Research projects

Research into Children in Need Materials: Supporting Children and Responding to Families Project (SCARF)

This project is adapting the Children in Need Assessment Materials being developed by the Department of Health UK to Australian conditions. The Children in Need Materials record what is happening to children, young people and their families in the context of the community in which they live using a developmental framework.

This analysis of the complex emotional issues involved is necessary to enable objective professional conclusions to be drawn with regard to significant judgments. These judgments concern whether a child is in need, suffering or likely to suffer from harm, what actions should be taken and which services could best assist the child in question.

Growing Up in Care Research Project

The University of New Wales in collaboration with Barnardos Australia is conducting a 10-year longitudinal research and cross sectional research study on the care experience of children and young people placed in permanent care or adoption through Barnardos Find-a-Family. The children and young people who are part of this study are those who were referred to the program during the period 1996-1998. There were about 48 children involved, ranging in age from 1 –12 years, at the commencement of the study.

Child Protection Research Project

This collaborative research project was undertaken by researchers, Department of Social Work, Social Policy and Sociology, University of Sydney and Barnardos Australia. The Australian Research Council supported the research and collaborated in the analysis of its responses to domestic violence. The research was conducted over the four-year period from 1997-2001. It aimed to:

examine practitioners’ knowledge and understandings of domestic violence and child protection
review the child protection strategies utilised by practitioners
identify effective strategies which could be used in responding to both women and their children

The main outcome of the research was the development of a template of ‘good practice’ for practitioners that would address the rights, needs and interests of women and their children who had lived with domestic violence.

The research included four independent but related studies; an analysis of the NSW Department of Community Services (the statutory child protection authority in NSW) responses to domestic violence; the understandings of practitioners (in both statutory and non-statutory organisations) of the policy and practice issues related to the protection of children and young people who live with domestic violence; women’s perceptions about living with domestic violence and the protection of their children; and the view of children and young people who had lived with domestic violence about violence in their lives.

Educational Outcomes for Children in Substitute Care Research

In collaboration with the School of Social Work, University of NSW and Barnardos this project has the overall goal to create through the implementation of the Looking After Children Framework (developed in the UK) a case management system that would enable Barnardos to monitor and enhance care planning and improve developmental outcome for children in care.

The project works in tandem with the Looking After Children (LAC) framework.

Click here for more information on this.

A study of outcomes of intervention through Children’s Family Centres – Outcome Research

This research project was undertaken in collaboration with School of Social Work, University of NSW and Barnardos Australia.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of family support interventions by comparing the views of families and their caseworkers, with respect to the perceived benefits and outcomes of the services offered in the context of changes in family functioning and parent child relationships, and the extent to which changes led to reduced involvement in protective services.

Click here for more information on this study.

SCARF – Jude Morwitzer jmorwitzer@barnardos.org.au

Growing Up in Care – Elizabeth Cox ecox@barnardos.org.au

Inquiry into Education of Children in Out of Home Care

Child Protection welfare@barnardos.org.au