Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Understanding Family Support provides a definition of family support and a clear perspective on the role that it has in promoting the welfare of children and their families.

Family support is a concept that has been used in a range of ways to describe various aspects of child welfare policy and practice. The authors argue that this weakens family support as an overarching child welfare paradigm. They present a unifying definition of family support along with ten principles and a series of reflective practice questions applicable to: legislation and policy; organisation, management and planning; direct work with children and families; and research and evaluation.

This is an important resource for any professional engaged in policy development, service design, delivering or evaluation of family support, including social workers, residential care staff, community development workers, teachers, community police, human services managers, evaluators and policy makers.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Chapter 1 Introduction: Taking a Position on Family Support (p. 7)
• Chapter 2 The Policy and Politics of Family Support... (p. 27)
• Chapter 3 Managing and Leading in Family Support (p. 51)
• Chapter 4 Direct Work with Children, Parents and Communities (p. 71)
• Chapter 5 Family Support Evaluation (p. 95)
• Chapter 6 Conclusion: Family Support as a Globalising Agenda (p. 117)
• References (p. 143)
• Subject Index (p. 155)
• Author Index (p. 158)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

John Canavan is Associate Director of the UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre. He has over 20 years' experience in undertaking project evaluations and providing policy advice to statutory and voluntary agencies, and to government. He teaches on the post qualifying Diploma/MA in Family Support Studies, and co-directs the Structured PhD in Child and Youth Research at the National University of Ireland, Galway.
John Pinkerton is an established academic known for his research and writing in the area of family support. For the last 15 years he has been an international advisor to the Children's Institute, University of Cape Town. He was previously Co-Editor of the British Journal of Social Work.
Pat Dolan holds a UNESCO Chair in Children, Youth and Civic Engagement at the National University of Ireland, Galway. He leads the UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre. Apart from his extensive teaching and research experience in the field, he has provided policy advice on family support to national statutory and voluntary agencies and to international organisations. Together they are the authors of Family Support as Reflective Practice and Family Support: Direction from Diversity, also published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers.