A report said that a lack of awareness by schools and local authorities of the signs that a child was running away from home, together with cuts to school and local authority budgets, was leading to missed opportunities to intervene before children found themselves in dangerous or harmful situations.
Source: Natalie Williams, Lessons to Learn: Exploring the links between running away and absence from school, Children s Society
Links: Report | Childrens Society press release
Date: 2012-Dec
A report presented the views of a sample of children and young people on their experiences of physical restraint. Children thought that restraint should be used as a last resort to prevent injury to people or serious damage to property: but they warned that the use of restraint could sometimes make matters worse, could engender resentment, and could be inappropriate for some children (such as those who had experienced abuse by adults).
Source: Children's Views on Restraint, Children s Rights Director for England/Office of the Children's Commissioner
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Dec
An article said that minority-ethnic mothers' experience of racism was negatively associated with some aspects of their children's cognitive and socio-emotional development.
Source: Yvonne Kelly, Laia Becares, and James Nazroo, 'Associations between maternal experiences of racism and early child health and development: findings from the UK Millennium Cohort Study', Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, Volume 67 Number 1
Links: Abstract | CLS press release
Date: 2012-Dec
The coalition government announced that a new system would be established to help hospital doctors and nurses to spot children suffering from abuse and neglect. The 'Child Protection – Information System' would identify whether children treated in hospital were subject to a child protection plan or being looked after by the local authority; and/or had frequently attended emergency departments or urgent care centres over a period of time. Work on the system would begin in early 2013, and it would start to be introduced to National Health Service hospitals in 2015.
Source: Press release 27 December 2012, Department of Health
Links: DH press release | Action for Children press release | BBC report
Date: 2012-Dec
A report examined the research evidence on the links between going missing and child sexual exploitation. Repeated missing incidents, however long in duration, indicated a high level of vulnerability to child sexual exploitation.
Source: Nicola Sharp, Still Hidden? Going missing as an indicator of child sexual exploitation, Missing People
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Nov
An article used longitudinal data from the British Household Panel Survey to investigate the relationship between the subjective well-being of parents, in terms of life satisfaction and affective well-being, and the life satisfaction of their children. There was a significant positive relationship between parents' life satisfaction and the life satisfaction of their children, which differed between mothers and fathers. High life satisfaction in mothers was found to be more influential on children whose life satisfaction was not low. The influence of father's life satisfaction was not found to vary, having a consistent influence on children regardless of their level of life satisfaction.
Source: Amy Clair, 'The relationship between parent s subjective well-being and the life satisfaction of their children in Britain', Child Indicators Research, Volume 5 Number 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Nov
An article examined the relationship between the free movement of persons within the European Union and the law on the migration of children. The law on international child abduction and national law on relocation of children might represent a restriction on free movement of persons within the EU, and could be subject to a proportionality review in European law. But the law on the migration of children was a 'justified and proportionate' restriction on freedom of movement, because it sought to protect the best interests of the child.
Source: Ruth Lamont, 'Free movement of persons, child abduction and relocation within the European Union', Journal of Social Welfare & Family Law, Volume 34 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Nov
A report reviewed key research evidence to facilitate understanding among professionals working in the family justice system in areas relating to: neuroscience perspectives on children's cognitive, social, and emotional development; the implications of maltreatment on childhood and adulthood well-being; evidence concerning the outcomes of interventions by the courts and children's social care; and timeframes for intervening and why they were out of kilter with those for children.
Source: Rebecca Brown and Harriet Ward, Decision-Making within a Child's Timeframe: An overview of current research evidence for family justice professionals concerning child development and the impact of maltreatment, Working Paper 16, Childhood Wellbeing Research Centre
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Nov
A report examined the experiences of fathers involved in the child protection system in Scotland. Professional responses to child protection concerns could marginalize fathers from services and more importantly from their parental role. This had serious implications for children's development and emotional well-being and was in contravention of their right to contact with both parents according to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Source: Nick Smithers, Listening to Fathers: Men s experience of child protection in central Scotland, Circle (Family Service Unit Scotland)
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Nov
A report by the children's watchdog for England examined the scale, scope, and prevalence of child sexual exploitation in gangs and groups. Over 2,400 children and young people were confirmed victims of child sexual exploitation in the 14 months to October 2011; and between April 2010 and March 2011 there were 16,500 children who were at high risk of child sexual exploitation. Young people described experiences of rape and violence of a relentless nature, often lasting years. Many suffered long-term physical, psychological, and emotional harm as a result of their experiences.
