ABSTRACT
A residential approach may be perfectly valid theoretically or practically but if the context is wrong then the effort is wasted. In any scrutiny of residential care, it is necessary to bear in mind the possibilities of discord in some part of the system, no matter how pleasant things may seem on the surface. It is very easy for relationships between the parts to change and go off balance. It may be irritating that factors such as the qualifications of staff or the condition of buildings do not in themselves correlate with good homes, but this is undeniably so. When studying residential institutions, the immediate ports of call are the surface features, the leadership, the fabric and the resources. Problems arise by virtue of the fact that there is no one task to be achieved and no single method of producing good results.
