Books in the Supporting Parents series

Foster carers look after two-thirds of the children cared for by English local authorities at any one time. The recruitment and retention of these carers is one of these authorities' central concerns. Against this background, this book examines the joys and strains of fostering, the support carers want and need, and the reasons why they foster.

Based on exhaustive research, the authors discuss the primary concerns in foster placement planning, considering the high frequency of placement breakdowns, their impact on the child's behaviour and school performance, and the challenges this places on foster families.

Social workers will find this book to be a valuable tool, highlighting ways of improving the cultural sensitivity of disability services and parental and family support. Combining a wide-ranging survey and in-depth interviews, the authors build a rich picture how culture and ethnicity can impact on a family's experience of disability.

Supporting Parents brings together authoritative research on supporting parents and carers. Underpinning the government's developing policy for children's services, it is essential reading for practitioners, policy makers and academics working in child care.

More than 125,000 children in the UK alone are 'sentenced' to separation from their imprisoned parents. This book draws on extensive research and experience to examine the effect this kind of separation can have on the emotional development of a child and on family relationships. They make suggestions for work with prisoners and families.

With a unique focus on the effects of poverty on parenting in Britain, this book explores what professionals and policy makers can do to support families living in poverty. The authors examine community-level poverty and its relationship to family and individual problems such as low income, poor mental health and child behavioural difficulties.