Chapter 1: The Classic

Setting - Residential
Care and treatment

Introduction to Child Child and Youth Care

and Youth Care
Introduction
• - Child and youth care exists worldwide, not
unique to North America.
• - Deep traditions in southern Africa, Europe,
Asia, South America, and Indigenous
communities.
• - The profession goes by different names but
shares the idea of being with young people in
their environments.
• - Unique North American (especially Canadian)
approach focuses on relational practice, life-
space intervention, strength-based approaches,
and reflective, ethical praxis.
Introduction
• - In Canada, child and youth care has evolved
over the past 50 years.
• - Transitioned from institutional origins to
diverse sectors: residential care, foster care,
schools, hospitals, and emerging sectors.
• - A rich and sometimes problematic professional
identity has formed across different contexts.
• - Reflects both positive advancements and past
challenges.
Introduction
• - Child and youth care is now practiced in
emerging sectors: immigration, autism, Deaf,
Trans, and Black youth communities.
• - The profession must also address historically
neglected areas like Indigenous contexts and
youth justice.
• - There’s a need to engage with chronic
structures of oppression within the field.
• - Exploration of underrepresented geographies
such as northern Canada and Quebec.
Introduction
• - The profession has grown rapidly since the
1990s, with key theoretical frameworks guiding
practice.
• - Concepts like ecological perspectives, life-
space intervention, and strength-based
approaches have gained prominence.
• - Rapid growth presents both exciting
opportunities and challenges, including
ensuring quality, ethical foundations, and
professional recognition.
• - Professionalization continues through
improved pre-service training, curriculum, and
compensation.
Historical Context
• Child and youth care evolved from residential group care
settings.
• Earliest forms trace back to ancient Roman orphanages.
• Historical view: Racial, gender, ability, and class
superiority influenced care approaches.
• Shift from moral superiority to professional superiority in
care philosophy.
• Recent moves towards collaboration with service recipients.
• Residual influences from past philosophies still present in
modern residential programs.
• Formal residential care in Canada began in the mid-1800s:
• Religious-based orphanages.
• Institutions for various conditions (e.g., feeble-minded,
incorrigible girls).
• Home Children brought from the UK for labor.
• Indian Residential School System established during this era.
• The "child-saving" era focused on helping children but
often reflected self-righteous motivations.
Current Context
• · Diverse Standards:
• Variation in care standards across Canada and
locally.
• Some providers follow strict hiring, training, and
care standards.
• Others rely on founders' intuition and wisdom.
• · Minimal Regulation History:
• Limited regulations existed until the 1980s.
• Institutional abuse scandals prompted development
of basic care standards.
• · Current Emphasis:
• Shift towards higher standards based on evidence-
based practices.
• Ongoing work needed for consistency across the
sector.
Current Context
• · Theoretical Differences:
• Varying theoretical approaches depending on the
jurisdiction.
• Quebec's care aligns more with European models.
• · Organizational Diversity:
• Wide range of organization sizes and budgets.
• Can be large multi-service organizations or small isolated
houses.
• · Variety in Group Care:
• Group care varies in location (urban, suburban, rural).
• Includes various types of services (mental health,
shelters, custody programs).
• · Complex Discussion:
• Challenging to encapsulate all nuances of child and youth
care practice in residential settings.
Relational Practise
• Historical Focus:
• Relationships have always been central in child and youth care.
• Shift from "having relationships" to "relationship-based practice" to
"relational practices."
• Importance of Terminology:
• "Having relationships" implies ownership, creating power
differentials.
• "Relationship-based practice" emphasizes therapeutic interactions.
• Adjusting Structures:
• Routines in residential care foster interaction and communication.
• Examples of activities: sports, travel, board games, and “hanging
out.”
• Focus on Relational Practices:
• Transform relationships from objects to processes.
• Emphasizes the experience of being together rather than fixed roles.
Relational Practise
• Nature of Relational Practices:
• Change and learning arise from shared experiences.
• Emphasis on the "space in between" practitioner and youth.
• Reflection and Check-Ins:
• Regular relationship reflections between practitioner and youth.
• Focus shifts from behavior management to relational growth.
Strength-Based Practise
• Historical Shift:
• Past focus on addressing deficits in youth.
• Current emphasis on recognizing and building strengths in everyday
life.
• Practitioner Role:
• Transition from intervention to exploration.
• Goal: Build confidence, self-efficacy, and self-respect.
• Daily Opportunities:
• Behavioral challenges seen as barriers to competence.
• Everyday moments provide chances for decision-making and reflection.
• Community Involvement:
• Encourage participation in organized and informal activities (sports,
arts).
• Focus on identity and intersectionality, recognizing multiple
identities.
Child and Youth Participation
• Historical Context:
• Past focus on control and behavior management.
