ABSTRACT
This chapter examines whether the staffing situation and the amount and character of accommodation for children in different local authorities have any effect on proportions in care. Child care officers would more readily give way to the importunate parent and be less inclined to persuade relatives or friends to help, if they knew they could offer satisfactory accommodation for the child themselves. The staffing figures can also be related to the children’s departments’ caseloads. When the ratio of child care officers to the number of children in care is calculated there are again wide variations which resemble the differences apparent when comparison was based upon each area’s child population. Students on such courses combine theoretical training in subjects like human growth and development, psychology and social administration, with practical work in children’s departments, institutions for children, and so on. The organization of work within the children’s departments is also important and it also varies.
