Social Action with Children and Families A Community Development Approach to Child and Family Welfare

Meeting the needs of children at the same time as promoting family life is more than a question of resources: it needs a culture change in social services: a rediscovery and a modernization of the social action and community development traditions in social work. In Social Action with Children and Families the authors argue that ways must be found to work together to promote environments in which children can flourish, and to develop forms of public life which are friendly to children and their parents. Recent changes in child care systems have put more pressures on those working in it. Social workers have become more open to public scrutiny and are expected to respond to problems rooted in social and economic aspects of their clients' or services users' lives. Legislation stresses working in partnership with parents, other professionals, and community groups. The central aim of Social Action with Children and Families is to help those working in this field to find a new, more positive sense of direction and purpose. It will be invaluable reading to those studying social work, social policy and public administration as well as to all professionals working in these areas.

Introduction, Crescy Cannan, Chris Warren; Part 1 New strategies in social action; Chapter 1 Community development and children, Paul Henderson; Chapter 2 Rethinking practice through a children's rights perspective, Jenny Clifton, David Hodgson; Chapter 3 Mapping the future?, Peter Durrant; Chapter 4 Social development with children and families in France, Crescy Cannan; Chapter 5 Family support and the journey to empowerment, Chris Warren; Part 2 New practices with children and families; Chapter 6 New social networks for families and children in Germany, Annemarie Gerzer-Sass, Rudolf Pettinger; Chapter 7 The role of the centre in family support, Eva Lloyd; Chapter 8 Mechanisms for empowerment, Jo Tunnard; Chapter 9 Long-term development, Barry Hulyer; Chapter 10 Think global, act local, Marie-Renée Bourget-Daitch, Chris Warren;

Crescy Cannan and Chris Warren are lecturers at the School of Cultural and Community Studies, University of Sussex.