Signs of Safety is a strengths-based approach to work with children and families where there are concerns about abuse or neglect. Signs of Safety is widely used in the UK and internationally, and there is a growing range of empirical research exploring its use within statutory children's social work. However, there is little research exploring…

Poland is a post-communist country rooted in the idea of a nanny state. Although the state is still highly involved in social policy, the social and constitutional transformation that began in 1989 led to many changes which in turn influenced the functioning of an individual and family life. Numerous reforms have gradually changed the shape of the…

Rising demand for early help services is currently taking place against a backdrop of closing or reduced services and shrinking public authority budgets across England. Complicating matters is the wide variety of service orientations and differences in assessments offered to vulnerable families. This can be confusing for them. Moreover, this is an…

This article is based on a study of two early years services in the West of Ireland which was attended mostly by asylum seekers. Using a sample of the findings for illustration, we discuss how the study captured an example of culturally sensitive practice that demonstrated an ability to counteract some of the negative effects of being an asylum…

This article draws on qualitative evidence from an evaluation of the "Greater Tomorrow" Crèche and Ballyhaunis Community Preschool in Ballyhaunis, Co Mayo, Ireland in 2016. The article focuses on the approach to practice and the underlying ethos of these two services, reflecting a clearly articulated respect for diversity and the…

There is consensus within child welfare services that the provision of timely and effective support to families in the community is of critical importance in terms of protecting children. "Family support" is a term used to refer to a broad range of activities aimed at supporting the functioning of families. It is generally accepted that…

The present review summarises literature on the needs of disabled children and their families and draws on research identifying promising service provision. The review took 1997 as its starting point to build on two thorough reviews that were written prior to that time. The findings of the current review largely echo earlier work in terms of what…

This paper provides an account of the design, development and implementation of a postvention model of responding to the needs of families within a community following the aftermath of a tragic event, including suicide. This model was developed for a specific disadvantaged urban community. The paper includes the context of the need for such an…

The methodological and empirical literature on measuring the need of child populations is sparse. What does exist is more orientated towards children in receipt of non-universal or specialist services, overlooking those children with similar needs who are not in contact with such services. Further, there is a tendency often for need analyses not…

This paper evaluates responses to asylum seeker children in Ireland from a child poverty perspective and from that of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. It draws upon research undertaken in early 2001 on behalf of the Irish Refugee Council among asylum seeker families with children in Cork, Limerick and Ennis on their…