In a joint South African and Swedish research study, policy frameworks for children in care were analysed in regard to children’s rights and accessibility to participate in decisions on care. The research group has during phase one in the study developed a series of questions to analyse the most relevant legislations in regard to children in care. Thus, for the Swedish part of the analysis four legislations were selected; the Social Services Act, the Children and Parents Code, the Care of Young Persons Act and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (since 2020 a part of the Swedish legislation). An analysis model was applied to these legislations, posing the following seven questions on children’s participation. What participation is, different understandings of children’s participation. Further, participation Concerning what? that is, in what decisions? Why participation, which includes the reasons and values underlying children’s participation. How, when, and where participation should be exercised. Also, Who should participate, with the added underlying question of who should promote participation. These questions were applied to the different legislations in order to scrutinize the access for children to become active agents in their own care. This form of inclusion could also become a model for an empower-driven participative influence in the decisions of fundamental importance to the society’s future well-being. Results from the analysis will be presented at the conference.   

I Norden är den sociala tilliten så hög att inga andra länder kommer i ens närheten av samma nivåer. Det för med sig samhälleliga vinster, då tillit är som ett smörjmedel som gör att kommunikationen flyter smidigare på såväl samhälls- som individnivå, vilket gör att det lämnas mindre utrymme för konflikter med påföljande kostnader. En hög social tillit ger därmed en starkare ekonomisk tillväxt samtidigt som den engagerar medborgare i samhället och ökar den individuella lyckan (Nordiska ministerrådet, 2017; Trägårdh etal., 2013). Enkelt uttryckt är tillit en förutsättning för ett gott liv och ett välfungerande samhälle (Blennberger, 2009).Grästorps kommun har i samverkan med Högskolan Väst undersökt tilliten till kommunen. Genom egna efterforskningar hade man funnit att kommunens gymnasieungdomar saknade en naturlig dialog med kommunstyret, och då man stod inför en implementering av tillitsbaserad styrning, vilken förutsätter dialog med medborgarna, önskade man studera tillliten till kommunen bland Grästorps unga invånare. I ett samverkansprojekt mellan Grästorps kommun och forskarna Linda Mossberg och Ann Liss från Högskolan Väst formulerades därför följande frågeställningar:

• Vad skapar tillit bland Grästorps unga invånare?

• Hur kan tilliten till kommunen utvecklas och stärkas bland Grästorps unga invånare?

Inledningsvis kan sägas att Grästorp inte är undantaget den generellt höga tilliten i Norden. Ungdomarna i studien sammanfattar det när de pratar om ”Grästorpssyndromet”, ett ord som rymmer en uppfattning om Grästorp som en trygg plats som man gärna återvänder till. I de fokusgrupper som hållits framkommer bilden av Grästorp som en plats där alla känner – eller känner till – alla och litar på varandra. I det följande kommer den bilden att analyseras och diskuteras. Vad bär den med sig och hur kan tilliten stärkas ytterligare?

I en studie av erfarenheter av och barns delaktighet i det så kallade TIPS-projektets arbete mot problematisk skolfrånvaro i mellanstadiet har hållits observationer av skol- och kartläggningsmöten, fokusgruppsintervjuer med TIPS samt intervjuer med familjer. Resultatet uppvisar liknande erfarenheter och en relativt god samsyn kring de olika aktörernas roller. Barnets delaktighet anses vara av stor vikt men samtidigt svår att få till samt är avhängig såväl föräldrarnas samtycke som barnets egen vilja. Vidare ses en viss skepsis kring högre delaktighetsnivåer som innebär att dela makt och ansvar, då det anses kunna ge negativa konsekvenser för barnet. Barnets delaktighet och aktörernas roller kan ses som sammanvävda, då delaktigheten kan förbättra insatserna och stärka barnet samtidigt som barnets röst riskerar att försvinna i den komplexa samverkan.

Terms used to refer to people who use welfare services have been under change and are under continuous debate. Here, seven analytical categories from terms used in 40 mental health strategic collaboration meetings including human service organisations representatives and service user organisations representatives are analysed to study the construction of the service user in mental health. The categories were set up in relation to characteristics, how and when they were used, and who was using them. Results showed that service user representatives and professionals shared some categories; some categories differed in how they were used and had dissimilar starting points, while one group exclusively used some. The use of categories could also be divided into a collective and an individual perspective. Participants agreed on service users having complex needs but not essentially different. Service user representatives emphasised a structural perspective, a society unequipped to meet service users’ needs while respecting their citizenship. Professionals more often used the individual perspective, where the troubles service users faced were put on an individual level. Their categories were better established and thus more resilient to resistance. Most prominent were issues on service users’ independence, accountability, and collective or individual perspective.

