Children's participation in child protection—How do practitioners understand children's participation in practice?

Journal article


Woodman, Elise, Roche, Steven and McArthur, Morag. (2023). Children's participation in child protection—How do practitioners understand children's participation in practice? Child and Family Social Work. 28(1), pp. 125-135. https://doi.org/10.1111/cfs.12947
AuthorsWoodman, Elise, Roche, Steven and McArthur, Morag
Abstract

Children's participation is essential to achieve good outcomes for children involved in child protection systems. Despite this, research has consistently found children report low levels of participation, are poorly consulted and feel inadequately involved in decisions about their lives. To explore how practitioners understand children's participation, 18 in-depth interviews were conducted with statutory child protection practitioners in Australia. The interviews explored the ways child protection practitioners understand children's participation. Our findings show practitioners conceptualize children as rights holders and believe it is essential to hear directly from children about their needs and wishes to keep them safe. Practitioners identified the importance of transparent processes and decisions. Different understanding of participation emerged, with some participants talking about children as their central focus but not discussing meaningful participation of the child. It appeared that children's participation relied largely on the views and skills of individual workers, as well as their ability to incorporate meaningful participation in limited time and in complex practice environments where children's safety is a primary concern. Systemic changes to address time barriers, training practitioners to understand and implement participatory practice, and seeking children's input into service design, will support consistent and meaningful participation.

Keywordschild and family welfare; child protection; children; children's participation
Year2023
JournalChild and Family Social Work
Journal citation28 (1), pp. 125-135
PublisherJohn Wiley & Sons Ltd
ISSN1356-7500
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1111/cfs.12947
Scopus EID2-s2.0-85133251592
Open accessPublished as ‘gold’ (paid) open access
Page range125-135
FunderAustralian Catholic University (ACU)
Publisher's version
License
File Access Level
Open
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online03 Jul 2022
Publication process dates
Accepted26 May 2022
Deposited18 Aug 2023
Permalink -

https://acuresearchbank.acu.edu.au/item/8z8v7/children-s-participation-in-child-protection-how-do-practitioners-understand-children-s-participation-in-practice

Download files


Publisher's version
OA_Woodman_2023_Childrens_participation_in_child_protection_How.pdf
License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
File access level: Open

  • 99
    total views
  • 42
    total downloads
  • 6
    views this month
  • 3
    downloads this month
These values are for the period from 19th October 2020, when this repository was created.