• Youth felt insignificant, voiceless, and powerless in care settings (Fox, 2001; Gharabaghi et
al., 2016).
• Current Shift:
• Importance of participation recognized as a therapeutic method and fundamental right.
• Program elements and practitioner roles are being re-evaluated through the lens of
participation.
• Practical Changes:
• Engaging youth in menu planning, activity choices, and rules.
• Development of complex decision-making processes to empower youth.
• Concept of Mattering:
• Young people need to feel they matter to others and have meaningful relationships.
• Participation helps youth believe their identities and decisions are significant.
• Challenges for Practitioners:
• Need to reassess views on expertise and knowledge.
• Adjust practices to support youth participation and mattering.
Family Involvement
• Historical Perspective:
• Family involvement often reduced to contact (e.g., home visits,
phone calls).
• Practitioners typically limited to observing family interactions
(Gharabaghi et al., 2016).
• Past view: Families as barriers to autonomy and self-sufficiency
(Charles & Gabor, 2006).
• Shift in Understanding:
• Recognition that young people are always connected to their
families.
• Importance of family relationships in supporting development and
well-being.
• Contemporary Practice:
• Enhanced focus on integrating family dynamics into care plans.
• Moving beyond outdated notions of "growing up" in residential
care.
• Acknowledging the significance of family in young people's lives
The Group Work Tensions
• Focus on Individualization:
• Shift towards individualized care in residential settings (Stuart
& Gharabaghi, 2013).
• Each young person faces unique circumstances.
• Group Experience:
• Young people share living spaces, routines, and relationships.
• Group context mediates interpersonal exchanges and learning.
• Peer groups can significantly influence identity formation and
experiential learning.
• Program Structures:
• Positive Peer Culture (PPC) emphasizes supportive peer
interactions (Brendtro, 1988).
• Sanctuary model acknowledges cultural dynamics in trauma-informed
care (Bryson et al., 2017).
The Group Work Tensions
• Practitioner Team Dynamics:
• Practitioners work as part of a team, influencing their practice
effectiveness.
• Multi-disciplinary teams present opportunities for collaboration
and challenges from power dynamics (Salhani & Charles, 2007).
• Impact of Inter-professional Conflicts:
• Tension can arise from misunderstandings of roles and
responsibilities.
• “Us vs. them” mentality can minimize contributions from other
professionals (Charles & Alexander, 2014b).
• Collaborative Approach:
• Effective residential services require cooperation among all
professionals, young people, and families to achieve common goals.
Moving Forward in Residential Care
and Treatment
• Apprehensions in Residential Care:
• Concerns driven by tragic events (deaths, abuse scandals, etc.)
(Bombay et al., 2011; Taylor, 2015).
• Negative and traumatic experiences reported by young people
(Gharabaghi et al., 2016).
• Difficult transitions out of care due to strict structures
(Charles & Oliver, 2012).
• Specific identity groups (Indigenous, Black, LGBTQ2S+) often face
oppressive conditions.
• Belief in Positive Outcomes:
• Emerging views suggest residential care can be beneficial if core
principles, like infusing “love,” are prioritized (Smith et al.,
2013).
• Increasing focus on evidence-based practices in response to
previous challenges (Bryson et al., 2017).
Moving Forward in Residential Care
and Treatment
• Emergence of Evidence-Based Practices:
• Adoption of dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) and other
manualized interventions (Augimeri et al., 2014; Greene et al.,
2006).
• Shift towards therapeutic crisis intervention and other evidence-
based approaches.
• Implications for Practice:
• Manualized interventions bring consistency but overshadow
relational practices central to child and youth care.
• Clinical focus on responsiveness to interventions rather than
foundational practices.
• For autistic youth, approaches like ABA risk reintroducing
control-oriented methods (Garfat & Fulcher, 2013).
• Foundational Aspects of Quality Care:
• Emphasis on relational practices, child and youth participation,
and recognition of identity and intersectionality as critical for
high-quality care.
Child and Youth Care Careers in
Residential Care
• Current Landscape:
• Largest employment sector for child and youth care practitioners
across most provinces.
• Associated challenges:
• Difficult shift schedules, including overnight, weekends, and holidays.
• Insufficient pay, often barely exceeding minimum wage in for-profit
settings.
• Lack of basic support features, especially supervision and professional
development opportunities (Gharabaghi et al., 2016).
• Advantages of Working in Residential Care:
• Unique opportunities for intensive and comprehensive relational
engagement with young people.
• Potential for rich, bidirectional relationships contributing to
mutual well-being (Alexander & Charles, 2009).
• Pathways for professional growth, including:
• Roles in supervision, training, and knowledge dissemination.
• Leadership positions in residential care system design and policy.
• Opportunities in post-secondary education as instructors for new
practitioners.
Breakoutroom Discussion
• What major changes have you noticed in how we
care for children and youth in Canada over the
years? How do you think these changes have
helped or hurt young people in care?