P. M .van Den Bergh - Professionalization and Participation in Child and Youth Care

Challenging understandings in theory and practice

Edited by
E.J. Knorth
Leiden University
P.M. Van Den Bergh
Leiden University
F. Verheij
Erasmus University Rotterdam

First published 2002 by Ashgate Publishing

Reissued 2018 by Routledge
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Copyright E.J. Knorth, P.M. Van den Bergh and F. Verheij 2002

Erik J. Knorth, Peter M. Van den Bergh and Fop Verheij have asserted their right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the Authors of this work.

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A Library of Congress record exists under LC control number: 2002019413

ISBN 13:978-1-138-72824-0 (hbk)
ISBN 13:978-1-315-19004-4 (ebk)

Dr. Erik J. Knorth, Associate Professor Child and Youth Care. Leiden University, Department of Education, Centre for Special Education and Child Care (Leiden, The Netherlands).

Dr. Peter M. Van den Bergh, Assistant Professor Child and Youth Care. Leiden University, Department of Education, Centre for Special Education and Child Care (Leiden, The Netherlands).

Dr. Fop Verheij, Professor Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Erasmus University Rotterdam, Sophia Children's Hospital - Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (Rotterdam, The Netherlands).

Dr. Jef Breda, Professor Sociology and Social Policy. University of Antwerp, Department of Sociology and Social Policy (Antwerp, Belgium).

Dr. Matthew J. Colton, Professor Applied Social Studies. University of Wales Swansea, School for Social Sciences and International Development (Swansea, United Kingdom). Professor at the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (Trondheim, Norway).

Dr, Jeroen J.H. Dekker, Professor of History and Theory of Education. University of Groningen, Department of Education (Groningen, The Netherlands).

Dr. Micha De Winter, Professor Social Education. Utrecht University, Department of Child and Adolescent Studies (Utrecht, The Netherlands).

Dr. Jeannette Doornenbal, Assistant Professor Education. University of Groningen, Department of Education (Groningen, The Netherlands).

Dr. Emmanuel Grupper, Head of Department for Training of Youth Workers School of Education, Beit Beri College. Director of Residential Education and Care Division, Ministry of Education (Beit Berl/Tel Aviv, Israel).

Margaret Lindsay, OBE MA MSc, Independent Consultant in Child and Youth Care, Glasgow (Glasgow, Scotland).

Dr. Marie-Pierre Mackiewicz, Assistant Professor Education and Training. University of Lille, Department of Education, Teachers' Training Centre (Lille, France).

Krista Okma, MA, PhD student, Utrecht University, Department of Developmental Psychology (Utrecht, The Netherlands).

Dr. June Price, Assistant Professor Nursing and Allied Health. Fairleigh University, Department of Nursing and Allied Health (Teaneck [New Jersey], United States of America).

Mona Sandbk, Senior Researcher. NOVA, Norwegian Social Research Institute (Oslo, Norway).

Dr. Victor Savicki, Professor of Psychology. Western Oregon University, Division of Psychology (Monmouth [Oregon], Uniteti States of America).

Dr. Craig . Shealy, Associate Professor Clinical Psychology. James Madison University, Department of Psychology (Harrisonburg [Virginia], United States of America).

Dr. Ruth Sinclair, Director of Research, National Children's Bureau (London, England).

Dr. Elly Singer, Associate Professor Developmental Psychology. Utrecht University/University of Amsterdam, Department of Psychology (Utrecht/ Amsterdam, The Netherlands).

Dr. Monika Smit, Assistant Professor Child and Youth Care. Leiden University, Department of Education, Centre for Special Education and Child Care (Leiden, The Netherlands).

Dr. Elke Verlinden, Researcher Sociology and Social Policy. University of Antwerp, Department of Sociology and Social Policy (Antwerp, Belgium).

Child and youth care in most Western European countries or regions has seen more changes in a span of barely twenty years than in past centuries. One of the more important developments in child and youth care is that care personnel, clients and society have become more critical about the need for out-of-home placement of children and young people in general and placement in residential care in particular. A combination of factors for example, changes in target group (the target group is no longer orphans but children who are living in problem situations); studies that point out residential care's limited positive short and long term effects; the oversimplified presentation to the general public of these results; the breakthrough of the systemic approach in care; the high cost of residential care have reduced residential care to 'pariah-care'. By this term Fritz Mayer refers to both the marginalization and the stigmatization of young people who have been placed in care, and of the residential facilities that were designed to meet their needs.

In some countries this has resulted in a drastic expansion of foster care, and in others in the extension of alternative forms of care, such as day care and treatment programmes or family preservation programmes. 'Family preservation' was sometimes given priority over 'child protection'. It turned out, in practice as well as in research, that none of these forms of care offered a solution to all the problems of families and children and that new forms of child and youth care were not always as effective as existing forms. The recent history of child care has taught us that the problems we are facing now cannot be solved by just one form of care. Discussions on priorities or of one form of care being superior to the other have not optimized the quality of care. Clients need a continuum of care, from family support to residential care, i.e. 'needs-driven' care. Needs-driven care means that the offered help is in proportion to the problems that arise and is adapted to the client system's needs. This means that it takes into account the parents' perspective and expectations and the children's rights. The nature, intensity and duration of support is geared adequately and in a flexible way to each family's specific needs and potentialities. Needs-driven care requires a very flexible way of tackling the specific needs and potentialities of each family. It demands also a very differentiated and flexible network of easily accessible services, facilities and establishments.