I ett samverkansprojekt mellan BUV och Grästorps kommun har ungas tillit till Grästorp som plats och organisation studerats. Tillit för med sig stora samhälleliga vinster, både i form av högre trygghet hos medborgarna men också starkare ekonomiskt tillväxt; kort sagt är en hög tillit en förutsättning för ett gott samhälle. Tidigare forskning visar att tilliten grundas i de tidigare tonåren, varför det är av nytta att se till hur tilliten ser ut just bland unga. Följande frågeställningar ställdes upp gemensamt med kommunrepresentanter och forskare: 

•    Vad skapar tillit bland Grästorps unga invånare?

•     Hur kan tilliten till kommunen utvecklas och stärkas bland Grästorps unga invånare?

Med hjälp av lärare på Grästorps högstadieskola skapades kontakt med nionde klass-elever. 14 anmälde sig till fokusgruppintervjuer, vilka pga. pandemin förlades till e-plattformen Zoom. Till intervjuerna ombads de unga att ta med sig bilder på platser de tyckte om att vara på och platser som de upplevde otrygga på olika sätt. Resultaten visar att de unga har en stark lokalsamhälletillit: de känner sig trygga i Grästorp och med de invånare de känner igen och känner till. Däremot har de svag generell tillit, de känner låg tillit till främmande personer. De upplever även att samhället är starkt normativt och att de inte alltid blir hörda då de behöver ha med en vuxen som för deras talan.

There is a steady critique towards the mental health field stating that people with mental health problems do not get the assistance they need. Often, this critique states that collaboration between different organisations is lacking or non-functional. As an increasingly common part in collaboration, service user participation has also been included in this critique as not being adequately performed. Within the mental health field,many studies has focus on collaboration and service user participation on operational level, with and between professionals in direct interaction with service users. Not as many has studied the strategic level of collaboration, between leaders and managers, planning and structuring the organisation of mental health services. This level has also within the operational level studies often been pointed out as paramount to collaboration on operational level.

The present thesis aims to describe and analyse collaboration and service user participation on strategic level. The following research questions are included: how are the strategic collaboration councils composed, and how do the participants handle the work within them? What experiences and opinions on collaboration do the participants have? How do the participants handle possibly contradicting expectations and interests from the surroundings and from their own organisations? How are service users and service user participation socially constructed, and what do such constructions entail? How do the participants handle collaboration as a practically unavoidable way of working?

Eight strategic collaboration councils from the north, middle, and south of Sweden were included in the study. The participants in these represented mostly social and mental health services, and in some cases Arbetsförmedlingen (the Swedish Public Employment Service), Försäkringskassan (Sweden's social insurance agency), and service user organisations. 80 participants in all were included in the study, mostly managers. The councils were observed during one year, and the participants were asked to participate inan interview and a questionnaire. The material was analysed with the assistance of NVivo9 and SPSS, and by the theoretical aid of new institutionalism, discourse analytic perspective, and negotiation

The results showed a collaboration between the participants that revolved around norm and practice of collaboration. While all participants had very homogenous opinions and experiences of collaboration, showing of a strong norm supported by laws and regulations, there were also a discussion that showed of the possibility to negotiate that norm. Through negotiation and normative arguments, the participants could adhere to the norm that brings legitimacy to the organisation and the collaboration council, while further own interests and interpretations. Negotiation about collaboration meant that the participants could discuss collaboration in itself. Through choosing normative arguments, they could put forward certain aspects of the collaboration norm which gave latitude within the norm. Here, the norm came forward as collaboration should be done by being or becoming to be united, while having good relationships and an open discussion. The dilemma that showed through the negotiation and normative arguments was that while collaboration must be built on good relationships that can withstand disagreements and criticism, one cannot jeopardize the relationships by bringing up contentious topics. But, if pressing matters because of this are not allowed to be discussed, collaboration is at risk to be perceived as pointless. Collaboration through negotiation showed negotiation as a mean to get things done and to handle interests and interpretations in the collaboration councils. These negotiations were both implicit and explicit and were based in the collaboration norm. Normative arguments also served a purpose in building and strengthening the relationships between the participants, putting relationships as a central part of collaboration. Through normative arguments based in the collaboration norm, participants could preserve consensus and discuss disagreements, interpretations, and interests without risking the relationships. Service user representatives tended to be apart in negotiation about collaboration, but not in collaboration through negotiation. Even so, the service user representatives made a mark within the collaboration councils indiscussions and agendas, showing a plausible increasingly stronger position within in strategic collaboration.

