We can open up and talk, rather than closing everything down
Young person in residential child care, Social Care TV film
SCIE’s newly launched report and at a glance briefing,
produced in partnership with the Institute of Child Care Research in
Belfast, focus on how residential child care staff in Northern Ireland
trained in a variety of therapeutic approaches to enhance their practice
and relationships with the young people.
Children
and young people in care are among the most vulnerable in society.
Compared to the looked-after population in general, children in
residential child care have some of the highest levels of need,
including increased emotional and behavioural difficulties.
What are therapeutic approaches?
Therapeutic
approaches describe ways of working in which residential child care
workers use a therapeutic perspective in their day-to-day social work
with children and young people. This includes having a better
understanding of how children’s experiences affect them, considering
their emotional needs and fostering resilience.
Key findings from the study included:
• Therapeutic approaches can help residential child care staff to use a therapeutic perspective in their day-to-day work
• The approach is concerned with empowering all staff, not just those with therapeutic qualifications
• Staff reported the approach enhanced the consistency of their practice and their relationships with the young people
• Young people were often not aware that a new approach was being used, but noticed an improved ‘atmosphere’.
A newly launched a Social Care TV film
accompanies the report. The film illustrates the impact of the
approaches, focusing on the Lakewood Secure Unit in Bangor. Young people
in the film say that talking about trauma and sharing stories means
that they can “open up and talk, rather than closing everything down”. Training for all staff, including kitchen staff, has helped them to create a calmer, and more positive environment.
NIce tips for social sciences care
ReplyDeleteResidential Child Care services