People with intellectual disabilities have poorer health than their non-disabled peers. They are also more likely to be exposed to a wide range of environmental adversities in childhood. Research undertaken in the general population has demonstrated that exposure to environmental adversity in childhood can have an adverse impact on health and…

This paper underlines the difficulties of working with looked after children and their carers. The author discusses a particular approach to respond to the complexity of looked after children's emotional difficulties, and their impact on the network of professionals making decisions about their life in care. As their own parents are no longer in a…

Concern is increasing about children growing up in families where there are substance use problems but relatively little is known about the perspectives of the children themselves. This article reports on a qualitative study with young people who grew up in such families, exploring their accounts of their daily lives at home, school and leisure.…

This report represents the first ever attempt to draw a comparative picture of the physical abuse of children in the 27 richest nations of the world. UNICEF research estimates that almost 3,500 children under the age of 15 die from physical abuse and neglect every year in the industrialized world. The greatest risk is among younger children. A…

Discusses the public perception of childhood innocence as a treasured concept that appears to be under attack according to media reports of child abuse and neglect and child murderers. Discusses cases of children who kill, focusing on the United Kingdom's 1968 case of Mary Bell. Considers causes of childhood crises that threaten innocence. (JPB)

Despite a growing awareness and acknowledgement of the incidence of sexually harmful behaviour by children and young people, research on this group remains limited. A number of recent publications have reviewed UK systems and practice and suggest that the issue is better appreciated than a decade ago. To date, however, there is no published…