SCRA publish new research on children supervision requirements

Date: 12th November 2012
Category: Family Environment and Alternative Care
Author: Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration

SCRA have published a new research report titled 'Children on Supervision Requirements for Five or More Years Decisions and Outcomes.'

This follows on from the SCRA research on care and permanence that was published last year. The new research looks at decision-making and outcomes for children who have been on Supervision Requirements for five and more years.

Children are made subject to Supervision Requirements by Children's Hearings when it is necessary to protect and secure their welfare. In 2011/12 there were 2,198 children in Scotland who had Supervision Requirements for at least five years.

This research explored the experiences and outcomes for 90 children who had been on Supervision Requirements for at least five years. Information was collected from children's case files held by SCRA.

Most of the children in the study had been on Supervision Requirements for over half their lives. The shortest was just over five years, and the longest Supervision Requirement was almost 16 years.

Over half of the children (59%) had at least one parent with a drug or alcohol problem, and over a third (38%) were living with a parent experiencing domestic violence. Parental problems were often rooted in their own childhoods, as 31% of the children's parents or carers had also been on Supervision Requirements when they were younger.

• Read the full article here.
• Read the full report here.