Listing of research projects and reports

• read more about Understanding how advocacy services support care-experienced young people to participate in decision-making
  Project

  Understanding how advocacy services support care-experienced young people to participate in decision-making

  An exploratory study of an advocacy service for children and young people, provided as part of the children’s service within a large local authority in England, looking at how this service supports care-experienced young people to participate in decision-making.
• read more about Virtual and digital interventions rapid review
  Project

  Virtual and digital interventions rapid review

  A rapid evidence review to identify virtual and digital parenting interventions.
• read more about Strengthening Knowledge and Awareness in Family Services of Domestic Abuse (SKAFADA)   
  Project

  Strengthening Knowledge and Awareness in Family Services of Domestic Abuse (SKAFADA)   

  A case study that aims to provide evidence about the knowledge, understanding, and skills of the Early Help and Family Support workforces in England in respect of domestic abuse. 
• read more about CAMHS Referrals and Outcomes for Adolescents and Children with Social Workers (COACHES) Study 
  Project

  CAMHS Referrals and Outcomes for Adolescents and Children with Social Workers (COACHES) Study 

  A mixed methods study, investigating the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) journey for young people with a social worker across two NHS trusts.
• read more about ISAFE – Improving Safeguarding through Audited Father-Engagement
  Project

  ISAFE – Improving Safeguarding through Audited Father-Engagement

  WWEICSC have commissioned Ipsos UK to conduct a full-scale randomised controlled trial of the Improving Safeguarding through Audited Father-Engagement (ISAFE) training programme which aims to improve local authority children’s service’s engagement with fathers.
• read more about Let’s Connect Fostering Communities
  Project

  Let’s Connect Fostering Communities

  This protocol summarises plans for a pilot RCT study of Let's Connect, an intervention to improve mental health and wellbeing of foster and kinship families.
• read more about Partnership for Change
  Project

  Partnership for Change

  This protocol is a randomised controlled trial of an intervention to improve the mental health of children with a social worker.
• read more about Staying Close: feasibility study
  Project

  Staying Close: feasibility study

  This protocol summarises plans for a feasibility study of the Staying Close programme, which 15 local (LAs) authorities received funding for in 2022-23.
• read more about Domestic abuse interventions in children’s social care
  Project

  Domestic abuse interventions in children’s social care

  This protocol is for the domestic abuse interventions in children’s social care feasibility study, an exploratory study helping to refine domestic abuse interventions linked to children's outcomes.
• read more about What Works for Kinship Care and Special Guardianship Orders
  Project

  What Works for Kinship Care and Special Guardianship Orders

  What Works for Kinship Care and Special Guardianship Orders will evaluate the impact of local authority policies and interventions to identify and provide support to Kinship Foster Carers and Special Guardians on both the number of such placements and children’s outcomes.
• read more about Kinship care: A scoping study for a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) of whether Kinship Connected improves children and young people’s mental health outcomes
  Project

  Kinship care: A scoping study for a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) of whether Kinship Connected improves children and young people’s mental health outcomes

  This protocol is for the Kinship Connected project, an exploratory study to determine under what conditions a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) of the intervention is feasible.
• read more about School non-attendance by children with a social worker in the UK: a rapid review of extent, risk factors and interventions
  Project

  School non-attendance by children with a social worker in the UK: a rapid review of extent, risk factors and interventions

  This protocol is for a rapid review of extent, risk factors and interventions related to school non-attendance by children with a social worker in the UK.
• read more about Care Leavers Emotional Wellbeing Study
  Project

  Care Leavers Emotional Wellbeing Study

  This protocol is for the Care Leaver Emotional Wellbeing project, an exploratory study focusing on the services available to support young people’s mental health and emotional wellbeing as they leave care.
• read more about Systematic Review: Experiences with Mental Health Provision for Care-Experienced Young People in the UK
  Project

  Systematic Review: Experiences with Mental Health Provision for Care-Experienced Young People in the UK

  This review will identify and summarise the experiences with the implementation of mental health services for CEYP in the UK, drawing upon qualitative (and if relevant, quantitative) research findings.
• read more about Systematic Review: The effectiveness of policies, programmes or interventions to improve mental health outcomes for care-experienced young people
  Project

  Systematic Review: The effectiveness of policies, programmes or interventions to improve mental health outcomes for care-experienced young people

  This review will identify programs and interventions that seek to improve mental health outcomes amongst CEYP that have been tested using robust controlled methods.
• read more about Systematic Review: Domestic Abuse Interventions delivered to Children about whom there are Child Protection Concerns
  Project

