights of the child is now central to all fields involving children and to good multi-agency working. This book offers an explanation of the theoretical issues and the key policy developments that are crucial to all professions, and helps the reader to understand children's rights in relation to their role in working with children and young people. Looking at education, health, social care and welfare, it bridges the gap between policy and practice for children from Birth to 19 years. Chapters cover: - the child's right to play - youth justice and children's rights - the voice of the child - ethical dilemmas in different contexts - involvement, participation and decision making - safeguarding and child protection - social justice and exclusion This book helps the reader understand what constitutes good practice, whilst considering the advantages and tensions involved in working across disciplines to implement children's rights against a complex legislative and social policy backdrop. Essential reading for undergraduate and graduate students on Early Years, Early Childhood Studies, Childhood and Youth, Education, Law, Social Work, Play and Psychology courses, it is relevant to professionals working across education, health and social work.

The state is increasingly experienced as both intrusive and neglectful, particularly by those living in poverty, leading to loss of trust and widespread feelings of alienation and disconnection. Against this tense background, this innovative book argues that child protection policies and practices have become part of the problem, rather than ensuring children’s well-being and safety. Building on the ideas in the best-selling Re-imagining child protection and drawing together a wide range of social theorists and disciplines, the book: • Challenges existing notions of child protection, revealing their limits; • Ensures that the harms children and families experience are explored in a way that acknowledges the social and economic contexts in which they live; • Explains how the protective capacities within families and communities can be mobilised and practices of co-production adopted; • Places ethics and human rights at the centre of everyday conversations and practices.

For centuries, residential child and youth care systems worldwide have provided homes for vulnerable children and adolescents. The implementation of children's rights, especially the right of participation, is assessed as an important base for promoting the best interests of the child in an out-of-home care environment. Featuring contributions from distinguished international authors, this volume offers an in-depth understanding of crucial participation processes and underlying power structures when involving young people in decision-making about their care and everyday life in different out-of-home care institutions. Contributions cover a broad spectrum of current research findings concerning the participation of young people in foster families and residential living groups in Australia, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland as well as cross-nationals perspective on children and young people’s participation in foster and residential care placements in Great Britain and France. The volume fills major gaps concerning the participation of young people in different out-of-home care and policy settings and will be required reading for policymakers, researchers, practitioners, scholars, and students interested in increasing opportunities for young people’s participation and creating better out-of-home care settings for vulnerable young people.

"The timing of the publication with the revised Working Together guidelines could not be more advantageous. This book is a unique and important contribution to child care literature. No agency should be without." - Child Abuse Review Professionals concerned with the protection of children face many challenges. This work demands knowledge from several disciplines, a wide variety of skills, and interdisciplinary collaboration. The editors, Howard Dubowitz, a pediatrician, and Diane DePanfilis, a social worker, together with over 70 experts in this field offer what is known about how best to work with maltreated children and their families, in a very practical, concise, and user-friendly way. Structured to follow the life of a case from the time a report of child maltreatment is made through the various pathways in the child protection system, this edited volume synthesizes the best practice principles for responding to reports of child abuse and neglect; engaging children and other family members in intervention; developing cross-cultural practice competencies; assessing risk, evaluating safety, and conducting family assessments; defining outcomes and planning intervention; evaluating risk reduction; and making permanency decisions; and discusses the unique legal, medical, ethical, and other practice issues that work in the child protection field involves. Professionals facing tough dilemmas in practice should find valuable guidance in these pages.

This book provides different perspectives on the concept of children’s rights, including policy, educational, and children’s perspectives. It examines how the crucial ideas of the Convention on the Rights of the Child are respected and implemented in 14 countries in five regions of the world. It looks at early childhood education, children’s participatory rights, and at how these rights are promoted and guaranteed in different countries. It explores the professional practice of education and its complexities, challenges and dilemmas, as well as the role of play, and of listening and participation. The book advocates children’s rights today, arguing for its vital importance, in the best interests of the children. In doing so, it furthers the understanding of children’s rights and spreads knowledge about the Convention, as a means of celebrating its 30th anniversary. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) comprises the potential to change the lives of children to the very best. It may exalt children from the position of marginalized citizens to the centre of policies all over the world. Even though the concept of children’s rights is omnipresent, the respect for children’s rights must be discussed. While the Convention brings the new perspective of children as citizens to the world, there are still challenges in its application. The book interrogates challenges in understanding and applying children rights and offers possible answers to these challenges. The ratification process itself, does not guarantee that children’s rights are respected. While all adults should take responsibility for implementing the UNCRC in everyday life, Early Childhood Education should give opportunities for children to learn and live their rights.

This book builds upon and advances the comparative analysis of child protection systems that was conducted in the mid-1990s. Since the mid-1990s, however, much has changed in the realm of child welfare and how states define and deal with their responsibilities for children at risk. This book sets out to identify and analyse these changes and their implications, with a particular focus on assessing the extent to which the child protection and family service orientations continue to provide a helpful framework for understanding and comparing systems in different countries.

Since the Munro report (2011), a greater emphasis has been placed on the value of child-centred practice in social work with children, young people and families. It has come to be recognised that social workers cannot make an assessment or intervene to safeguard children and promote positive outcomes without engaging with the children themselves. This involves recognising the rights of the child, getting to know who they are, what they need, how they feel about their situation, and what they want for their future. Split into two distinct sections, this authoritative text focuses on the foundational knowledge required for child-centred work, unpacking the ethical and theoretical principles that form the basis of the approach and exploring current debates around working with children and families. Benefitting from the authors' extensive experience in academia and practice settings, each chapter: - Provides insightful practitioner testimonials and case study examples to help the reader apply what they have learned to everyday practice. -Highlights important research studies that give voice to children and young people, providing the reader with background knowledge of the evidence base for child-centred approaches. - Includes engaging questions and activities to enable the reader to reflect on what they have learned, and make links to their own practice, values and beliefs. With a strong focus on developing the reader's practice skills, particularly in engaging and communicating with children, Child-Centred Practice is an essential handbook for students and professionals involved in this complex yet rewarding area of social work practice.