Understanding System Change in Child Protection and Welfare

This book provides an account of the experience of a multifaceted system-change programme to strengthen the capacity of Ireland¿s statutory child protection and welfare agency in the areas of prevention, early intervention and family support.

Many jurisdictions globally are involved in system change processes focused on increasing investment in services that seek to prevent children¿s entry into child protection and welfare systems, through early intervention, greater support to families, and an increased emphasis on rights and participation. Based on a four-year in-depth study by a team of University-based researchers, this text adds to the emerging knowledge-base on developing, implementing and evaluating system change in child protection and welfare.?Study methodological approaches were wide ranging and involved a number of key stakeholders including children, parents, social workers and social care workers, service managers, agency leaders and policy makers. Since the chan