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Constructing Risk and Avoiding Need: Findings from Interviews with Social Workers and Police Officers Involved in Safeguarding Work with Migrant Children
Author(s) -
Westwood Joanne L.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
child abuse review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.569
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1099-0852
pISSN - 0952-9136
DOI - 10.1002/car.2202
Subject(s) - safeguarding , refugee , agency (philosophy) , child protection , social work , public relations , work (physics) , qualitative research , political science , sociology , criminology , medicine , nursing , law , engineering , social science , mechanical engineering
Previous research illustrates the lack of services and provision for the needs of migrant children; assessments of needs in the early stage of their arrival into the UK have previously been advocated. This paper reports on a qualitative study with officials in agencies working with children at a UK port of entry. Along with a sense of isolation and fragmentation between those agencies involved in this work, there were clear tensions between the safeguarding agendas and practices of the agencies involved. Analysis of interviews with social workers and police officers suggests that there was a lack of confidence and trust between agencies and in multi‐agency approaches to safeguarding children entering the UK. Assessment approaches tend to be risk orientated at the expense of being culturally attuned and children's rights focused. These findings are discussed together with recommendations for further research. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. ‘Clear tensions between the safeguarding agendas and practices of the agencies involved’Key Practitioner Message Initial assessment work with asylum‐seeking/refugee children should be conducted in the child's first language. Culturally attuned social work practice with children newly arrived into the UK promotes children's rights, this should be the norm, not the exception. Professionals working with asylum‐seeking/refugee children at ports of entry should assess risk and need.