  Systematic Review: Domestic Abuse Interventions delivered to Children about whom there are Child Protection Concerns

  What Works in Children’s Social Care has commissioned a systematic review of interventions for children exposed to DA and who are in receipt of Children’s Social Care (CSC) services because of child protection concerns.
• read more about Randomised Controlled Trial of a LGBTQ+ Training Programme for Social Workers
  Project

  Randomised Controlled Trial of a LGBTQ+ Training Programme for Social Workers

  The University of Birmingham is conducting a Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) of a LGBTQ+ training programme for social workers as part of the LYPSA (LGBTQ+ Young People in Social Care) Study, aiming to improve the attitudes, knowledge and skills of social work staff.
• read more about Supervising Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in primary and secondary schools: focus on child sexual abuse
  Project

  Supervising Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in primary and secondary schools: focus on child sexual abuse

  This trial aims to establish the impact of providing a supervising social worker to provide supervision to Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in primary and secondary schools with a specific focus on child sexual abuse (CSA), through the provision of specific training in this area.
• read more about Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSL) group supervision in secondary schools
  Project

  Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSL) group supervision in secondary schools

  This trial aims to establish the impact of providing a designated social worker to supervise Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in secondary schools, using a group supervision model.
• read more about Supervising Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in primary schools
  Project

  Supervising Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in primary schools

  This trial aims to establish the impact of providing a designated social worker to supervise Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in primary schools.
• read more about Evaluation of Early Help Services provided as part of the Cluster Collaborative in Leeds
  Project

  Evaluation of Early Help Services provided as part of the Cluster Collaborative in Leeds

  This study is a mixed-method pilot evaluation of the Cluster Collaborative model in one local authority, which provides early help services to local families in need of support.
• read more about Future YOU Pilot Evaluation
  Project

  Future YOU Pilot Evaluation

  Future YOU is an intervention that provides mentor support to young people with experience of social care at HSDC (Havant and South Downs College).
• read more about Progress Mentor Pilot Evaluation
  Project

  Progress Mentor Pilot Evaluation

  The Progress Mentor programme is an intervention to support young people with experience of social care with the goal of maximising their college experience and in the long-term improve their overall wellbeing, post-college destination and housing situation.
• read more about Children in Kinship Care
  Project

  Children in Kinship Care

  This project aims to improve the understanding of kinship care through analysis of administrative data of all English local authorities. The work will provide quantitative evidence regarding the use of kinship foster care and special guardianship orders (SGOs) both nationally and across local authorities.
• read more about Children living in Residential Care
  Project

  Children living in Residential Care

  This analysis aims to provide a quantitative national overview of the characteristics and experiences of children living in residential care, their journeys into and out of residential care placements and their outcomes compared to children in other types of care.
• read more about Towards early identification of mental health problems in children’s social care
  Project

  Towards early identification of mental health problems in children’s social care

  There are high levels of mental health (MH) need in children’s social care settings. However, the data to estimate the actual level of need is very poor and existing figures are likely to be vast underestimates. In particular, poor integration of information held about young people makes it difficult to accurately estimate MH need in this population. 
• read more about Exploring characteristics, needs, and service use of mothers diagnosed with severe perinatal mental health difficulties and their infants in contact with CSC
  Project

  Exploring characteristics, needs, and service use of mothers diagnosed with severe perinatal mental health difficulties and their infants in contact with CSC

  This project is a secondary quantitative analysis of data collected on mother-infant dyads where the mother was admitted to acute psychiatric care in England and Wales in the year after childbirth, including where there was children’s social services involvement at the time of their acute episode. 
• read more about Looked-after children: impact of the Adoption Support Fund and mental wellbeing in British adoptive families
  Project

  Looked-after children: impact of the Adoption Support Fund and mental wellbeing in British adoptive families

  This project aims to evaluate a key policy rolled out across all 152 local authorities in England in 2015, known as the Adoptive Support Fund (ASF), on the mental health of adopted children. The ASF aims to increase access to therapeutic post-adoption support for adoptive families.
• read more about The perceived impact of Peer Parental Advocacy on child protection practice: A pilot evaluation
  Project

  The perceived impact of Peer Parental Advocacy on child protection practice: A pilot evaluation

  PPA aims to support parents who are engaged with the child protection process, through advice and advocacy, and helps them play a meaningful role in decision making about their children. This study will be a mixed-method pilot evaluation of PPA in child protection, in one local authority, the London Borough of Camden.
• read more about Rapid Review: The experiences of teenagers in care
  Project

