Andy Pithouse and Alyson Rees use original research to identify key ingredients needed to help create successful foster placements and help prevent placement breakdown.

Studying the lives and activities of 10 foster families who provide lasting and effective care, the authors explore the families' everyday worlds. They look at the negotiations, activities, settings, meanings, rituals and relationships which help to create their successful placements. The authors identify the main components which, according to the carers and the children, contribute to acceptance, belonging and stability in the family. The book examines the emotional and practical work involved in caring, and explores how it is received and reciprocated by fostered young people.

With important insights into child and carer perspectives on fostering, this book is a source of invaluable information for foster carers, children's service professionals, and trainees and care staff who may be engaged with children who are looked after.

Original research to identify key ingredients needed to create successful foster placements and prevent placement breakdown

About the Author
Andy Pithouse (PhD; AcSS) is a researcher in child and family services at Cardiff School of Social Sciences. He has published extensively in areas such as child advocacy, child protection, family service systems, and early intervention. Alyson Rees (PhD) is a senior lecturer at Cardiff School of Social Sciences and has been a social work practitioner for 16 years. She has been involved in a range of child and family research projects and publications in foster care and family support.

Reviews
Here is a very special book that gets under the skin of foster care. It captures the living, breathing realities of daily life for foster children and carers. It shows why foster care is so important and how it can be made even better. A veritable 'one-stop shop' for those seeking a more rounded understanding of foster care. -- Robbie Gilligan, Professor of Social Work and Social Policy, Trinity College Dublin
Across social care we increasingly encourage practitioners to work with users of services to build on their strengths and focus on what they can do, not what they can't. Yet all we seem to read from research in the field of looked after children are the poor outcomes of this group. This book is thankfully different, with the research taking a strengths-based perspective. -- From the foreword by Freda Lewis
A fascinating insight into the everyday lives of foster families, based on real people and with a clear child-centred focus throughout. A welcome addition to the body of literature on foster care that will prove invaluable for foster families and those who support them. -- Harvey Gallagher, Chief Executive of the Nationwide Association of Fostering Providers



Book Information
ISBN 9781849054812
Author Alyson Rees
Format Paperback
Page Count 240
Imprint Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Publisher Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Weight(grams) 350g
Dimensions(mm) 226mm * 174mm * 14mm