The role of leadership in residential care services for young people

Kabir, Munisah and Hodge, Suzanne and Knowles, Sue (2025) The role of leadership in residential care services for young people. PhD thesis, Lancaster University.

Text (2025MunisahKabirDClinPsy)
2025MunisahKabirDClinPsy.pdf - Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs.
Download (3MB)

Abstract

The systematic literature review aimed to explore the attitudes of care staff towards Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) in residential care services for young people. Following a literature search of four electronic databases, eight studies were selected for inclusion in the review. Participants discussed how TIC enabled them to develop a greater understanding of the trauma needs of young people, and facilitated improvements in relationships on a systemic level. Barriers to implementation were shared, such as inconsistent interpretations of models creating confusion amongst the team. Clinical implications were also suggested, specifically the need for organisational support with implementation, and the need for continual training to provide greater clarity and understanding on the models of TIC. The empirical paper aimed to develop a greater understanding of the role of managers in residential care services for young people, specifically considering the challenges they face as part of their role and how they are supported in managing these. The findings highlighted the crucial role managers take in providing direct care and support to the staff team and young people, as well as balancing the organisational expectations. Reflections were offered on how the role has impacted their lives, and the types of support they are able to access for the homes, and for themselves as part of their role. Clinical implications were suggested, specifically how Psychology provision could be beneficial in providing support and containment to managers with their role. Finally, the critical appraisal identified the crossover between the two papers, and considered issues of cultural inclusivity within the field. Reflections on the research process were offered.