Abstract
Research conducted with residential care and criminal justice professionals in New South Wales, Australia, has raised concerns about how we respond to children who go missing from care. These children are often viewed as problematic and delinquent rather than as vulnerable children in need. Dismissed as merely 'absent without permission' or as 'self-placers', some children who go missing are viewed distinct from, and less worthy than, children who are seen as 'genuinely missing'. This places children who go missing from care at risk of harm and renders them susceptible to inadequate agency responses. This paper explores the dichotomy whereby systems in place designed to protect children can instead lead to devastating outcomes for those who go missing from care, contributing to the cohort's overrepresentation in the criminal justice system, high rates of youth homelessness, and, as occurred in Rotherham in the UK, in the potentially catastrophic failure to act on organised child sexual exploitation and trafficking. system.
Original language | English |
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Pages | 13-13 |
Number of pages | 1 |
Publication status | Published - 1 Nov 2017 |
Externally published | Yes |
Event | 2017 National Missing Persons Conference : Missing People: Challenges and Opportunities - Mercure Sydney Hotel, Sydney, Australia Duration: 15 Nov 2017 → 16 Nov 2017 |
Conference
Conference | 2017 National Missing Persons Conference |
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Abbreviated title | NMPC2017 |
Country/Territory | Australia |
City | Sydney |
Period | 15/11/17 → 16/11/17 |