Source: Sue Berelowitz, Carlene Firmin, Gareth Edwards, and Sandra Gulyurtlu, 'I Thought I Was the Only One. The Only One in the World': The Office of the Children s Commissioner's Inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation In Gangs and Groups – Interim Report, Office of the Children's Commissioner
Links: Report | OCC press release | ACPO press release | ADCS press release | Barnardos press release | Childrens Society press release | ENGAGE press release | EVAW press release | Family Lives press release | Labour Party press release | LGA press release | NWG press release | YoungMinds press release | BBC report | Community Care report | Guardian report (1) | Guardian report (2) | Telegraph report
Date: 2012-Nov
A paper examined whether people's ability to withstand and adapt to job loss was determined early on in childhood. The negative effect of unemployment on mental health and life satisfaction was almost four times larger for workers who had been bullied significantly in their early life. There was zero adaptation to unemployment for these individuals over time.
Source: Nattavudh Powdthavee, Resilience to Economic Shocks and the Long Reach of Childhood Bullying, DP1173, Centre for Economic Performance (London School of Economics)
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Oct
A small-scale review examined previous research on child abuse linked to faith or belief.
Source: Antonia Simon, Hanan Hauari, Katie Hollingworth, and John Vorhaus, A Rapid Literature Review of Evidence on Child Abuse Linked to Faith or Belief, Working Paper 15, Childhood Wellbeing Research Centre
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Oct
An article examined whether English legislation in 2007 to make virtually all indoor public places and workplaces smoke-free had displaced smoking into the home, and hence increased the proportion of children exposed to levels of second-hand smoke. It was found that the legislation had not increased the proportion of children exposed to damaging levels of second-hand smoke. But a significant proportion of children remained highly exposed to second-hand smoke, and future policies needed to include interventions to reduce exposure among these children.
Source: Michelle Sims, Linda Bauld, and Anna Gilmore, 'England's legislation on smoking in indoor public places and work-places: impact on the most exposed children', Addiction, Volume 107 Issue 11
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Oct
Researchers examined the scale and nature of child sexual exploitation in Scotland, including a review of United Kingdom literature.
Source: Isabelle Brodie and Jenny Pearce, Exploring the Scale and Nature of Child Sexual Exploitation in Scotland, Scottish Government
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Oct
A report said that parenting interventions aimed at tackling childhood conduct problems should be widely available, as they could dramatically improve children's futures. It called for the government to launch a national awareness campaign and do more to support evidence-based early interventions.
Source: Elena Rosa Brown, Lorraine Khan, and Michael Parsonage, A Chance to Change: Delivering effective parenting programmes to change lives, Centre for Mental Health
Links: Summary | CMH press release
Date: 2012-Oct
A report examined some of the issues involved in measuring children's well-being. About 27 per cent of children were living in households where the income was less than 60 per cent of median income in 2010-11, compared with 34 per cent in 1998-99. In 2011, about 16 per cent of children lived in households where no adult was working. There was a strong association between children's reported feelings about their family/friends/school/school work/appearance and their overall feelings about their lives in 2010. Children aged 10–15 who reported being bullied the least were also happiest with their lives.
Source: Theodore Joloza, Measuring National Well-Being – Children's Well-Being, 2012, Office for National Statistics
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Oct
A report for the children's watchdog for England said that the misuse of alcohol by parents harmed the well-being of more children than did the misuse of illegal drugs. Hundreds of thousands of children were affected: but parental alcohol misuse was not taken sufficiently seriously. Many affected children never came to the notice of children's social care services.
Source: Jon Adamson and Lorna Templeton, Silent Voices: Supporting children and young people affected by parental alcohol misuse, Office of the Children's Commissioner
Links: Report | Summary | OCC press release | Turning Point press release | BBC report | Community Care report
Date: 2012-Sep
A paper examined the consequences of past parental unemployment on children. A past unemployment spell of the father led to lower subjective well-being and self-confidence among children.
Source: Nattavudh Powdthavee and James Vernoit, The Transferable Scars: A longitudinal evidence of psychological impact of past parental unemployment on adolescents in the United Kingdom, DP1165, Centre for Economic Performance (London School of Economics)
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Sep
The children's watchdog for England said that primary schools needed to act earlier and in a more concerted way to pick up on signs that children were being neglected or abused.