  Rapid Review: The experiences of teenagers in care

  As part of work undertaken to support the Independent Review into Children’s Social Care, WWCSC has commissioned a brief evidence review into the experiences of teenagers in care to capture a growing evidence base and inform the recommendations of the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care. 
• read more about Improving the chances of successful reunification for children who return home from care: a rapid evidence review
  Project

  Improving the chances of successful reunification for children who return home from care: a rapid evidence review

  What Works for Children’s Social Care (WWCSC) has commissioned a brief evidence review into reunification to capture a growing evidence base and inform the recommendations of the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care. 
• read more about Research Learning Communities: Pilot Evaluation
  Project

  Research Learning Communities: Pilot Evaluation

  WWCSC and Ipsos MORI are conducting a pilot evaluation of Research Learning Communities, delivered by Durham University, which aims to improve the Literacy and Mathematics outcomes of Children in Need (CiN) and Looked After Children (LAC) in years 5 and 6.
• read more about LGBTQ+ Young People in Residential Care
  Project

  LGBTQ+ Young People in Residential Care

  WWCSC and the University of Birmingham are conducting a qualitative study examining the experiences of LGBTQ+ young people in residential care.
• read more about A pilot evaluation of Lewisham’s Prevent-Protect-Repair programme
  Project

  A pilot evaluation of Lewisham’s Prevent-Protect-Repair programme

  A feasibility study of Lewisham's Prevent-Protect-Repair (PPR) programme. PPR aims to build the skills, confidence and capacity of children’s social care teams in Lewisham to work with families affected by domestic abuse that are on child protection plans. This includes raising awareness for domestic abuse, expanding training for social workers in key interventions, developing a best-practice toolkit and increasing access to specialist therapeutic support. 
• read more about Empowering Parents and Professionals Using Video Interaction Guidance: A Randomised Controlled Trial
  Project

  Empowering Parents and Professionals Using Video Interaction Guidance: A Randomised Controlled Trial

  IFF Research and Manchester Metropolitan University are conducting a randomised controlled trial of the 'Empowering Parents and Professionals Using Video Interaction Guidance' programme, delivered by Babies1st in four Local Authorities in England.
• read more about Thriving Babies: A Pilot Evaluation
  Project

  Thriving Babies: A Pilot Evaluation

  WWCSC and Oxford Brookes University are conducting a pilot evaluation of the Thriving Babies project in Manchester, which aims to intervene and provide support at an early stage for potential vulnerable parents of babies and infants pre and post birth.
• read more about Happier, Healthier Professional: Ministry of Defence Inspiring the Next Generation
  Project

  Happier, Healthier Professional: Ministry of Defence Inspiring the Next Generation

  WWCSC are conducting a randomised controlled trial in collaboration with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) Defence Intelligence to investigate the effectiveness of a wellbeing intervention delivered to staff, in the form of a series of eight weekly email messages that emphasise the shared experiences, challenges and rewarding nature of their work.
• read more about The Supporting Parents Project: a randomised controlled trial of the Lighthouse Parenting Programme
  Project

  The Supporting Parents Project: a randomised controlled trial of the Lighthouse Parenting Programme

  WWCSC are conducting a randomised controlled trial (RCT) and implementation process study of The Supporting Parents Project: Lighthouse Parenting Programme, delivered by Bath and North-East Somerset and Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, and evaluated by The Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families.
• read more about Rapid Review: The quality of decision making and risk assessment in children’s social care
  Project

  Rapid Review: The quality of decision making and risk assessment in children’s social care

  What Works for Children’s Social Care has commissioned a brief evidence review into the quality of risk assessment and decision-making in children’s social care and child protection.
• read more about My View: a Randomised Controlled Trial
  Project

  My View: a Randomised Controlled Trial

  WWCSC are conducting a randomised controlled trial and evaluation of the My View therapeutic intervention for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, delivered by the British Refugee Council, and evaluated by Ipsos MORI and the Centre for Evidence and Implementation (CEI).
• read more about Happier Healthier Professionals – Increasing Diversity in Social Work Management
  Project

  Happier Healthier Professionals – Increasing Diversity in Social Work Management

  This online study aims to understand the effectiveness of two interventions designed to reduce bias in the evaluation of candidates for managerial roles within Children's Services. We make use of fictitious applications and ask participants to evaluate the strength of candidates, randomising participants to one of two evaluation conditions to determine firstly whether any racial bias is present in responses, and secondly whether the mode of evaluation has any impact on the bias in responses.
• read more about Happier, Healthier Professionals: Symbolic Awards (Beneficiaries)
  Project

