Evaluation of the Lifelong Links trial in Scotland

An evaluation of the trial commissioned by Family Rights Group (FRG), has been published by CELCIS, the Centre for Excellence for Children’s Care and Protection, which highlights the learning, challenges, and opportunities of this innovative approach for children, young people, their carers, families and people who are important to them.

Lifelong Links supports children and young people who are in care by identifying and contacting relatives and other adults to keep them connected to each other. The programme, supported by the child's local authority, works to ensure that these relationships can continue to grow. The work can also include helping young people to find out more about their background and history, including through generating family trees, and can help to build their understanding and identity of who they are.

The evaluation found that:

•Lifelong Links can empower children and young people, and support their agency and sense of identity

•Lifelong Links can challenge the existing culture and practices within social work departments

•Having a Lifelong Links co-ordinator who is independent from other practitioners supporting a child, young person and their family means that this work can be less inhibited by any negative experiences or perceptions of previous social work interventions that children or young people may have.