CoramBAAF Conversations

Dr Tam Cane joins Jane Poore, CoramBAAF Adoption Consultant, to talk about the Adoption Framework for Diversity and Inclusion in Transracial adoption, also known as the AFDiT Framework The framework is an initiative by Adoption England, in collaboration with the University of Sussex and The British Academy. It aims to improve positive identity outcomes for children in transracial adoption. It was...

In celebration of National Adoption Week, Jane Poore is joined by Al Coates. They talk about a range of elements that were a part of Al’s journey as a parent, adopter, foster carer, and social worker. In 1999, Al and his wife Paula adopted a sibling group of three, later expanding their family by adopting two children they had fostered, followed by their sibling in 2013 Al became a qualified socia...

Join us as we explore the Build Not Break campaign with our guests. In this episode hosted by James Bury, Head of Policy, Research and Development, we delve into the inspiring work of the Family Rights Group (FRG) and their mission to support children and young people in care.   Special guests Andrew, Saima, and Sandra will share their experiences with the innovative Build Not Break campaign, whic...

For Kinship Care Week, Ann Horne interviewed Clare Seth about their work on the new Form K (previously known as Form C) due to be launched in January 2025. Clare shares the feedback from focus groups, including the voices of kinship carers, and how they used this to inform the development of Form K. Form K is currently being piloted within 10 local authorities across the UK. CoramBAAF hopes the re...

Leonie is the CEO and co-founder of Care Leavers Australasia Network (CLAN). She is an advocate for the rights of care leavers and people who are victims of institutional abuse. Leonie has given several major presentations including at the UN in Geneva and received a Medal of the Order of Australia in 2007.   Find out more: https://corambaaf.org.uk/resources/access-records/childrens-social-care-fi...

Frank Golding is an author, researcher, activist and historian. His childhood as a Ward of the State of Victoria in Australia in the ‘care’ of three foster mothers and three institutions underpins his active involvement in Care Leaver issues as an advocate and lobbyist. Find out more: https://corambaaf.org.uk/resources/access-records/childrens-social-care-files/access-and-support-rights-childrens-...

Barbara Reed is a consultant in the field of records, archives and information management with more than 25 years of industry experience in in all levels of Australian government, private sector and not-for-profits. She been active as a trainer and recordkeeping professional, and has played a major role in the development of Australian and international standards for records management, digitisati...

Helen Little, Training, Consultancy, and Events Manager, sat down with Marrianne Palin, Associate Trainer at CoramBAAF, to discuss effective ways to engage with children and truly understand their thoughts and feelings.  During the conversation, Marrianne shared various techniques for direct work with children, offering insights into what these approaches look like in practice, along with practica...

In this discussion on school exclusions, Augusta Itua, Legal Consultant at CoramBAAF, is joined by Richard to highlight the support and resources available for children and their families.  The conversation focuses on the pressing issue of school exclusions, covering recent research, the legal framework, and offering practical guidance for parents, carers, and guardians navigating this complex are...

Looked-after children face significant challenges in school, often due to poor collaboration between teachers and social workers, which can hinder their progress. Effective teamwork between these professionals can greatly benefit these children by providing more consistent support for their educational and emotional needs.   Clear communication, sharing information about the child's development, a...

This pre-recorded video offers a taster of the benefits of joining our course ‘ Making plans for staying in touch ’. No two children or their families are the same. The most critical aspect of any staying in touch plan post adoption is that it allows for individual needs and situations.   This conversation covers some of the key considerations when communicating with children and young people abou...

Our Legal Consultants, Augusta Itua and Alexandra Conroy-Harris came together to talk about the structures, regimes, differences and challenges for care-experienced adults wanting to access their records.  Augusta joined CoramBAAF in April 2023 and job-shares with Alexandra, assisting with our advice line and service delivery for our members. Augusta qualified as a Youth Justice Lawyer and previou...

James Bury, CoramBAAF’s Head of Policy, Research and Development, is joined by Anthony Lynch to tell us more about his research study “Complex Identities: An Intersectional Framework” which delves into the intricate nature of identity by examining how various social categories—such as race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, and sexual orientation—intersect and shape individual experiences. The s...