  Happier, Healthier Professionals: Symbolic Awards (Beneficiaries)

  WWCSC are conducting a randomised controlled trial across 8 Local Authority sites to test the effectiveness on wellbeing of a Symbolic Awards intervention, in the form of messages of gratitude, delivered to social workers.
• read more about Rapid review of placement outcomes of Black children in out of home care, compared to children from other ethnic groups in out of home care
  Project

  Rapid review of placement outcomes of Black children in out of home care, compared to children from other ethnic groups in out of home care

  WWCSC are conducting a rapid review to better understand the existing literature around placement outcomes of Black children in care, and whether this differs from the placement outcomes of children from other ethnic groups in care in the UK.
• read more about Putting Kitbags to Work: an implementation and process evaluation
  Project

  Putting Kitbags to Work: an implementation and process evaluation

  WWCSC is conducting an evaluation of the Kitbag programme.
• read more about Pilot Evaluation of Tiny Tots College
  Project

  Pilot Evaluation of Tiny Tots College

  WWCSC are conducting a pilot evaluation of Affinity and Unravel's 'Tiny Tots College' programme.
• read more about No Recourse to Early Action Model: A Pilot Evaluation
  Project

  No Recourse to Early Action Model: A Pilot Evaluation

  The Centre for Evidence and Implementation (CEI) are conducting a pilot evaluation of Hackney London Borough Council's 'No Recourse to Early Action Model' programme.
• read more about We Can Talk About Domestic Abuse: A Pilot Evaluation
  Project

  We Can Talk About Domestic Abuse: A Pilot Evaluation

  The Policy Evaluation and Research Unit (PERU) at Manchester Metropolitan University are conducting a pilot evaluation of Wirral Council's 'We Can Talk About Domestic Abuse' programme
• read more about Springboard: Widening Participation in Higher and Further Education for Young People in Care
  Project

  Springboard: Widening Participation in Higher and Further Education for Young People in Care

  Project Springboard aims to to help young people with care experience see their social identity as compatible with college or university, and to help them feel more supported and informed in their decision-making about college or university.
• read more about Supervision for Designated Safeguarding Leads Scale-up
  Project

  Supervision for Designated Safeguarding Leads Scale-up

  This trial aims to establish the impact of providing a designated social worker to supervise Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) in secondary schools in Greater Manchester.
• read more about Evaluation of Family Drug and Alcohol Courts (FDAC)
  Project

  Evaluation of Family Drug and Alcohol Courts (FDAC)

  An impact evaluation of Family Drug and Alcohol Courts (FDAC), led by NatCen Social Research.
• read more about A systematic review on safeguarding young people who have experienced child sexual exploitation (CSE) during transitions to adult services
  Project

  A systematic review on safeguarding young people who have experienced child sexual exploitation (CSE) during transitions to adult services

  Authors at Nottingham Trent University aim to identify the difficulties that children and young people, who have been vulnerable to/have experienced child sexual abuse, experience in transitioning from child to adult services.
• read more about A Systematic Review on safeguarding disabled children and young people
  Project

  A Systematic Review on safeguarding disabled children and young people

  A consortium from the universities of Portsmouth, Nottingham Trent, Ann Croft Trust and the University of East Anglia will undertake a review to understand why children with a disability are significantly more at risk of abuse than their peers, and to understand why they are not adequately identified by child care services. The review seeks to understand what factors can improve the outcomes for children with a disability, and if any innovative models of social care are directly applicable to improving the outcomes of children with a disability.
• read more about Pilot Evaluation of Our Skills
  Project

  Pilot Evaluation of Our Skills

  Our Skills is a family literacy programme which aims to increase the educational attainment and life chances of children in Reception or Year 1 who have a social worker or who have had one in the last six years.
• read more about Flexitime for Social Workers
  Project

  Flexitime for Social Workers

  This pilot project aims to understand how a flexible working model of compressed hours could be effectively implemented for Local Authorities, and to generate evidence of promise that it might be effective in improving social workers’ work-life balance, autonomy and productivity.
• read more about Creative Mentoring Trial Evaluation
  Project

  Creative Mentoring Trial Evaluation

  This project aims to evaluate the impact of 1:1 Creative Mentoring sessions for young people aged 15-18.
• read more about Placing an advisory teacher in Children’s Social Care Pilot
  Project

  Placing an advisory teacher in Children’s Social Care Pilot

  This study is evaluating the Placing an advisory teacher in Children’s Social Care intervention, delivered by Bath and North East Somerset (BANES) Virtual School.
• read more about Transition Support Pilot
  Project