I en studie av erfarenheter av och barns delaktighet i det så kallade TIPS-projektets arbete mot problematisk skolfrånvaro i mellanstadiet har hållits observationer av skol- och kartläggningsmöten, fokusgruppsintervjuer med TIPS samt intervjuer med familjer. Resultatet uppvisar liknande erfarenheter och en relativt god samsyn kring de olika aktörernas roller. Barnets delaktighet anses vara av stor vikt men samtidigt svår att få till, och här tycks stabila goda relationer och upplevelser av att bli förstådd vara centrala. Föräldrarna bär rollen som barnets röst och kontaktväg och får ofta hantera ett stort antal professionella kontakter. Samtidigt kan professionella se trötta föräldrar som inte alltid vågar axla rollen eller inte vill ta emot stöd. Skolans roll är att göra anpassningar för att få barn tillbaka till skolan, vilka även fungerar förebyggande för många barn, men också att skapa utrymme för att bygga relationer med familjer. TIPS uppgift är att ge stöd i kommunikationen och fylla de glapp som uppstår mellan familj och skola respektive föräldrar och barn.I studien visar sig barnets delaktighet vara avhängig såväl föräldrarnas samtycke som barnets egen vilja. Det finns en tydligt uttalad vilja från de professionellas sida att barnet ska ha möjlighet att vara delaktigt, vilket innebär att det finns öppningar och möjligheter på flera nivåer i Shiers delaktighetsmodell, och de ger gärna barnet hjälp och stöd för att kunna formulera sin delaktighet. Däremot finns en viss skepsis kring de högre delaktighetsnivåer som innebär att dela makt och ansvar, då det anses kunna ge negativa konsekvenser för barnet. Barnets delaktighet och aktörernas roller kan därmed ses som sammanvävda, då delaktigheten kan förbättra insatserna och stärka barnet samtidigt som barnets röst riskerar att försvinna i den komplexa samverkan. Shiers delaktighetsmodell kan vara ett hjälpmedel för samverkande aktörer att organisera och planera för insatser som inbegriper barns delaktighet

Introduction and background of the topic:Similar challenges have been identified in South Africa and Sweden signaling that children in care might not be heard or respected and not recognised for their capabilities to influence social change. Many significant decisions directly affecting their lives are made without their participation. This is a violation of their rights and in particular, the right to participate in matters that concern them. International treaties such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC, 1989), as well as regional and local policy and legislation in Sweden and South Africa stipulate that children should participate in decisions that affect their well-being. These policy directives are important for social workers who are responsible for services to children in alternative care as they are obligated to adhere to these directives. However, there is uncertainty about how social workers understand the concept of child participation, how it is utilised in practice to ensure the best interest of the child principle, how do they adhere to policy and legislative directives and what challenges they may experience in implementation.

Relevance of the topic to the Swedish and South African Context:Our study analysed and compared the policy and legislation of South Africa and Sweden to understand the directives for child participation and how it influence the daily work with children in alternative care and their opportunities for participation. Continuing our study, this workshop would present the preliminary findings of a World Cafe with social workers working with children in alternative care, held in South Africa in March 2024 and Sweden in May 2024. It would also extend our understanding of child participation with vulnerable children to influence social change through discussions with other interdisciplinary professionals and students within the SASUF network. This would benefit both the Swedish and the South African Context in that there is a moral and legal imperative that children should have opportunities for participation in matters concerning social change.

Aim/Purpose of the workshop:The workshop's aim is twofold:

To discuss and further our understanding of interdisciplinary professionals' views on implementing child participation to influence social change.To present our collaborative project to the SASUF audience.

