Blog
Being Child-Centred 4 – Speaking Up: Advocacy…
I remember well the first few weeks of my social work training. It was a baptism of fire! Having never been to university before (I left school with 1 GCSE) I was struck by how vociferous people were about their views. What particularly impressed me was how...
Growing Pains – book review
Title: Growing Pains Subtitle: Making Sense of Childhood: A Psychiatrist's Story Author: Dr Mike Shooter This book - Growing Pains - was recommended to me by a psychology colleague. I was a little dubious, but was quickly proven wrong! If you work with children or...
Speech & Language Therapy – A Child’s Eye View…
Children sometimes fail to understand the things we say to them. And yet, often, we don't even realise this.Kids from troubled, traumatised or attachment disordered backgrounds are particularly susceptible to speech and language problems.So I asked my friend and...
Being Child-Centred 3 – Our real job is serving…
One of the great things about developed societies is the range of professionals involved in helping troubled children. I have the privilege of working in a multi-disciplinary mental health team. There are nurses, therapists, psychiatrists, psychologists and social...
Being Child-Centred 2 – Language is Power…
How risky is s/he? I get asked this all the time. ALL the time! In some circles it's almost become the main talking point - as if all the other factors in a child's life are somehow secondary. In fact, if you think about it,...
Impact of screen time on children & teenagers…
The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) has produced the UK's first guidance on screen time for children. Read a BBC summary here... Read a systematic review of the evidence here... Related previous posts: 11 things you need to know about online...
The Deepest Well (ACEs) – book review
Title: The Deepest Well Subtitle: Healing the Long Term Effects of Childhood Adversity Author: Dr Nadine Burke Harris This book - The Deepest Well - was recommended to me on the Troubled Kids Facebook Group, so I gave it a go - what a good move that was! This one is a...
Custody for children – time for change…
After delaying the publication of this post for nearly a year, the death of another young person in custody has spurred me to go ahead... In December 2016 the government finally published the long-awaited and much-leaked Taylor Review of youth justice. Time for...
Being Child-Centred 1: Is It ‘A Thing?’
If you think about it, much of what we do as child care professionals, is promote children's rights. Not that we're quoting the UNCRC, but that we're advocating for their interests and welfare. Getting their voices heard, if you like. We often refer to this and...
Inventing Ourselves – book review (about the teenage brain)
I find brains fascinating. Not easy to understand, but fascinating nonetheless! Sarah-Jayne Blakemore's latest booking, Inventing Ourselves, is my latest effort to get my head around (!) this amazing 3 pound mass of tissue in our skull. I gave it 4 stars - here's why:...