  Transition Support Pilot

  This study is evaluating the Transition Support Programme, developed and delivered by Hartlepool Borough Council.
• read more about Behaviour Outreach Support Service Pilot
  Project

  Behaviour Outreach Support Service Pilot

  The study is evaluating the Behaviour Outreach Support Service (BOSS), delivered by Family Action.
• read more about Signs of Potential: Words for All
  Project

  Signs of Potential: Words for All

  An evaluation of the Words for All (WfA) intervention, delivered by Whole Education. WfA trains teachers to deliver vocabulary-focused educational enrichment programmes to improve the attainment of pupils who have or have had a social worker.
• read more about Family Drug and Alcohol Court – Service Engagement Evaluation
  Project

  Family Drug and Alcohol Court – Service Engagement Evaluation

  A Randomised Controlled Trial of an intervention designed to improve parental engagement with the Family Drug and Alcohol Court (FDAC) services and process.
• read more about Affordable Maths Tuition
  Project

  Affordable Maths Tuition

  Evaluating the impact of Affordable Maths Tuition on children who have had a social worker on Key Stage 2 maths attainment
• read more about Social Workers in School Scale-up
  Project

  Social Workers in School Scale-up

  An evaluation which explores the impact of placing social workers in schools on children's social care outcomes and educational outcomes
• read more about Happier Healthier Professionals: Social Workers Inspiring Next Generation
  Project

  Happier Healthier Professionals: Social Workers Inspiring Next Generation

  This project aims to emphasise the shared experiences, challenges and rewarding nature of social work, promoting a sense of professional identity among student and newly qualified social workers.
• read more about Family Drug and Alcohol Court – Post-Proceedings Support Pilot
  Project

  Family Drug and Alcohol Court – Post-Proceedings Support Pilot

  A pilot evaluation of the post-proceedings support offered as part of Gloucestershire's Family Drug and Alcohol Court (FDAC).
• read more about Family Drug and Alcohol Court – Parent Mentoring Pilot
  Project

  Family Drug and Alcohol Court – Parent Mentoring Pilot

  A pilot implementation evaluation of the parent mentoring component of the Family Drug and Alcohol Courts (FDAC).
• read more about Social Work Health Check
  Project

  Social Work Health Check

  The Social Work Health Check is a survey of social workers across England to understand the practice conditions and working environment of the social work workforce. The survey is based on the Local Government Association (LGA)’s employer standards, a model of workplace wellbeing developed by What Works for Wellbeing, and input from principal social workers (PSWs).
• read more about Family Valued Model – Trial Evaluation
  Project

  Family Valued Model – Trial Evaluation

  Evaluation of the Family Valued Model as part of the Department for Education’s Strengthening Families, Protecting Children (SFPC) programme.
• read more about Family Safeguarding Model – Trial Evaluation
  Project

  Family Safeguarding Model – Trial Evaluation

  Evaluation of the Family Safeguarding Model as part of the Department for Education’s Strengthening Families, Protecting Children (SFPC) programme.
• read more about No Wrong Door Model – Trial Evaluation
  Project

  No Wrong Door Model – Trial Evaluation

  Evaluation of the No Wrong Door Model as part of the Department for Education’s Strengthening Families, Protecting Children (SFPC) programme.
• read more about Evaluation of Family Group Conferences at pre-proceedings stage
  Project

  Evaluation of Family Group Conferences at pre-proceedings stage

  Evaluation of Family Group Conferences at pre-proceedings stage, as part of the Department for Education's Supporting Families: Investing in Practice programme
• read more about Evaluation of the Mockingbird programme
  Project

  Evaluation of the Mockingbird programme

  Evaluation of The Fostering Network’s Mockingbird programme, as part of the Department for Education's Supporting Families: Investing in Practice programme
• read more about No Wrong Door Pilot
  Project

  No Wrong Door Pilot

  Pilot Evaluation of No Wrong Door in Middlesbrough as part of the Department for Education’s Strengthening Families, Protecting Children (SFPC) programme
• read more about Family Valued Model Pilot
  Project

  Family Valued Model Pilot

  Pilot Evaluation of the Family Valued Model in Darlington as part of the Department for Education’s Strengthening Families, Protecting Children (SFPC) programme.
• read more about Supporting Good Judgement in Social Work
  Project

  Supporting Good Judgement in Social Work

  Testing online interventions designed to improve social workers' accuracy in forecasting the outcomes from case summaries.