Resources Database

This report is a multi-country review consolidates main challenges and effective strategies related to faculty recruitment and retention around the world. In many countries, it can be difficult to recruit social work faculty who possess masters or doctoral degrees because of the shortage of candidates who hold these higher-level qualifications and choose a career in academia. Addressing challenges in recruiting and retaining faculty requires a holistic approach that incorporates a range of linked recruitment and retention interventions that fit the particular country context.

This study reviews existing policies, models of provision and understandings of family and parenting support in different settings. It examines support to families in the context of broader policies, national goals and systems and provides and analytical framework for future research and policy work. This research also examines in detail national policies and interventions in Croatia, Belarus, Chile, Jamaica, the Philippines, China, South Africa, Sweden and England.

This authoritative report by the Families Commission reviews the evidence on the effectiveness of parenting programmes, as a way of reducing the risk of maltreatment of vulnerable children aged 0–6 years. We looked at both national and international evidence to identify parenting programmes that work and those that do not work, including for Māori and Pacific peoples. The report looks at common components of effective programs, including those related to staffing and infrastructure (including staff qualifications, training and support).

Poor outcomes and several complaints to the judicial system against residential
services for children have triggered a deep review of the Chilean child welfare services,
particularly in relation to family reunification. This paper offers strategic guidelines to
improve alternative care for children younger than six years of age, who are under
protective measures.

Social service interventions have been implemented in many countries to help people living with HIV (PLHIV) and household members cope with economic burden as a result of reduced earning or increased spending on health care. However, the evidence for specific interventions—economic strengthening and legal services—on key health outcomes has not been appraised.

This manual is intended to provide Child Welfare Workers in Sierra Leone a basis for understanding what is child abuse, recognising symptoms of abuse and knowing where to report abuse. The CRA mandates all Child Welfare Workers to report cases of child abuse to the appropriate authorities to ensure the safety and well being of the child and that the appropriate action is taken.

This working paper explores the topic of social service workforce strengthening as it relates to child care reform. It is intended to be a useful resource for reform efforts and a practical and accessible overview for use by policy-makers, practitioners, and service providers in contexts that are either considering the implications of care reforms for their social service workforce or are already engaged in the process. The paper illustrates key issues by drawing on the experiences of Indonesia, Moldova, and Rwanda, three countries in the process of reform.

This mid-term report assesses activity outcomes of projects developed by Retrak in the SNNPR region of Ethopia to address push factors leading to children living on the streets.

This report provides data to show that Zimbabwe is in crisis in terms of ratio of social service workers to children. The report offers ideas for both short and long-term interventions to improve the situation.

This report is structured into seven chapters, which take us on a path towards greater understanding of the challenges inherent in protecting children in alternative care from violence. It combines a comprehensive review on violence against children in alternative care with an analysis of experiences and data from 21 countries, as reported in assessments based on the SOS Children’s Villages Assessment Tool for the Implementation of the UN Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children.

This report has a simple and urgent goal: to connect decision-makers and relevant actors with strategies that prevent and respond to violence in the lives of children. The scope of this review includes interventions that address interpersonal violence (emotional, physical and sexual) against children at home, school, work, the community at large and social spaces created by mobile and online technology.

As part of the process of developing Outreach Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), it has become clear that despite variation in outreach activities and drop-in centers, there is a clear approach to outreach which is common across Retrak. This reflects the international approach to outreach in youth work and with other hard-to-reach population groups. This paper aims to clarify Retrak's approach to outreach and the principles underlying it, drawing on wider research and good practice. It is a precursor to the publication of Retrak's Outreach SOPs.

Foster care can be an important part of the continuum of care choices for children. When foster care is administered appropriately, with the proper mechanisms, structures and resources, it allows children to remain in a loving and caring family while authorities work towards family reintegration or permanent alternatives. 

The evidence presented in this report suggests that there is no one blueprint of universal elements for successful foster care programs. The workforce developing and delivering foster care programs must carefully examine their specific local context and adapt programs accordingly. 

As the world marks 25 years of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, The State of the World’s Children calls for brave and fresh thinking to address age-old problems that still affect the most disadvantaged children.

This policy brief summarizes research that studied whether increased availability of social support is associated with lower odds of depression and anxiety among caregivers of children in poor, HIV-endemic communities. It also looked at the pathways and mechanisms through which caregivers perceive social support to be influencing their health.

Primary caregivers of children in poor HIV-endemic communities represent a high risk population for mental health conditions, given the challenges associated with caring for biological and foster children in difficult social and financial conditions. This may be especially true if caregivers are living with HIV or other chronic illness. No large studies have previously explored the relationship between social support and health with caregiver populations in HIV-endemic areas of southern Africa.

This report highlights the situation of children and women living in the most challenging circumstances, outlines the human and financial resources required to help them survive and thrive, and shows the results UNICEF and its partners have achieved and are working towards. Information about UNICEF’s work in these contexts is presented on the country and regional pages.

Social work practices in England were evaluated from 2009-2012 to determine how the office environment may affect children’s perceptions of receiving care at out-of-home sites.

Abstract: This article depicts a journey over the decades to address some of the needs of children and families in the child welfare system. Recounting a few key milestones and challenges in the past 40 years, it is argued that workforce development is one key to improved outcomes for abused and neglected children and their families. Major events and several turning points are chronicled. Emerging workforce needs in aging are also cited as lessons learned from child welfare have implications for building a gero savvy social work workforce.