Secure accommodations are residential homes with approval to restrict the liberty of young people aged 10 -17 years of age who are a serious risk to themselves or to others. While young people often enter secure (or alternative) accommodation via the criminal justice system, many are placed by social services for welfare reasons and there is little sign of this practice diminishing. This troubling situation is further complicated by a scarcity of secure placements in Wales which sees many young people being placed outside of Wales or having no bed in secure care due to a lack of availability.

At present there is little research evidence of what had led to this or what can be done to improve matters. To give better insight a recent project commissioned by Social Care Wales and conducted by CASCADE at Cardiff University explored the experiences of young people from Wales prior to, during and following a referral to secure accommodation. Many findings caused deep concern and led to a series of recommendations.

The workshop will give an opportunity for practitioners and managers to hear about the study and its findings, and use these as a platform for collaborative discussion of

• The study recommendations

• The extent to which the recommendations map onto practice experience and whether they would profit from amendment

• Barriers envisaged when implementing the recommendations

• How such barriers could be overcome

In this workshop, we report findings from a qualitative, multi-disciplinary analysis of 20 Child Practice Reviews (CPRs) (previously Serious Case Review) in Wales. The reviews were analysed from three different disciplinary perspectives: law, criminology and practice (social work). The paper identifies the following cross-cutting themes: (i) hierarchy of knowledge, where certain sources of knowledge were privileged over others (ii) information sharing/recording, where deficiencies of sharing or recording of information were evident (iii) partial assessment, where certain assessments were not always holistic, and lastly, (iv) voice of the child, where the experience or perspective of the child was not always considered. This is the first study to explore themes emerging from (Welsh) CPRs and is also the first to do so from a multi-disciplinary perspective. The workshop will focus on implications for practice and policy.

In this workshop, we report findings from a qualitative, multi-disciplinary analysis of 20 Child Practice Reviews (CPRs) (previously Serious Case Review) in Wales. The reviews were analysed from three different disciplinary perspectives: law, criminology and practice (social work). The paper identifies the following cross-cutting themes: (i) hierarchy of knowledge, where certain sources of knowledge were privileged over others (ii) information sharing/recording, where deficiencies of sharing or recording of information were evident (iii) partial assessment, where certain assessments were not always holistic, and lastly, (iv) voice of the child, where the experience or perspective of the child was not always considered. This is the first study to explore themes emerging from (Welsh) CPRs and is also the first to do so from a multi-disciplinary perspective. The workshop will focus on implications for practice and policy.

Family carers are sometimes described as an ‘invisible army’ – a large group of citizens who bear a significant proportion of the national social care strategy. Child carers, commonly known as ‘young carers’, are an under-recognised and particularly vulnerable group within this ‘army’. Current policy and practice on recognising and supporting young carers is variable across Welsh Local Authorities, and the level or nature of intervention activity nationally bears further examination. This group has significant, diverse needs and disparate experiences of personal disruption depending on their circumstances and level of care required for their family members. Education and health could offer substantial support to these children and young people but research shows that they currently struggle to effectively identify and support them, in part due to a lack of clear guidance and strategic planning, while most young carers report difficulties in being recognised for the valuable work that they do. This workshop focuses on sharing knowledge from recent Cardiff University research and policy insight and strategy from national charity Carer’s Trust Wales. We facilitate practitioner-led discussion on common and differing experiences in trying to best support young carers, and co-develop approaches and recommendations to improve Welsh provision. No child or young person should be disadvantaged in their lives by being a young carer; this workshop offers the opportunity to add your experience and expertise to the national conversation around how we can best see, listen to and support them better.