Source: 'You Have Someone to Trust': Outstanding safeguarding practice in primary schools, Office of the Children's Commissioner
Links: Report | OCC press release | NAHT press release | Guardian report
Date: 2012-Sep
A paper set out the findings from a rapid literature search on children's and young people's understanding of their own well-being and what they thought influenced it.
Source: Shirley Dex and Katie Hollingworth, Children's and Young People's Voices on their Wellbeing, CWRC Working Paper 16, Department for Education
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Sep
A paper examined how social and economic conditions related to the health status of children using a retrospective survey for western Europe. Being born during a boom and growing up during a boom were detrimental for childhood health. The socio-economic status of the parents was positively associated with the health status of the child. Experiencing hunger, living without the father, and growing up with a parent who drank heavily were all negatively associated with childhood health.
Source: Viola Angelini and Jochen Mierau, Social and Economic Aspects of Childhood Health: Evidence from western-Europe, Paper 12002-EEF, Research Institute SOM, Faculty of Economics & Business, University of Groningen
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Aug
The coalition government published an action plan designed to tackle ritual child abuse and neglect in the name of witchcraft, spirit possession, the supernatural, and faith.
Source: National Action Plan to Tackle Child Abuse Linked to Faith or Belief, Department for Education
Links: Action plan | Summary | DE press release
Date: 2012-Aug
A paper said that family income and conventional income-based measures of poverty were not associated with children's perceptions of life satisfaction. By contrast, life satisfaction in children fell as material deprivation among the adult members of their household rose; and even more so if they themselves were deprived of things other children did enjoy. These findings suggested that new multidimensional measures of child poverty were better suited to track real improvements in children's lives than conventional income-based poverty measures. Those interested in maximizing society's welfare should therefore shift their attention from an emphasis on increasing consumption opportunities for families with children to an emphasis on factors such as increasing social contacts.
Source: Gundi Knies, Life Satisfaction and Material Well-Being of Children in the UK, Working Paper 2012-15, Institute for Social and Economic Research (University of Essex)
Links: Working paper | Abstract
Date: 2012-Aug
A paper by the children's watchdog for England examined inequalities in health service outcomes for children, and made a series of recommendations for tackling them.
Source: Maggie Atkinson, Inequalities in Health Outcomes and How they Might Be Addressed, Office of the Children's Commissioner
Links: Paper
Date: 2012-Jul
The report of an independent forum put forward a series of proposals for improving health-related care for children and young people.
Source: Report of the Children and Young People's Health Outcomes Forum, Department of Health
Links: Report | DH press release | NCB press release | NHS Confederation press release | RCM press release | YoungMinds press release
Date: 2012-Jul
A study reviewed the scale and nature of child neglect in Scotland.
Source: Brigid Daniel, Cheryl Burgess, and Jane Scott, Review of Child Neglect in Scotland, Scottish Government
Links: Report
Date: 2012-Jul
The Children's Rights Director for England published a new method designed to help measure the happiness of children. Twenty statements such as 'I know what is happening next in my life', 'I get bullied', 'I am getting all the help I need', and 'I get lonely' were listed and each was given a score.
Source: Measuring Happiness: A consultation with children from care and children living in residential and boarding schools, Children's Rights Director for England/Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills
Links: Report | OFSTED press release
Date: 2012-Jul
A new book examined internet use by children in Europe. It considered the prospect of enhanced opportunities for learning, creativity, and communication – set against the fear of cyberbullying, pornography, and invasion of privacy by both strangers and peers.
Source: Sonia Livingstone, Leslie Haddon, and Anke Gorzig (eds), Children, Risk and Safety on the Internet: Research and policy challenges in comparative perspective, Policy Press
Links: Summary
Date: 2012-Jul
A report by an all-party group of MPs summarized the findings of a series of seminars that examined the impact of the recession on children and young people. It said that it was imperative that:
• Early intervention initiatives were well funded, widely promoted, and embedded in practice.
• Government and service providers took into account the views of children and young people, and provided support in the way that they wanted it.
• National and local governments had robust strategies for reducing child poverty and its effects on well-being, including both measures to increase family income and to tackle the root causes of poverty.
• Local and national government ensured that policies and budgetary decisions did not further harm the physical, social, and economic well-being of children and young people.
