ABSTRACT
The second chapter focusing on children’s lives in care first explores the experience of ‘being in care’ and of ‘corporate parenting’ and the impact on young people’s daily lives from the perspectives of both young people and professionals, including issues of stigma and trust; surveillance and bureaucracy; and impersonal and transient relationships with social workers. The cumulative effect of these experiences is analysed through the concept of self-reliance, widely regarded as an aspect of resilience. The notion of resilient adaptation and insights from the ‘coping’ literature are employed in order to consider the ways in which the resilience of children in care and care leavers might best be promoted. In the final section, the congruities between the theoretical lenses of attachment, resilience, the focal model and foundational rights are reviewed to draw together findings on the importance of relational aspects of the lives of young people ageing out of the care system.
