Developing practice learning and teaching in residential child care

The Residential Child Care Initiative was created in order to increase the numbers of qualified staff in residential children's homes in England. This paper explores some of the issues affecting practice placements for residential staff who undertook qualifying training between 1992 and 1997. Themes and issues arising from these experiences, with examples from practice, are considered in terms of their relevance to practice learning in group care situations for all social work students, highlighting the reciprocal benefits for students and residential services for children.