Source: Children and Recession, All Party Parliamentary Group for Children
Links: Report | NCB press release
Date: 2012-Jun
A new book examined what well-being meant for children under the age of 3 in the light of key aspects of United Kingdom and international social policy, and demonstrated how practitioners could support children in this age group.
Source: Helen Bradford, The Wellbeing of Children under Three, Routledge
Links: Summary
Date: 2012-Jun
A report rated 31 European countries on their level of adoption, implementation, and enforcement of over 100 proven strategies and policies to prevent unintentional injury to children.
Source: Morag MacKay and Joanne Vincenten, Child Safety Report Card 2012: Europe summary for 31 countries, European Child Safety Alliance
Links: Report | EPHA press release
Date: 2012-Jun
The coalition government set out new measures designed to protect children from the 'creeping tide of commercialization and sexualization' in society. The measures included:
• Consulting on whether the existing age rating system should be extended to cover more music DVDs and Blu-ray discs – to protect children from inappropriate material.
Working with the music industry, online retailers, and video services, to have clear warnings on explicit videos where they were shown online.
Source: Press release 9 May 2012, Department for Education
Links: DE press release | EVAW press release | BBC report
Date: 2012-May
A report presented the findings of interviews with adults who had sexually abused children or young people while working in organizational positions of trust. It identified individual and organizational factors that had facilitated the abuse, and presented practice and policy recommendations to improve prevention.
Source: Marcus Erooga, Debra Allnock, and Paula Telford, Towards Safer Organisations II: Using the perspectives of convicted sex offenders to inform organisational safeguarding of children, National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children
Links: Report
Date: 2012-May
The annual 'Growing Up in Scotland' reports looked at life as a child in Scotland, focusing on early experiences at primary school, weight and physical activity, and the involvement of grandparents.
Source: Lynn Jamieson, Pamela Warner, and Paul Bradshaw, Growing Up in Scotland: The involvement of grandparents in children s lives, Scottish Government | Alison Parkes, Helen Sweeting, and Daniel Wight, Growing Up in Scotland: Overweight, obesity and activity, Scottish Government | Paul Bradshaw, Julia Hall, Tessa Hill, Judith Mabelis, and Dan Philo, Growing Up in Scotland: Early experiences of primary school parental involvement in school activities, Scottish Government | Paul Bradshaw, Julia Hall, Tessa Hill, Judith Mabelis, and Dan Philo, Growing Up in Scotland: Early Experiences of Primary School – The Transition to School, Scottish Government
Links: Report (1) | Report (2) | Report (3) | Report (4) | Scottish Government press release
Date: 2012-May
A longitudinal study traced the decision-making processes that influenced the life pathways of a cohort of very young children who were identified as suffering, or likely to suffer, significant harm before their first birthdays. It explored their progress between the ages of 3 and 5, with particular emphasis on their experiences on entering education.
Source: Harriet Ward, Rebecca Brown, and Debi Maskell-Graham, Young Children Suffering, or Likely to Suffer, Significant Harm: Experiences on Entering Education, Research Report RR209, Department for Education
Date: 2012-May
An article used data from the Millennium Cohort Study to explore the association between a father's involvement and young children's emotional and behavioural adjustment. Early involvement by the father was negatively associated with later emotional symptoms, but no other problem behaviour. It also dampened the effect of socio-economic disadvantage – but not adverse life events – on emotional symptoms.
Source: Eirini Flouri and Lars-Erik Malmberg, 'Father involvement, family poverty and adversity, and young children s behaviour in intact two-parent families', Longitudinal and Life Course Studies, Volume 3 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-May
A report examined the issues around children returning home from care. It looked at how to address the problems of reunification, and outlined new approaches to support children returning home from care and to protect them from harm. Around one-half of children who went into care because of abuse or neglect suffered further abuse if they returned home, with up to one-half of those returning to care.
Source: Returning Home from Care: What's best for children, National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children
Links: Report | Guardian report
Date: 2012-Apr
A study found that the school lunches taken by secondary school pupils in 2011 were healthier than those of pupils in 2004. But pupils got a quarter of the recommended daily intake from lunch, rather than the third that was advised.