How we plan to develop future collaborations and activities beyond the forum:The research team, consisting of seven researchers from South Africa and Sweden, have worked together since 2019 and has already conducted workshops in South Africa and online for Swedish and South African social workers, and has published articles in peer-reviewed journals. In March 2024, the team will work together in Pretoria by conducting a World Café for South African social workers. A similar event will take place in Sweden in May 2024. The outcomes of the respective country World Cafés in South Africa and Sweden will contribute a solid base for the team’s future research into how children’s participation in alternative care can be more effectively implemented in both countries. It is essential to begin the process with social workers as they are the gatekeepers to access children. In the next project phase, we will continue by obtaining and including the voices of the children.

The World Café model was created by Juanita Brown and David Isaacs as a method to facilitate meaningful conversations in a more engaging and participatory approach. By using strategies such as an inviting environment, groups at small tables, rotations between tables, making notes at the table to be left for the next group, and harvesting of insights at the end, the World Café model supports creative thinking and problem-solving. The model is easy to use, and leave participants feeling empowered by the diversity of perspectives and the way the model enables them to collectively develop insights.

This workshop will be informed by preliminary findings from two earlier World Cafés with social workers and social work students in Sweden and South Africa respectively – on responses to questions such as: What is child participation and social change? What examples do you have of how children can participate in decision-making? 

In this workshop, we will use the preliminary findings of the two World Cafés with social workers to formulate questions to be discussed in this workshop’s interactive World Café with interdisciplinary academics and students, to help further triangulate the findings.

Research studies and a multitude of reports in both countries have signaled that children in care, avulnerable group in society, are not heard or respected for their capabilities to influence social change.This in disagreement with the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, legislation and steering documents both in South Africa and Sweden. Childrens’participation in their own development and decision-making is fundamental fortheir current and futurewell-being as well as the future of the society. The aim of this South African and Swedish study is to contribute knowledge and social development strategies for social change through child agency andparticipation by joint research projects among the participating universities, capacity development ofemerging researchers and postgraduate students by including them in workshops in South Africa andSweden, discussions with local NGOs and government departments and to advance knowledge in addressing issues of child agency, participation and social transformation. In October 2021, as a partof this project, a digital workshop with the participation of researchers and practitioners in Swedenand South Africa and in collaboration with UNICEF was conducted. Social workers from Swedenand South Africa presented projects on participation of children in care and also strategies forimplementing the Rights of the Child in the municipalities. The results of the different projects werediscussed in multinational break-out rooms in a world café model.

Trust levels in Sweden have historically been shown to be high, although decreasing within the younger generation. Rural societies show the highest levels of trust built on social control and low acceptance of norm-breaking behaviours. This study aims to investigate the ways trust affects the everyday life and identities of youth in a Swedish rural community through interviews with a total of twelve participants. The analysis shows that three social identities emerged: us, us different, and the others. The us category encompasses all the trusted inhabitants in the community and is a central identity to the interviewees. It is also described as the largest contributor to the high levels of trust. Us different contained a few members of the community and occasionally also the interviewees themselves. The final category, the others, were people described as “unknown” making the interviewees hesitant to seek contact with them, risking access to social experiences.

Similar narratives from children in care have been identified in South Africa and Sweden, signalling that children in care need to be heard and respected for their capabilities to influence social change. Many significant decisions directly affecting their lives are made without their participation. This violates their rights and, in particular, the right to participate in matters that concern them. International treaties such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC, 1989) and regional and local policy and legislation in Sweden and South Africa stipulate that children should participate in decisions that affect their well-being. These policy directives are essential for social workers responsible for services to children in alternative care as they are obligated to adhere to them. However, there is uncertainty about how to understand the concept of child participation, how to utilise it in practice to ensure the best interest of the child principle, and what challenges that are connected to the implementation.This workshop invites attendees to take part of a presentation of our mutual work so far and to explore responses to questions about the participation of children in alternative care  . Attendees will discuss topics such as: What is child participation? What examples do you have of how children can participate in decision-making? What do you need or want to enable work on child participation? AND - How can participation be a part of social change?In order to create an inviting and engaging environment, the workshop will take place as a fika (https://www.nordicvisitor.com/blog/nordic-eats-the-swedish-art-of-fika/). Some people may think of "Fika" as similar to the World Café concept, and we aim to facilitate meaningful conversations with a more participatory approach. In our version, we may or may not rotate between tables depending on the number and interests of the attendees. Insights and findings will be summarised in a final reflection with all participants. Lecture hall 208, Dept of Social Work, Allhelgona kyrkogata 8, Lund