1. Mike Stein Research Professor
Promoting the Resilience of Young People Leaving Care Messages from research
Mike Stein
Research Professor

2. Presentation outline What is resilience? Resilience and outcomes
Quality of care, transitions and after care
Making a difference: young people’s projects, mentoring, getting back into learning, FE and HE
Promoting resilience

3. What is Resilience?
“Care it’s given me great opportunities. Before I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do, now I know what direction I’m going in. At home my parents didn’t care what I did.”

4. What is Resilience? Overcoming the odds, coping, recovery
Response to adversity, disadvantage, problems
Associated with individual qualities, parenting, social networks, schools, communities and cultures
Ecological perspective
Not celebrity but ‘ordinary magic’

5. Resilience and Outcomes
Resilience recognises:
The journey travelled by young people
Their different starting points and pathways – not just standardised or normative outcome measures
Young people’s whole lives and the connections between different dimensions – e.g. well-being and education

6. Quality of Care “I could talk about my problems, I was loved.”
Quality parenting, ‘developmental’ role
Stability, continuity, attachment
Positive identity
Health and well-being – CYPAct 2008, new duty
Support in education

7. Supporting School Education
Assessing skills and abilities - Personal Education Plans
Identifying both ‘care’ and ‘educational’ needs
Clear arrangements for early interventions
Arrangements between schools, CAMHS and children’s social care for assisting young people with SEN, including BESD

8. Transitions from Care
“I’m only 16 and still a bairn and get a bit weepy at times.”
Journey - compressed and accelerated
Psychological coping by dealing with issues over time
Leaving care can be ‘instant adulthood’
Gradual transitions
All round preparation

9. After Care “I’ve learnt to live out of care – with a back up team.”
Continuing in placement, being settled in accommodation
Being supported
Formal, leaving care teams
Mentoring schemes
Informal, former carers, positive family links

10. Outcome Groups
Moving on – ‘I think I am special because I tried and finished college’
stability, leave care later, satisfying career, ‘ordinary’ identity
Survivors – ‘I’ve become more independent, more tough, I know more about the world’
movement, disrupted careers, support makes a big difference
Strugglers – ‘I couldn’t handle it being on my own, being lonely, no family, no friends’
early difficulties, instability, complex problems, adult services, someone for them

11. Making a Difference – Young People’s Projects
Leaving care, arts and community projects:
Extra-curricula activities
Opportunities and turning points
Opportunities to re-frame adversities
Challenging situations
Participation
Positive peer influences
Specialist or ‘open’?

12. Mentoring Mentoring - a different kind of relationship?
Different from family and friendship
Different but complementary to professional relationships
Purpose: instrumental expressive
Process: service led participatory
Flexible and negotiated in terms of above

13. A Bridge to Learning Substantial educational deficits
Individual support and small group work
Core subjects plus creative opportunities
Accreditation
Getting back on the educational ladder

14. Further Education
Increased participation since the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000
Pathway in is own right, leading to a career
Assessment and support, the right course?
Pathway to higher education
Higher profile in Care Matters?

15. Higher Education
Specialist teacher offering advice on courses, interview preparation, help with the application process
Importance of on-going personal support during the course
Different sources, former carers, advisers
Financial assistance for living and accommodation costs

16. Promoting Resilience
C&YP Act 2008 and Care Matters provisions – quality of care matters
The quality of the ‘carer’ gives meaning to ‘corporate parenting’
Makes a difference to progress and outcomes
Quality parenting across the life-course
Assessment, planning, intervention and review

17. Promoting Resilience Resilience promoting factors
Ecological perspective - care, schools, community, social networks
Leaving care, community projects
Integrated working
Children’s social care and other agencies
Sharing best practice - regional working

18. Sources of information
NCAS briefing Children and Young Persons Act 2008 and current policy information on young people leaving care go to:
For review of research, policy and practice (and references) see: Stein (2009) Young People Leaving Care, in Schofield and Simmonds (Eds), The Child Placement Handbook, BAAF
For international work see: Stein and Munro (2008) (eds) Young People’s Transitions from Care to Adulthood, International research and practice, JKP
For full list of publications: