CYP Now - Contested Vulnerability: A Case Study of Girls in Secure Care

This ethnographic study in a secure unit in England explored girls' concepts of vulnerability. It argues that by conflating childhood and vulnerability, the unit disenfranchises girls from services that are designed to help them.

Author Katie Ellis

Published in Children and Youth Services Review 88 (2018)

Children in the youth justice system generally have similar characteristics and needs as children who are the subject of welfare services. A child who suffers abuse at home receives support from social services. However, if the same child is caught stealing, they are likely to become the responsibility of the youth justice system.

This qualitative study was conducted in one secure unit (LASCH) to explore girls' perspectives of their pathways into secure care. It included: participant observations; semi-structured interviews with 15 female residents aged between 12 and 16; case note analysis; and interviews with five members of staff.

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