Outing the Elephant: Developing poverty-aware practice with children and families

Social Work Masterclass: with speaker Anna Gupta, Royal Holloway, University of London

Although there is no official collection of data on the socio-economic circumstances of the families of children on child protection plans or in the care system in the UK, a study by Bywaters et al (2018) confirmed that there is a clear link between social deprivation and a child’s chances of being on child protection plans or out of home care. However paradoxically although we know most of children are from poor backgrounds, poverty is largely invisible in child protection practice and policy. Drawing on research with families living in poverty, this workshop considers how we can develop poverty-aware practice and policies within a social model for protecting children and supporting families.