Source: Secondary School Food Survey 2011, School Food Trust
Links: Report | BBC report
Date: 2012-Apr
A report said that the existing criminal law on the most common form of child abuse – neglect – failed to protect children and needed to be urgently updated. Convictions for child neglect were unlikely unless physical harm had came to a child, which was defined by law as an individual event such as an injury, rather than cumulative harm where there was no specific and serious single event. But neglect could have some of the worst and most long-term effects on a child's brain, physical development, behaviour, educational achievement, and emotional well-being: this needed to be recognized in law.
Source: Keeping Children Safe: The case for reforming the law on child neglect, Action for Children
Links: Report | Action for Children press release | BBC report
Date: 2012-Apr
A new book examined online child sexual abuse, and the relationships between online grooming behaviours, risk assessment, police practices, and the actual danger of subsequent abuse in the physical world.
Source: Elena Martellozzo, Online Child Sexual Abuse: Grooming, policing and child protection in a multi-media world, Routledge
Links: Summary
Date: 2012-Mar
A report said that there was 'compelling evidence' that people, and especially children, were exhibiting the symptoms of 'nature deficit disorder'. Urgent action was needed to bridge this growing gap before it was too late, and prevent further damage to children's health and education.
Source: Stephen Moss, Natural Childhood, National Trust
Links: Report | National Trust press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2012-Mar
An article said that despite new regulations (introduced in 2007) children were exposed to the same level of television advertising as previously for unhealthy food products.
Source: Jean Adams, Rachel Tyrrell,, Ashley Adamson, and Martin White, 'Effect of restrictions on television food advertising to children on exposure to advertisements for "less healthy" foods: repeat cross-sectional study', PLoS ONE, Volume 7 Number 2
Links: Abstract | Newcastle University press release | BBC report
Date: 2012-Feb
A paper said that more than 1 in 4 children were growing up in families facing multiple challenges, such as parental depression and financial hardship, that could have a damaging effect on their development.
Source: Ricardo Sabates and Shirley Dex, Multiple Risk Factors in Young Children's Development, Working Paper 2012/1, Centre for Longitudinal Studies (University of London)
Links: Paper | CLS press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2012-Feb
A new book examined children's social and emotional well-being in a schools context. Well-being should be understood, and experiences revealed, at the level of the subjective child – contrary to contemporary accounts that reduced children's well-being to objective lists of things that were needed in order to live well.
Source: Debbie Watson, Carl Emery, and Phillip Bayliss (with Margaret Boushel and Karen McInnes), Children's Social and Emotional Wellbeing in Schools: A critical perspective, Policy Press
Links: Summary | Bristol University press release
Date: 2012-Jan
A new book examined strategies for enhancing the safety of children in the online environment. It highlighted the governance challenges raised by the problems of ascertaining the integrity, authenticity, and reliability of information flows and network infrastructures.
Source: Joseph Savirimuthu, Online Child Safety: Law, technology and governance, Palgrave Macmillan
Links: Summary
Date: 2012-Jan
An annual report said that half a million children in the United Kingdom were unhappy with their lives. A linked report set out six key priorities needed for a happy childhood: the conditions to learn and develop; a positive view of self and an identity that was respected; having enough of what mattered; positive relationships with family and friends; a safe and suitable home environment and local area; and an opportunity to take part in positive activities.
Source: Gwyther Rees, Haridhan Goswami, Larissa Pople, Jonathan Bradshaw, Antonia Keung, and Gill Main, The Good Childhood Report 2012: A review of our children s well-being, Children s Society | Promoting Positive Well-Being for Children: A report for decision-makers in parliament, central government and local areas, Children s Society
Links: Report | Summary | Priorities | Childrens Society press release | Community Care report | Guardian report | Telegraph report
Date: 2012-Jan
An article examined differences in life satisfaction among children in different family structures in 36 western, industrialized countries. Children living with both biological parents reported higher levels of life satisfaction than children living with a lone parent or step-parent. Children in Nordic countries reported significantly higher levels of life satisfaction in all living arrangements except lone father households. Differences in economic inequality between countries moderated the association between certain family structures, perceived family affluence, and life satisfaction.
Source: Thoroddur Bjarnason, Pernille Bendtsen, Arsaell Arnarsson, Ina Borup, Ronald Iannotti, Petra Lofstedt, Ilona Haapasalo, and Birgit Niclasen, 'Life satisfaction among children in different family structures: a comparative study of 36 western societies', Children & Society, Volume 26 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2012-Jan