Care leavers typically leave their foster homes or residential placements at 16-18 years and cannot necessarily rely on receiving as much practical, emotional or family support, once they have moved, as their peers in the general population. Led by Principal Investigator, Professor Emily Munro, Director of the University’s Tilda Goldberg Centre for Social Work and Social Care, The ‘Care leavers, Covid-19 and the Transition from Care’ (CCTC) study launched in November 2020. In the first stage of the 18-month project, Professor Munro and her research team have been interviewing children’s social care professionals and leaving care managers from across England to explore the impact that the pandemic and subsequent restrictions have had on care leavers’ lives. A new report published as part of the CCTC study explores the impact that the pandemic and restrictions have had on care leavers’ lives. It highlights how children’s social care have adapted their services and support from the first lockdown in March 2020 to May 2021. Findings suggest that there were some unanticipated benefits of the pandemic. It has been a catalyst for some positive adjustments to approaches to service delivery and the levels and types of support available. There was some indication that during Covid-19 services had moved away from bureaucratic and ‘task-focused’ practice and towards more personalised, flexible and relational support.
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