"The Stolen Child" - a new book by Maurice Fenton

The Stolen Child the latest book by Maurice Fenton is now published. It is available on Amazon at

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stolen-Child-Relationship-Belonging-Compassion/dp/0995550905/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1477224126&sr=8-2&keywords=maurice+fenton

The Stolen Child was Inspired by articles Maurice Fenton published in recent issues of the goodenoughcaring Journal. His book portrays the stolen lives of young people in care and considers the importance of caring for young people in a human, compassionate and professional manner. Drawing on the writings of WB Yeats and Carl Jung among others the author reflects on his own work with children and young people. The Stolen Child will be reviewed in December's issue of the goodenoughcaring Journal.

A review of Maurice Fenton's previous book Social Care and Child Welfare in Ireland:  integrating residential care, leaving care and after care can be found  here.



This news item first appeared on the goodenoughcaring home page on October 24th, 2016

Call for Papers : Special Issue of the Journal of Social Work Practice on residential child care.

Laura Steckley has written to us about a special issue of the Journal of Social Work Practice which she is editing.

Special Issue :  psychodynamic and systems theories perspectives on residential child care

Call for Papers

Abstracts due :  14th November, 2016

While the theoretical roots of residential child care practice are firmly grounded in psychodynamic thinking (Bettelheim, 1950; Redl & Wineman, 1952; Winnicott & Britton, 1947), explicitly psychodynamic approaches to theorisation and practice have been declining over recent decades (Mann, 2003; Sharpe, 2006). At the same time, consensus continues to grow across professional traditions and across continents in relation to the central importance of relationships in considering the needs of children and young people in residential child care (Kendrick, Steckley, & McPheat, 2011). Psychodynamic and systems theories have explanatory power for making sense of and informing the way we do relationships in residential child care.

This special issue invites papers on residential child care that incorporate psychodynamic and systems theories thinking in their broadest sense (i.e. papers which focus on ways of understanding interpersonal and organisational processes and dynamics in residential settings for children and young people). Areas of exploration might include (but are not limited to):

• the place of psychodynamics and systems theory in education and training for residential child care;
• particular psychodynamic or systems theory concepts and their utility in informing practice;
• synergies and/or tensions between psychodynamic and other traditions in residential childcare;
• ways in which psychodynamic thinking can inform a more useful construction of ‘professional’in residential milieux;
• systems theory perspectives on consultancy in residential child care;
• experiences of care or practice from a psychodynamic perspective;
• the impact of managerialism on individuals’ and organisations’ interpersonal processes.

Papers are strongly encouraged from practitioners and care leavers as well as academics and educators; perspectives from traditions of residential child care other than social work (e.g. child and youth care, social pedagogy, orphanages) are also warmly invited. Both shorter pieces reflecting voices from practice or care experiences (3,000 words or fewer), and longer articles (6,500 words maximum) are sought. Please consult the Journal’s Instructions for Authors http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSub- mission?journalCode=cjsw20&page=instructions#.Vx9-hNQguM8 for more detailed guidance.

If it would be useful to talk through your ideas for an article, I would be happy to communicate with you by e-mail, Skype or phone. Please send abstracts of 250–500 words for proposed papers (by 14 November) to: Laura.L.Steckley@strath.ac.uk

References

Bettelheim, B. (1950) Love is not enough, Free Press, NewYork, NY.

Kendrick, A., Steckley, L. & McPheat, G. (2011) ‘Residential child care: Learning from international comparisons’, in Early Professional Development for Social Workers, eds

R. Taylor, M. Hill & F. McNeill, Venture Press/BASW, Birmingham, AL, pp. 144–158. Mann, V. (2003) ‘Attachment and discipline’, Relational Child and Youth Care Practice, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 10–14.
Redl, F. & Wineman, D. (1952) Controls from within: Techniques for the treatment of the aggressive child, The Free Press, NewYork, NY.

Sharpe, C. (2006) ‘Residential child care and the psychodynamic approach: Is it time to try again?’, Scottish Journal of Residential Child Care, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 46–56.

Winnicott, D. W. & Britton, C. (1947) ‘Residential management as treatment for difficult children: The evolution of a wartime hostels scheme’, Human Relations, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 87–97.