For children who cannot live with their birth parents, the primary focus is on establishing a safe, child-focused and well-resourced relationship with a carer, whether that is foster care, adoption or special guardianship. Whether the placement is short or long term, this relationship is core to the child’s development and wellbeing. We also know that this perspective, while important, is limited when it does not reflect the fundamental significance of another set of relationships – those with the child’s brothers or sisters.
Sibling relationships are some of the most significant that any of us will experience over our lifetime. The “shared experience” of siblings within a family cannot be replicated in any other set of relationships, particularly when it comes to bearing shared witness to abuse and neglect for children in care.
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