Understanding Costs and Outcomes in Child Welfare Services: A Comprehensive Costing Approach to Managing Your Resources (Child Welfare Outcomes)

Today's child welfare services operate under a limited supply of resources which are being stretched by economic cuts and an increasing number of referrals to children's social care. This book provides a comprehensive costing approach which examines how finite resources can be most effectively used to provide support to the most vulnerable children and their families.Drawing upon the latest research and data, it outlines a methodology which has been applied to a range of child welfare services. The methodology breaks services down into component parts, creating a 'unit cost' for each type of case and task. This 'bottom-up' approach ensures that costing is consistent and allows for variations specific to each type of case and welfare organisation. By looking explicitly at the links between needs, costs and outcomes, this book gives social care commissioners and managers an indication of the most effective and efficient way to allocate and channel resources. As well as offering these implications for practice, this book will offer policymakers evidence of the effectiveness of early intervention and preventative measures.In providing a detailed assessment of children's needs, costs and outcomes across the full range of child welfare services and cases, this book will be of essential use to both social care professionals at the commissioning level and policymakers who wish to improve the effectiveness of child welfare services. Babies and very young children in care often experience several changes of placement and carer, which can have a negative impact upon their long-term ability to develop secure attachments.Babies and Young Children in Care examines why babies enter care or accommodation and why securing their long-term future can be a lengthy process. It analyses the circumstances, characteristics and experiences of these young children before, during and after being looked after, including reasons for changes of carer and placement disruptions. It looks at how young children are affected by the lack of stability in their lives, and explores the consequences of reunification with their parents after long periods in care. Drawing on interviews with birth parents, carers and social care professionals, the authors trace the complex decision-making process that influences these children's early experiences and the impact this has on their later development and well-being. They offer a clear explanation of the outcomes of services for very young children and signpost messages for practice.This book is a key text for researchers, practitioners, policy makers and social care managers. "Improving the well-being of children is more effective when social care professionals work with the children's parents, families and communities. This collection brings together innovative interventions designed to nurture children's health and welfare, and analyses which types of programmes are most effective and why.". "The contributors explore the impact of poverty on children's development and assess national initiatives set up to assess and reduce need. They present examples from the UK, US, Canada and Australia of specific interventions to counter or prevent difficulties in the domains of child development, parenting capacity and wider environmental factors. Many contributions demonstrate the importance of engaging with service users and helping communities to shape and direct their own programmes for change. The final section of the book presents useful approaches to assessing and evaluating services.". "Demonstrating the need for close inter-agency collaboration and 'joined up' services, this book is essential reading for policy makers, managers and practitioners in child welfare agencies, and social work academics and students."--BOOK JACKET.

"Improving the well-being of children is more effective when social care professionals work with the children's parents, families and communities. This collection brings together innovative interventions designed to nurture children's health and welfare, and analyses which types of programmes are most effective and why." "The contributors explore the impact of poverty on children's development and assess national initiatives set up to assess and reduce need. They present examples from the UK, US, Canada and Australia of specific interventions to counter or prevent difficulties in the domains of child development, parenting capacity and wider environmental factors. Many contributions demonstrate the importance of engaging with service users and helping communities to shape and direct their own programmes for change. The final section of the book presents useful approaches to assessing and evaluating services." Demonstrating the need for close inter-agency collaboration and 'joined up' services, this book is essential reading for policy makers, managers and practitioners in child welfare agencies, and social work academics and students.

