Research Library

This systematic review and meta-analysis is the first to establish the type and prevalence of mental health disorders and symptoms among children in residential care. The findings provide evidence that the prevalence of mental health disorders and symptoms are particularly high among children in residential care.

This study aimed to investigate the patterns of vulnerability to harm from external risk and risk to self among children living in residential care in England. Archival data collected routinely from residential care staff who complete the online BERRI Questionnaire about children in their care were used. Certain groups of children in residential care are vulnerable to different types of risk.

This study explores foster parent perceptions of their role and its impact on child outcomes, identifying three types of foster parents: emotional, ambiguous, and professional.

This discussion, presented at the 2023 International Congress on Mentalization-Based Treatments, highlights the integration of clinical practice and research in the Reflective Fostering Programme through a mentalizing conversation.

This paper documents the practicalities, learnings and challenges of co-producing a research project, drawing on personal diaries kept by four researchers who co-produced the InCLUDE project.

Brief review of the neuroscientific findings that illuminate whether and how adverse early caregiving experiences impact on brain development and poor socioemotional outcomes in children in care, and how such evidence informs our understanding of attachment outcomes in this population.

When given identical information, mental health professionals were less likely to diagnose a child in care (vs. a child not in care) with PTSD. Related to this lesser detection of PTSD, mental health professionals were also less likely to choose NICE-recommended PTSD treatments for a child in care.

We found evidence of poorer cognitive control for young people in care compared to their peers, however this was not worsened in affective contexts. Contrary to hypotheses, this deficit was not related to emotion regulation, mental health difficulties, or school well-being for young people in care.

There are opportunities and challenges in the delivery of online therapeutic services, particularly those with a group format. This paper contributes initial reflections to what we hope will be a rapidly developing literature on best practice of supporting group services in an online format.