Ann Horne, CoramBAAF’s Kinship Consultant, is joined by researcher and academic  Sariya Cheruvallil-Contractor. As part of this year’s Members’ Week celebrations, they will be talking about the theme of identity, with insights from Sariya’s research and her key findings from past and present projects.    Sariya Cheruvallil-Contractor (PhD) is an Associate Professor in the Sociology of Islam at the...

In this episode, we dive into the insights from our latest Good Practice Guide,  Exploring and assessing motivations to adopt . Jo Francis, CoramBAAF’s Publishing Manager, meets  with the guide's author, Laura Payne. Laura shares her experiences in writing the book, detailing the interviews she conducted and the insights she gained while examining the diverse reasons people choose to adopt. Togeth...

Building a healthy relationship between a foster carer and the child in their care is deeply rooted in trust. In this insightful conversation, Jo Francis, our Publishing Manager, sits down with Brad Kemp and Lauren Fernandes to explore what it truly means to build trust between children and their carers.   Both Brad and Lauren played pivotal roles in the creation of our latest children’s book, Whe...

In this episode, Dr Dennis Golm interviews Saul Hillman about their PhD, which focused on developing the Story Stem Assessment Profile (SSAP), a tool to measure attachment in children through narratives. Saul has been involved with all phases of the longitudinal adoption study which has followed up on late- and early-placed children since placement.  Saul Hillman is a Senior Research Fellow at Ann...

Clare Seth, our Kinship Consultant, interviews Chloe Hubert from Children and Families Across Borders (CFAB) about their Cultural Family Life Library - a series of guides for social workers introducing them to the history and culture of families in diaspora communities in the UK.  Chloe has a background in asylum and immigration law and has worked in various NGOs working to support women who are s...

In this delightful conversation CoramBAAF's Publishing Manager, Jo Francis, speaks with Jill Seeney about the success of her children's books over the years. They dig into what sparked the ideas for the stories and why they've struck a chord with social workers, carers, and kids over time. Jill Seeney is a Fostering and Kinship Training and Development Team Manager. She has worked in fostering for...

Dr Dennis Golm is joined by author Stacey O'Sullivan, and CoramBAAF Kinship Consultant Ann Horne, to talk about this article from  Volume 47, Issue 4  of the Adoption & Fostering journal. Stacey completed her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology in 2022. Currently, she works full-time as a Clinical Psychologist in an Early Years (0-4 years) Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) in the...

Special Edition: The digital turn in child and family social work: Challenges, opportunities and imagined futures Biases, concerns and the erosion of rights : Addressing digital issues with adopted and fostered children in a policy vacuum Andy Phippen is a Professor of Online Harms at the Bournemouth University. Starting his career in an AI research lab in the 1990s, he has specialised in the use...

Special Edition: The digital turn in child and family social work: Challenges, opportunities and imagined futures Dennis Golm is joined by two of the guest editor's for the introduction of the October special collection of the 'Adoption & Fostering journal, Volume 47 (Issue 3, October 2023). They discuss their editorial,  The changing digital landscape for looked after children , and the artic...

In this episode of the podcast, Sarah Lloyd talks to Vicky and Dennis about the BUSS® model. Sarah Lloyd is a Consultant Occupational Therapist and Play Therapist and author of the BUSS® Model. Sarah worked in CAMHS for over 30 years before retiring in 2022 to head up the training and clinical teams within BUSS®. Sarah has published two books; Improving Sensory Processing in Traumatised Children, ...

Dr Dennis Golm and Vicky Walker introduce  Volume 47 Issue 2  of our journal. They talk us through Dennis' editorial about  the need for routine mental health support for care-experienced children and young people , along with the table of contents for the issue.   Find out more at corambaaf.org.uk.

Dr Karen Kenny joins Vicky Walker and Dr Dennis Golm to discuss Karen's article in Issue 1 of Volume 47 in the Adoption & Fostering journal. It is widely acknowledged that looked after children have consistently lower educational achievements than those young people who are brought up by their birth families. Karen explains the key findings from her research and how we need to support and enco...