Significant amounts of money and resources are spent on child and family services, so successful evaluation of whether or not they are achieving the best outcomes is therefore essential. This edited collection offers an international perspective on the challenges of designing and undertaking outcome-based evaluation of child and family services. With contributions from leading international experts, it introduces the key ideas and issues currently being debated in the evaluation of these services; discusses relevant approaches to designing and using evaluation methods; and provides examples of evaluation from the real world of policy and practice. Issues covered include setting appropriate indicators for service effectiveness, cross-cultural evaluation of service interventions, service user involvement in evaluation, and evaluations of family and community-based services. This invaluable book will be essential reading for policy makers, planners, commissioners and managers across child and family welfare services, as well as researchers and other academics in the field. It costs more to place a child in the care of a local authority than it does to send a child to a top boarding school, and there are substantial variations in costs both between and within authorities.This book gets to the bottom of the costs of care and provides an insight into how these variations in cost relate to differences in children's needs, and most importantly, whether higher costs reflect better services and better outcomes for children.Costs and Consequences for Children Placed Away from Home draws from new original research, and considers the implications for best practice and future policy. It also features information about a newly pioneered resource: a fully workable decision analysis model designed for use in local authorities which uses historical data for each child to calculate the probable cost consequences of difference placement choices.This book sheds light on how to calculate the financial and social costs of care, and will be invaluable to both social work managers and policy makers working in children's services. How Does Foster Care Work? is an international collection of empirical studies on the outcomes of children in foster care. Drawing on research and perspectives from leading international figures in children's services across the developed world, the book provides an evidence base for programme planning, policy and practice.This volume establishes a platform for comparison of international systems, trends and outcomes in foster care today. Each contributor provides a commentary on one other chapter to highlight the global significance of issues affecting children and young people in care. Each chapter offers new ideas about how foster care could be financed, delivered or studied in order to become more effective.This book is important reading for anyone involved in delivering child welfare services, such as administrators, practitioners, researchers, policy makers, children's advocates, academics and students. Looking Into The Costs Of Placing Children In Care And The Variations In Costs Between And Within Authorities, This Book Provides An Insight Into How These Variations In Cost Relate To Differences In Children's Needs, And Most Importantly, Whether Higher Costs Reflect Better Services And Better Outcomes For Children. Introduction -- Identifying Local Authorities And Children For Exploring The Costs Of Care -- The Development Of Unit Costs For Social Care Processes -- Placement Patterns, Processes And Costs -- Children And Costs -- Need, Cost, Service And Outcome -- The Relationship Between Cost And Value : Children's Views Of The Value Of Services -- The Cost Calculator For Children's Services -- Conclusion : Cost Calculations And Their Implications For Policy And Practice. Harriet Ward, Lisa Holmes And Jean Soper. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 276-282) And Indexes. The transition from care into adulthood is a difficult step for any young person, but young people leaving care have a high risk of social exclusion, both in terms of material disadvantage and marginalisation. In Young People's Transitions from Care to Adulthood leading academics gather together the latest international research relating to the transition of young people leaving care, outlining and comparing the range of legal and policy frameworks, welfare regimes and innovative practice across 16 countries. The book also highlights the variations that exist between different groups leaving care. Featuring key messages for policy and practice, this book will give academics, practitioners and policymakers valuable insights into how to encourage resilience and improve outcomes for care leavers. When Babies And Very Young Children Are Placed In Care, They May Experience Several Different Placements Before Their Second Birthday. Exploring The Life Pathways Of Young Children Before, During And After Being Looked After, This Work Examines Why Babies Are Placed In Care And What Causes Their Placement Disruptions. Introduction, Background And Methodology -- Forty-two Babies : Their Circumstances, Characteristics And Life Pathways -- Attachment And Loss : Experiences Of Continuity Against A Background Of Constant Change -- Permanence : Why Did It Take So Long To Achieve? -- Key Findings, Conclusions And Implications For Policy, Practice And Training. Harriet Ward, Emily R. Munro And Chris Dearden. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 147-153) And Indexes. It costs more to place a child in the care of a local authority than it does to send a child to a top boarding school, and there are substantial variations in costs both between and within authorities. This book gets to the bottom of the costs of care and provides an insight into how these variations in cost relate to differences in children's needs, and most importantly, whether higher costs reflect better services and better outcomes for children. Costs and Consequences for Children Placed Away from Home draws from new original research, and considers the implications for best practice and f Today's child welfare services operate under a limited supply of resources which are being stretched by economic cuts and an increasing number of referrals to children's social care. This book provides a comprehensive costing approach which examines how finite resources can be most effectively used to provide support to the most vulnerable children and their families. Drawing upon the latest research and data, it outlines a methodology which has been applied to a range of child welfare services. The methodology breaks services down into component parts, creating a 'unit cost' for each type of This authoritative series draws from original research and current policy debates to help social work managers, policy makers and researchers to understand and improve the outcomes of services for children and young people in need. Taking an evidence-based approach, these books include children's experiences and analysis of costs and effectiveness in their assessment of interventions, and provide guidance on how to develop more effective policy, practice, and training. --Book Jacket This volume compares international systems, trends and outcomes in foster care today. Each chapter concludes with a critical commentary by one of the contributors, bringing a cross-national perspective to the issues affecting children and young people in care. The book offers new ideas about how foster care could be delivered in order to become more effective Today's child welfare services operate under a limited supply of resources. This book explains how finite resources can be used most effectively, providing social work managers and policymakers with a comprehensive costing model to assess the links between needs, costs and outcomes across the full range of child welfare services. How Does Foster Care Work? is an international collection of empirical studies on the outcomes of children in foster care. Drawing on research and perspectives from leading international figures in child welfare across the developed world, the book provides an evidence base for programme planning, policy and practice Drawing on the research of leading academics from 16 countires, this book presents an international perspective on the transition of young people leaving care into independent living. It provides a clear explanation of outcomes for care leavers that will signpost key messages for practice worldwide Introduction The conceptual framework The calculation of unit costs Additional services Understanding children's needs and outcomes Making use of cost calculations: building and supporting an evidence base Conclusion: implications for policy and practice. Introduction Babies' circumstances, characteristics and life pathways Attachment and change : babies' experience of stability Factors that delayed the achievement of permanence Conclusion: Long-term implications.