‘They didn't tell me anything; they just sent me home’: children's participation in the return home

摘要

The reality of child protection systems typically demonstrates a lack ofattention to the voices of children. There are studies that confirm thisfact and offer evidence of the benefits of participation, but gaps remainregarding the elements and processes that favour it. This qualitativestudy attempts to contribute to knowledge in this area through a detailedanalysis of the perspectives of the actors involved and the role thatchildren play in the return home.This article analyses the elements involved in the participation of thechildren when a return home is proposed after a period of family or residentialfoster care. As part of the study, 18 semi-structured interviewswere conducted and 22 discussion groups were created with a total of135 participants (63 child protection services workers, 42 parents and30 children and adolescents). The data were analysed using a contentanalysis process and underwent a peer reviewprocess in Atlas.ti. The resultsindicate that the participation of children and adolescents in the returnhome centres around (i) understanding the return home, (ii)strategies and emotional processes and (iii) social support.