A brief history of secure care in Scotland

In undertaking a doctoral research project looking at the impact of Scottish secure care experience on the identity constructions of autistic young people, I began by carrying out an extensive literature review. This was to inform the research, by understanding what was already known about this topic, and where the gaps were. The literature review covered a number of areas, one of these being the history of secure care. To align with the theme of this special issue considering historical perspectives, the findings of this section of the literature review will be presented here. The paper begins by defining secure care, and the numbers of children this is relevant for. It provides a very brief summary of the history of residential childcare, before moving on to consider in some detail the main policy drivers which have influenced the direction of travel in secure care over the years. The paper concludes by suggesting future considerations for research.