Welfare Reform on the Web (August 2007): Child welfare - overseas
Children and youth at risk in Israel: findings and recommendations to improve their well-being
H. Schmid
Children and Youth Services Review, vol. 29, 2007, p. 1114-1128
This paper is based on the investigations of a national commission appointed in 2003 by the Israeli government to examine the status of children at risk and in distress. The first section provides background information on the scope of the problem and presents an analysis of government expenditure on youth at risk. At the end of this section the main problems that beset the organisations responsible for providing services to this population are outlined. In order to improve the support system, the Israeli government needs to:
- place the issue of children's well-being at the top of its agenda
- improve service coordination
- put in place systems for data collection and knowledge management
- adapt services to the needs of minority ethnic groups.
Handbook of adoption: implications for researchers, practitioners, and families
R. Javier and others (editors)
London: Sage, 2007
While most mental health and behavioural health professionals have encountered adoption triad members—birth parents, adoptive parents, and adopted persons—in their clinical practice, the vast majority have had no formal or informal training on adoption issues. The book addresses topics in adoption that reflect the many dimensions of theory, research, development, race, adjustment and clinical practice which can, and do, affect adoption triad members. It reflects on issues pertaining to transracial adoption; special issues in adoption such as foster care, single parents, and special needs; training and education issues; assessment and treatment issues.
Intercountry adoption on the Internet
S. Chou, K. Browne and M. Kirkaldy
Adoption and Fostering, vol.31, no.2, 2007, p.22-31
This study investigated whether inter-country adoption agencies using the Internet upheld the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the Hague Convention. A total of 116 agency websites were identified through a Google search. All were registered in the USA and 37% clearly stated that prospective adoptive parents could select the child they wished to adopt, with 34% offering the option to apply online. The majority of websites displayed photographs of children and 18.1% used terminology that promoted children as a commodity rather than as individuals in need. It is concluded that at least 38% of the agencies were in breach of the UNCRC and the Hague Convention.
The take-up of cash assistance among private kinship care families
M. Sheran and C.A. Swann
Children and Youth Services Review, vol.29, 2007, p.973-987
Children and caregivers in privately arranged kinship care placements are ineligible for child welfare services and must instead rely on public assistance from other government agencies. The largest single source of assistance for private kinship care families is the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programme, through which caregivers can receive child-only grants. This paper describes the receipt of cash assistance among private kinship care families and investigates its correlates. Estimates suggest that, although many families involved in private kinship care arrangements endure financial hardship, only one in five take up cash assistance. One reason for this may be that families are unaware that they are eligible for assistance under the TANF programme.
Websites featuring children waiting for adoption: a cross-country review
M. Freundlich, S. Gerstenzang and M. Holtan
Adoption and Fostering, vol.31, no.2, 2007, p.6-16
With the growth in the number of children in public care who are available for adoption, the USA, Canada and Russia have implemented national Internet-based photo listing programmes to increase the pool of prospective adoptive families. This research reviewed the websites and found similarities between countries but also unique features that may reflect social and cultural factors, level of government support, and length of operational time. Differences were noted in the ways that featured children are presented and how families may search and access information on the websites.