Stirling University report raises concern over separated siblings

Two years later, only a third of children were living with a sibling.

Scotland is the first country in the UK to embed new sibling rights in law.

The Promise, the report of the Independent Care Review set up by Nicola Sturgeon and published in 2020, states that where living with their families is not possible, children should be placed with their brothers and sisters. 

The Scottish Government said it expects to see an increase in the number of siblings who stay together as a result of the new legislation.

The research team was led by Dr Linda Cusworth, from Lancaster University, in partnership with the University of Stirling, and the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration (SCRA). 

The team analysed data for all 2,849 infants who entered the care system via the Children’s Hearing before they were a year old between 1 April, 2013 and 31 March, 2020, and looked in depth at the circumstances of 70 of those children and their families.

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Co-author, Dr Helen Whincup, from the University of Stirling, said: “Our findings show that placing babies and infants with older brothers and sisters was the exception rather than the rule. 

“This is despite the drive to keep brothers and sisters together and research which shows that early decisions about where, and with whom children are placed, can have huge consequences for their relationships with their siblings.

"The decision to remove a child at or soon after birth is probably the most difficult decision that professionals can make to intervene in family life. 

"It is traumatic for mothers, fathers and wider family networks. It is important to understand more about the circumstances in which removal of babies shortly after birth takes place in Scotland, and this study helps to provide some of that information.”

Other research has shown that siblings wait longer to be adopted.

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Ben Farrugia, Director of Social Work Scotland said what was needed now was a "focused inquiry" with social workers to help understand what changes and resources are need to make more sibling placements possible.

Louise Hunter, Chief Executive of Who Cares? Scotland, which represents care experienced children and young people, said the "worrying" findings reflected its own evidence.

She said: " Last year, young people we support raised issues about maintaining relationships with their brothers and sisters a total of 349 times, equivalent to almost once a day. We must see this number fall."

Children's panel members do not decide where children are placed but are now expected to prioritise efforts for siblings to have contact with each other as part of The Promise.

The research also found that lower numbers of newborns are 'pre-emptively' placed in care before birth in Scotland, compared to England and Wales.

Between 2013/14 and 2019/20, the proportion of infants in Scotland who became looked after away from home at less than seven days old was fairly stable at around a third. 

By comparison, in England and Wales the proportion of infants who entered care proceedings as newborns was higher, and showed an upward trend across the period – from 43% to 51% in England, and from 40% to 51% in Wales.

The researchers said this raised questions about differences in policy across the nation states.

The study also explored the circumstances of families where infants were removed and found that many of the parents were recorded as having difficult and disrupted childhoods themselves, with significant proportions having experienced abuse or neglect. Over a third (37%) of mothers and a quarter (24%) of fathers were care experienced.

Nine out of ten of the mothers had had at least one child previously removed, with one in five having had three or more children taken into care.  

Although less information was recorded for fathers, over half (56%) of those with older children were known to have had a previous child removed from their care. 

The study found that infants under a year old formed 20% of all children who entered care via the Children’s Hearings System in Scotland. 

A Scottish Government spokesman said:“In July 2021, Scotland became the first part of the UK to embed new siblings’ rights into law.

"This legislation places a duty on local authorities to keep sisters and brothers in care together, where appropriate.

“Where it is not suitable for sisters and brothers to live together, local authorities are required to put measures in place to help siblings stay in regular touch with each other and to nurture their relationships.

“The data in this report covers 2013 to 2020, before the legislation was in place. We expect to see an increase in the coming years in the numbers of siblings who stay together.”