Recent years have seen a growing level of concern about children's behaviour and emotional well-being in Western developed countries, in particular the United Kingdom. This has given rise to a plethora of parenting programmes and increasing attention to children's nutrition. These developments are rooted partly in evidence that some parenting…

This article summarizes an original conference, organised by the Child Care Research Forum (http://www.qub.ac.uk/sites/ccrf/), which brought together experts from all over Northern Ireland to showcase some of the wealth of research with children and young people that is going on in the country today. Developed around the six high-level outcomes of…

Families bereaved by suicide can experience an extremely intense and complicated grieving process. This can be associated with a range of difficulties and can put bereaved family members at risk of a range of problems. In recognition of this, Barnardo's Child Bereavement Service piloted a two-day residential programme (integrating separate…

When a school-age child with disabilities is accepted into a childcare setting, it is only the first step. The sustenance of the care option depends on whether the setting makes appropriate adaptations to accommodate the child with disability in the setting. Parents face a host of challenges related to adaptations and accommodations. This study…

This article is based on 20 one-to-one in-depth interviews conducted with young gay and bisexual men in Northern Ireland between 2000 and 2006. These interviews were conducted during two larger mixed-methods projects: one undertaken by the University of Ulster and the Northern Ireland branch of the Family Planning Association on sexual attitudes…

Concerns about the sexual health of women who identify as other than heterosexual have been highlighted in numerous research reports, yet access to information, advice and services remains limited within Northern Ireland. In response to this, a group of young women have produced a sexual health resource ("The L Pack") specifically for those who…

Ethnically, Ireland has diversified greatly over the past few years. According to the 2006 census, 419733 foreign nationals live in Ireland. Immigration is one of the one of the most stressful events a child can undergo; it involves profound changes, including a disruption of well-established relationships and acculturation. Since the…

The main aim of this article is to explore the association between mental health problems in children placed out-of-home and family risk factors reported as reasons for placement. The sample consisted of 109 Norwegian children aged 6-12 years. Mental health problems were assessed by the Revised Rutter scales reported by the parents and the…

This study evaluated an early childhood socio-emotional programme aimed at promoting preschooler's social skills and reducing behaviour problems. The Peace Education Foundation (PEF) socio-emotional development programme was provided in English and Spanish to preschool teachers, parents and children in Miami, Florida. The programme instructs…

The aim of the present study is to analyse, through direct observations, the communicative competence of children's caregivers and children's language development in different situational contexts in Italian nursery schools (for children aged between six and 36 months, i.e. creches) and infant schools (for children aged between 38 and 72 months,…

This article discusses the wider implications of a pattern of behaviour in which a parent, usually the mother, persistently presents a false story of illness or disability in the child. Such behaviour can be harmful to the child. The parent may deliberately produce symptoms of illness; the child may be exposed to unnecessary but painful and…

This article debates the issues involved in safeguarding and protecting children in maternity services and offers implications for professional practice. Midwives and other staff who work as members of the maternity team have a safeguarding role to play in the identification of babies and children who have been abused, or are at risk of abuse, and…

This article describes the work of Newry Student Unit, which operates in the Southern Health and Social Care Trust. The background to the unit is outlined and its development is discussed in the context of practice learning provision in Northern Ireland. The operation of the unit in providing Family and Child Care practice learning opportunities…

Drug misuse in Northern Ireland, like many parts of the world, is becoming one of the major issues facing society today. A first stage to addressing this problem is effective drugs education and prevention strategies to school-aged young people. A survey of a range of education providers including mainstream and special needs schools, and school…

At the beginning of 2004 the UK government downgraded the legal status of cannabis from a Class B to a Class C drug. Following a review of this decision two years later, cannabis remained a Class C substance--which for some contrasted with the potential harmful social and health effects associated with its use, particularly for young people. These…