Referrals of children in need of protection to live with relatives abroad in EU countries

这个混合方法项目考察了英国家庭司法从业者在将儿童置于欧洲（欧盟）边境风险中时所面临的挑战。在英格兰，当孩子需要外出照顾时，地方当局必须首先考虑安排他们与家人在一起。然而，当孩子的亲属住在国外时，寻找和评估亲属的挑战要大得多，而且关于英国退出欧盟（BREXIT）的额外挑战存在知识缺口。由于全球移徙，公共服务机构需要处理日益多样化的有需要的儿童群体。虽然移民可以改善家庭生活，但它也可能造成困难，使儿童处于危险之中（Ackers和Stalford 2004； Northcott和Jeffries 2012； Lamont和Fenton-Glynn 2016）。迄今为止，关于从业者如何驾驭复杂的国际法律框架以确保家庭资源跨越欧洲边界的儿童的最佳利益决策的研究还不够。人们对这一弱势儿童群体知之甚少，也不知道英国脱欧让跨境安置的挑战变得多么复杂。需要系统的研究来为最佳实践提供信息。研究问题：关于2015年至2021年间英国地方当局在欧洲海外安置的儿童的数量、社会人口特征和结果，官方数据集和CFAB数据库能告诉我们什么？数据的局限性是什么，可以提出哪些建议来改进它？该项目获得的关于这一儿童群体的新描述性知识如何为司法决策提供信息？在为欧洲大家庭的儿童做安置决定时，英国的从业人员和司法机构描述了哪些挑战？鉴于英国脱欧导致的立法变化，这些挑战是如何加剧/改善的？如何改进政策和做法，以确保国际安置儿童的最佳结果？

This mixed-methods project examines challenges faced by family justice practitioners in England when placing children at risk across European (EU) borders. In England, when children require out of home care, local authorities must first consider placement with family. However, the search for and assessment of relatives is far more challenging when children's kin live abroad, and there are knowledge gaps regarding the added challenges of the UK's exit from the EU (BREXIT). Due to global migration, public services deal with an increasingly diverse population of children in need. Although migration can improve family life, it can also create hardships that render children at risk (Ackers and Stalford 2004; Northcott and Jeffries 2012; Lamont and Fenton-Glynn 2016). To date, there has been insufficient research on how practitioners navigate complex international statutory frameworks to ensure best interest decisions for children whose family resources span European borders. Little is known about this vulnerable population of children and how the challenges of cross border placements are complicated by BREXIT. Systematic research is required to inform best practice.Research questions:What can official datasets and the CFAB database tell us about the numbers, socio demographic profiles and outcomes for children placed by English local authorities abroad in Europe between 2015 and 2021? What are limitations of the data and what recommendations can be made to improve it? How can the new descriptive knowledge this project gained about this child population inform judicial decision-making?What challenges do practitioners and the Judiciary in England describe when making placement decisions about children with extended families in Europe? How are challenges compounded/ameliorated given legislative changes due to BREXIT?How can policy and practice be improved to ensure the best possible outcomes for children placed internationally?