Export as

Related outputs

Contact with mothers for children in out-of-home-care : Group-based trajectory modelling from the Pathways of Care Longitudinal Study (POCLS)
Suomi, Aino Inkeri, Lucas, Nina, Pasalich, Dave S. and McArthur, Morag. (2024). Contact with mothers for children in out-of-home-care : Group-based trajectory modelling from the Pathways of Care Longitudinal Study (POCLS). Child Abuse and Neglect. 149, pp. 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2023.106199
Take notice, believe us and act! Exploring the safety of children and young people in government run organisations : A report for the Tasmanian Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government's responses to child sexual abuse in institutional settings
Moore, Tim and McArthur, Morag. (2022). Take notice, believe us and act! Exploring the safety of children and young people in government run organisations : A report for the Tasmanian Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government's responses to child sexual abuse in institutional settings Hobart, Tasmania: Tasmanian Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government's Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings.
How do research ethics committee members respond to hypothetical studies with children? Results from the MESSI Study
Taplin, Stephanie, Chalmers, Jenny, Brown, Judith, Moore, Tim, Graham, Anne and McArthur, Morag. (2022). How do research ethics committee members respond to hypothetical studies with children? Results from the MESSI Study. Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics. 17(3), pp. 254-266. https://doi.org/10.1177/15562646221087530
Building family connectedness - A new practice tool for social workers
Woodman, Elise and Ross, Jessica. (2022). Building family connectedness - A new practice tool for social workers. The British Journal of Social Work. 52(6), pp. 3130-3150. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcab226
Human research ethics committee experiences and views about children’s participation in research : Results from the MESSI Study
Taplin, Stephanie, Chalmers, Jenny, Brown, Judith, Moore, Tim, Graham, Anne and McArthur, Morag. (2022). Human research ethics committee experiences and views about children’s participation in research : Results from the MESSI Study. Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics. 17(1-2), pp. 70-83. https://doi.org/10.1177/15562646211048294
Young people’s perceptions of sexual assault in residential care : “It does happen a lot”
Death, Jodi, Moore, Tim, McArthur, Morag, Roche, Steven and Tilbury, Claire. (2021). Young people’s perceptions of sexual assault in residential care : “It does happen a lot”. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse. 30(1), pp. 4-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/10538712.2020.1715521
The potential of equine-assisted psychotherapy for treating trauma in Australian Aboriginal peoples
Bennett, Bindi and Woodman, Elise Anne. (2019). The potential of equine-assisted psychotherapy for treating trauma in Australian Aboriginal peoples. The British Journal of Social Work. 49(4), pp. 1041-1058. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcz053
Child protection practitioners: Including children in decision making
Woodman, Elise, Roche, Steven, McArthur, Morag and Moore, Tim. (2018). Child protection practitioners: Including children in decision making. Child and Family Social Work. 23(3), pp. 475 - 484. https://doi.org/10.1111/cfs.12439
Sticking with us through it all : The importance of trustworthy relationships for children and young people in residential care
Moore, Tim, Mcarthur, Morag, Death, Jodi, Tilbury, Clare and Roche, Steven. (2018). Sticking with us through it all : The importance of trustworthy relationships for children and young people in residential care. Children and Youth Services Review. 84, pp. 68-75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.10.043
Young people's experiences of family connectedness: Supporting social work practice with families and young people
Woodman, Elise and McArthur, Morag. (2018). Young people's experiences of family connectedness: Supporting social work practice with families and young people. The British Journal of Social Work. 48(3), pp. 693 - 713. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcx019
Agency and its constraints among biological children of foster carers
Roche, Steven and Noble-Carr, Debbie. (2017). Agency and its constraints among biological children of foster carers. Australian Social Work. 70(1), pp. 66 - 77. https://doi.org/10.1080/0312407X.2016.1179771
Safe and Sound : Creating safe residential care services for children and young people
Moore, Tim, Mcarthur, Morag and Roche, Steven. (2017). Safe and Sound : Creating safe residential care services for children and young people Canberra, Australia: Australian Catholic University. https://doi.org/10.24268/fhs.8303
Youth homelessness and its relationship with family conflict: Models for policy and practice
Roche, Steven and Barker, Justin. (2017). Youth homelessness and its relationship with family conflict: Models for policy and practice Australian Catholic University. https://doi.org/10.24268/fhs.8306
Child protection and maltreatment in the Philippines: A systematic review of the literature
Roche, Steven. (2017). Child protection and maltreatment in the Philippines: A systematic review of the literature. Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies. 4(1), pp. 104 - 128. https://doi.org/10.1002/app5.167
Improving formal service responses for refugee families in Australia
Saunders, Vicky, Roche, Steven, McArthur, Morag and Barry, Erin. (2017). Improving formal service responses for refugee families in Australia Child Family Community Australia. https://doi.org/10.24268/fhs.8350
Barriers to formal and informal supports for refugee families in Australia
Saunders, Vicky, Roche, Steven, McArthur, Morag and Barry, Erin. (2017). Barriers to formal and informal supports for refugee families in Australia Child Family Community Australia. https://doi.org/10.24268/fhs.8338
Our Safety Counts: Key Findings from the Australian Survey of Kids and Young People Help-seeking and institutional responses to safety concerns
Moore, Tim, Mcarthur, Morag, Barry, Erin, Roche, Steven and Heerde, Jessica Anne. (2016). Our Safety Counts: Key Findings from the Australian Survey of Kids and Young People Help-seeking and institutional responses to safety concerns Australia: Australian Catholic University. https://doi.org/10.24268/fhs.8300
Our Safety Counts: Key Findings from the Australian Survey of Kids and Young People Perceptions of interpersonal safety and characteristics of safe institutions
Moore, Tim, Mcarthur, Morag, Barry, Erin, Roche, Steven and Heerde, Jessica Anne. (2016). Our Safety Counts: Key Findings from the Australian Survey of Kids and Young People Perceptions of interpersonal safety and characteristics of safe institutions Australia: Australian Catholic University. https://doi.org/10.24268/fhs.8301
Supporting refugee families in Australia
Saunders, Vicky, Mcarthur, Morag, Roche, Steven and Barry, Erin. (2016). Supporting refugee families in Australia Australia: Australian Catholic University.
Safe and Sound: Exploring the safety of young people in residential care
Moore, Tim, Mcarthur, Morag, Roche, Steven, Death, Jodi and Tilbury, Clare. (2016). Safe and Sound: Exploring the safety of young people in residential care Melbourne, Australia: Institute of Child Protection Studies, Australian Catholic University. https://doi.org/10.24268/fhs.8140
Our safety counts: Children and young people’s perceptions of safety and institutional responses to their safety concerns
Moore, McArthur, Morag, Heerde, Jessica Anne, Roche, Steven, O'Leary, Patrick and Mr, Tim P. Moore. (2016). Our safety counts: Children and young people’s perceptions of safety and institutional responses to their safety concerns Melbourne: Institute of Child Protection Studies, Australian Catholic University. https://doi.org/10.24268/fhs.8349
Considering identity and meaning constructions for vulnerable young people
Noble-Carr, Debbie and Woodman, Elise. (2016). Considering identity and meaning constructions for vulnerable young people. Journal of Adolescent Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743558416684952
The salvaging of identities among homeless men : Reflections for social work
Roche, Steven. (2015). The salvaging of identities among homeless men : Reflections for social work. Australian Social Work. 68(2), pp. 228 - 243. https://doi.org/10.1080/0312407X.2014.955807
Refugee communities intercultural dialogue: Building relationships, building communities
Saunders, Vicky, Roche, Steven, McArthur, Morag, Arney, Fiona and Ziaian, Tahereh. (2015). Refugee communities intercultural dialogue: Building relationships, building communities.
Improving practice: The importance of connections in establishing positive identity and meaning in the lives of vulnerable young people
Noble-Carr, Debbie, Barker, Justin, McArthur, Morag and Woodman, Elise. (2014). Improving practice: The importance of connections in establishing positive identity and meaning in the lives of vulnerable young people. Children and Youth Services Review. 47(3), pp. 389 - 396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.10.017
Young people's experiences of family connectedness
Woodman, Elise Anne. (2014). Young people's experiences of family connectedness [Thesis]. https://doi.org/10.4226/66/5a9cb959b0b84
Social worker's experiences of linking theory and practice
Woodman, Elise. (2012). Social worker's experiences of linking theory and practice. Advances in Social Work and Welfare Education. 14(1), pp. 22 - 38.
Social workers' experiences of linking theory and practice
Woodman, Elise. (2012). Social workers' experiences of linking theory and practice. Advances in Social Work and Welfare Education. 14(1), pp. 22 - 38.