Professor Lucy Griffiths from Population Data Science at Swansea University is a co-editor of the newly published book Born into Care: International Perspectives on the Removal of Babies at Birth, published by Bristol University Policy Press.
The international collection brings together diverse perspectives on the distinctive legal, ethical and procedural challenges of child protection at birth across several high-income countries. Moving beyond dominant policy and research narratives focused on permanence for infants in out-of-home care or adoption, the collection interrogates the normative foundations of contemporary safeguarding practices at birth and explores progressive alternatives.
The book examines the reliability and consistency of high-stakes decisions made at, or shortly after, birth, while also scrutinising the treatment and rights of mothers during pregnancy and the immediate postpartum period.
The book was edited by Professor Karen Broadhurst OBE (Lancaster University), Professor Emily Keddell (University of Otago), Dr Linda Cusworth (Lancaster University), Professor Lucy Griffiths (Swansea University), and Claire Mason (Lancaster University).
Professor Lucy Griffiths said, “The removal of infants at birth is highly consequential for families. We hope that our recommendations can bring about system-wide transformation, thereby reducing this practice and enhancing fairness and effectiveness for those who are most disadvantaged. It was a real pleasure to work on this project with all fellow editors and contributors.”
Professor Lucy Griffiths and Dr Laura Cowley, also from Population Data Science at Swansea University, contributed a chapter focused on Welsh administrative data, bringing important insight from Wales to this international discussion. Utilising population-level quantitative social care data, the chapter uncovers wide geographical variations in practice across Wales, showing that local authority approaches significantly influence whether infants enter care via voluntary agreement or formal court proceedings. Their analysis reveals that infants entering care through voluntary arrangements are far more likely to be reunified with their parents.
Dr Laura Cowley added, “Too often, highly consequential decisions for children coming into care remain out of view due to a lack of published evidence about decisions and outcomes. Our full-population analysis of infants entering care in Wales, reported in Chapter 3, is the first of its kind and provides rare insights into the proportion of infants entering care via different legal routes as well as the final legal outcomes for these children. The findings speak directly to calls in the UK for far greater transparency regarding family-court decision-making.”
The Centre for Child and Family Justice Research will host the official book launch webinar from 5 pm on Wednesday, 10th June, featuring contributions from the editors and authors, a discussion of international approaches to care proceedings at birth, and a live Q&A session.
Register here: Centre for Child and Family Justice Research Webinar Book Launch