Background: Mothers with learning disabilities are at higher risk of child removal and mental health difficulties and may face more barriers to developing attachment relationships with their children. Mothers with learning disabilities' voices are still underrepresented in research, with less known about those who are actively parenting their…

Background: It is widely accepted that family caregivers are central to the future of cancer care and the impetus is to understand how best to support and empower them. Aims: This study explored the role of the relationship between the caregiver and the child, the level of perceived support, and the self-compassion of the caregiver, on distress…

Children who are currently, or were previously, 'looked after' by the state, are educationally disadvantaged, with exclusion rates historically higher than in other groups in the UK. A conventional way of thinking about these children is that they have been affected by trauma and attachment issues in their early years, and that they import their…

Within this literature-based article the authors consider the importance and power of relationships, within the field of early years education and care (ECEC). Drawing on the lenses of attachment and development theory, alongside current literature and research, the authors critically explore the significance of relationships in child development,…

A growing evidence base has demonstrated the value of Forest School as an outdoor learning approach which supports a range of benefits including improved physical, social and mental wellbeing, increased confidence and self-esteem and the development of problem-solving skills. However, critics of Forest School have argued that a lack of theoretical…

Infant attachment theory is now nearly seventy-years old. Despite debates that developed around the original theory relating to the role of the mother and the potential for emotional flexibility in the infant, its core thesis of the role of the 'Internal Working Model' in human mental health endures. Recent neurophysiological research reveals…

Over the past 25 years Forest School in the UK has been growing in popularity as part of a wider resurgence of interest in outdoor learning. A key driver behind this recurrence of interest has been a growing concern over the lack of child exposure to outdoor experiences and with the natural world and their ensuing nature-deficit disorder. This…

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been associated with a range of poorer health and educational outcomes. In response, many schools have adopted trauma-informed practice (TIP). Staff attitudes are postulated to play a central role in behaviour change, potentially facilitating or hindering system change towards TIP. However, little is known…

Children with attachment difficulties can experience barriers to learning and their externalising and internalising behaviours can challenge staff: ultimately, such encounters may result in exclusion from school. This paper examines how settings can support the inclusion of pupils with attachment difficulties, through employing a specific member…

Aim: This paper aims to discuss the link between childhood trauma and young people's disruptive behaviour in the classroom, and argues that teachers should receive training on 'attachment aware' approaches to help them respond effectively. Rationale: Two inter-connected problems affecting the UK education system are the number of young people who…

Nurture groups (NGs) were a provision first conceptualised by Marjorie Boxall in the 1960s. They have since become established in schools to support children who have experienced early attachment difficulties. There is a bank of evidence in support of their benefits to children and some evidence of the positive views of parents and practitioners.…

From its origins within the deprived schools of inner London in the late 1960s, nurture group practice has evolved organically. Based on instinctive, clinically observed and evidence-based principles, nurture groups continue to offer a viable educational response in providing for the fundamental attachment needs of vulnerable children in schools.…

Attachment difficulties are associated with a range of adverse outcomes in mental health, and people with intellectual disabilities (IDs) may be at greater risk of experiencing difficulties in their attachment relationships. This review critically evaluated recent research measuring the prevalence of attachment difficulties in people with ID.…

In this commentary, Sagi-Schwartz evaluates the article by Beckh and Becker-Stoll (2016) on attachment relationships with non-parental caregivers and how it may contribute to public child care. Beckh and Becker-Stoll first describe important background about research on early parent-child relationships, and how their nature and quality might…

Background: Previous research has largely focused on evaluating the impact of teaching practical parenting skills to parents with intellectual disabilities. Teaching them about the importance and nature of early attachment behaviors has not yet been explored. This study investigates whether knowledge of early attachment behavior of young adults…