Social Work - Research Publications

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    Domestic violence and child abuse
    HUMPHREYS, CATHY (Department for Education and Skills, 2006)
    The risks of harm to children caused by domestic violence have now been recognised. An amendment to the definition of harm in the Children Act 1989 now includes ‘impairment suffered from seeing or hearing the ill treatment of another’ (Adoption and Children Act, 2002). This reflects that children living with domestic violence are over-represented among those children referred to statutory children and families teams with concerns about child abuse and neglect, and represent up to two thirds of cases seen at child protection conferences. However, children’s experiences of domestic violence are more than a child protection issue. Research with children suggests it has implications for education, health, welfare, civil and criminal justice.
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    Pride and prejudice: a snapshot of parents with disabilities experience of the child protection system in Victoria
    SWAIN, PHILLIP ; Goodfellow, Jonathon ; Lee, Jeanette ; Cameron, Nadine ; Bennett, Wendy ( 2002-07)
    The Disability, Parenting and the Law Project developed as a result of concerns expressed by parents with disabilities who came into contact with the Victorian child protection system. The Disability Discrimination Legal Service (DDLS) and Yooralla's Parents with a Disability Community Project (YPWDCP) jointly developed a project proposal to research the experiences of parents with disabilities whose children became involved with the Victorian child protection system, and to explore whether this particular group of parents were experiencing discrimination as a result of their disability. Funding was sought from, and a grant of $16,248 provided by, the Victoria Law Foundation's Community Grants Program, with an additional contribution of $7,500 provided by the Department of Human Services Western Metropolitan Region (DHS WMR). This report, Pride and Prejudice: A Snapshot of Parents with Disabilities Experiences of the Child Protection System in Victoria, is the result of research and consultations conducted over an 18-month period. The findings and recommendations contained in this report are consistent with those of similar research being conducted around Australia and in other western countries.
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    Child sexual abuse allegations in the context of divorce: issues for mothers
    Humphreys, Catherine (British Association of Social Workers, 1997)
    The investigation and assessment of allegations of child sexual abuse constitute a difficult and contentious area for practitioners involved in this process. When these allegations emerge in the context of divorce, the problems of assessment appear to be compounded. This paper argues that when mothers raise concerns about child sexual abuse during divorce proceedings these are often construed as vindictive or misguided. Such constructions of mothers have significant implications for the protection,or lack of protection of children in these circumstances. The way in which this ’knowledge’ about mothers has developed is explored and held up against the results of empirical studies which show that there is little basis for this construction of mothers. Possible explanations for this incongruity are suggested with a view to progressing child protection in this area.
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    Domestic violence and child protection: exploring the role of perpetrator risk assessments
    HUMPHREYS, CATHY (Blackwell Synergy, 2006)
    This article explores the issue of severity in relation to domestic violence and provides a number of reasons for the necessary engagement by workers with such a contentious issue. The specific role that the assessment of the risks posed by the perpetrator which has now developed in some police forces in the United Kingdom is examined, and its relevance to child welfare intervention discussed. A range of factors are identified that heighten the risks of increased violence. These include prior sexual assault; stalking and controlling behaviour; substance misuse and mental-health problems; separation and child contact disputes; pregnancy; escalation including the use of weapons and psychological abuse; attempts and threats to kill; child abuse; isolation and barriers to help-seeking. The ways in which perpetrator risk assessment can be used to inform the filtering of referrals to the statutory child care agency, enhance multi-agency working, provide a structure for the assessment of the perpetrator, enhance partnership-working with survivors (usually women) and inform the protection strategies for workers are explored.
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    Avoidance and confrontation: social work practice in relation to domestic violence and child abuse
    Humphreys, Catherine (Blackwell Science, 1999)
    Action on the relationship between domestic violence and child abuse has been slow to emerge in mainstream child protection agencies. This paper reports a qualitative study of child protection files. Particular attention was given to the issues for Asian families. Initially the numerous strategies which social workers and other professionals at child protection conferences used to avoid the issue of domestic violence are explored. However, there was also a small, but emerging, pattern of child abuse in the context of domestic violence being taken seriously. In each of these cases strong expectations were placed on women to separate from or remain separated from men who were violent. These expectations were backed up by ’threats’ or the actual accommodation of children often with little interagency support for women undertaking this difficult and dangerous task, or before women were ready to undertake this separation. Suggestions were made about aspects of the organizational context which need to change if good child protection is also to include appropriate protection and support for the child’s mother.
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    Discrimination in child protection work: recurring themes in work with Asian families
    Humphreys, Catherine ; Atkar, Sandeep ; Baldwin, Norma (Blackwell Science, 1999)
    When the relationships within the institutions and social practices of a society cannot be explained by the intentions, good or bad, of individual men and women, they can be described as structural (Weedon 1987, p. 3). This paper reports on research in a Midlands Social Services Department which examined child protection practice in relation to Asian families who had attended case conferences. The research shows that in spite of the good intentions of many individual workers, Asian families experienced a discriminatory service. Discriminatory policies and practices were perpetuated at an organizational level. Three themes from the research are explored: the use of interpreters, the accommodation of children, and the lack of attention to the mental and physical health of the child’s mother and father. Each theme is explored to highlight the issues which Asian families faced and the problems which created barriers to good practice.