At the recent Annual General Meeting of Caring for Children (which
is the National Section of FICE for England and Wales), Professor
Ewan Anderson was elected President, to succeed Keith White, the previous
Chair. (The title of the top post has been changed to reflect the
practice in FICE National Sections in other countries.)
Keith,
who has served as Chair for several years, will continue to act as
Chair of the Web Operations Team which manages the Webmag.
Ewan
Anderson is well known in many fields, including residential care
and boarding education. He holds a Chair at York University and is
the organiser of the York Group.
(For fuller details of Ewan’s career, click
here.)
In
speaking about his approach to the presidency of FICE-England and
Wales, Ewan said,
“Given
the current intensity of interest in the welfare of children and young
people, it is a particularly appropriate time for each organisation
involved to consider its aims and effectiveness. Caring for Children
was established as a professional association to provide support for
its membership through newsletters, seminars and the provision of
advice. Its association with FICE has offered an international dimension
to the work. FICE itself was founded in 1948 with a specific focus
on residential child care.
“As
FICE (England and Wales), Caring for Children wishes to retain the
best from its past while developing new facets of its operations for
the benefit of all children and young people.
“Working
with the York Group, a body with representatives from all sectors
of boarding and residential education and care based at York University,
the emphasis initially will be upon the welfare of children and young
people who live away from home in groups. The holistic approach to
education, the aim of residential settings, can be characterised broadly
as social education which is of obvious interest in fostering, parenting
and indeed mainstream day schools.
“To
be effective, FICE needs to enhance its membership in all sectors
of boarding and residential education and care. It hopes therefore
to publish material, especially on international topics, to provide
seminars and to offer advice through networking, with a specific focus
upon issues, ideas, training and practice of generic interest.
“In
addition, it will capitalise upon its academic and international links
to develop research, particularly concerned with evidence-based practice,
and to support aid agencies working with damaged children in the developing
world.
“Much
of this is already in hand, including the production of the Webmag,
work on the Green Paper, research for the DfES on the need for boarding
provision, training for care staff in a variety of settings in the
UK and abroad, seminars (York Days) and the continuing development
of National Standards.”
If
you are interested in taking part in any of these activities, please
get in touch through the Webmag at fice@childrenwebmag.com.
See also the notice in this issue about the next York Day, which will
focus on the length of time children and young people spend - or should
spend - in residential settings.
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*
FICE stands for the Federation Internationale des Communautes Educatives,
or the International Federation for Educative Communities. FICE has
National Sections in over thirty countries, and individual members
in a number of other countries. It welcomes new members who are interested
in achieving high standards of services for children and young people,
and especially for those who have to live in settings other than their
own homes.
