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Children’s early care experiences and their educational attainment: a population data-linkage study in Wales
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Stuart Bedston,
Alexandra Lee,
Ashley Akbari ,
Lucy Griffiths ,
Tom Crick ,
Donald Forrester
Oxford Review of Education, Pages: 1 - 20
Swansea University Authors:
Emily Lowthian , Stuart Bedston, Alexandra Lee, Ashley Akbari , Lucy Griffiths , Tom Crick
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DOI (Published version): 10.1080/03054985.2025.2540036
Abstract
Care-experienced children are at risk of lower educational attainment. Duration of care is related to attainment, as is the type of placement(s) (e.g., foster care). To determine ‘what works’ for care-experienced children, our research examined i) profiles of children on their care experiences, and...
| Published in: | Oxford Review of Education |
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| ISSN: | 0305-4985 1465-3915 |
| Published: |
Informa UK Limited
2025
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| Online Access: |
Check full text
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa70015 |
| Abstract: |
Care-experienced children are at risk of lower educational attainment. Duration of care is related to attainment, as is the type of placement(s) (e.g., foster care). To determine ‘what works’ for care-experienced children, our research examined i) profiles of children on their care experiences, and ii) how these relate to educational attainment at age seven. Using anonymised, linked records in Wales, United Kingdom, we constructed an e-cohort of children born between September 2000 and August 2003. Data sources included births, children’s social care, primary health care, demographics, and education. We conducted latent class analysis using a three-step approach, summarising social care experiences, with attainment at age seven in English/Welsh and mathematics as a distal outcome. Seven profiles best fitted the data, using data on placement types, duration and age on entry. For the first six years of life, those who experienced foster care which progressed to adoption showed the highest attainment (~1.00 masked), whereas those children who entered foster care from their fourth birthday had the lowest attainment intercept (0.40, 0.13–0.68). From this, we argue that stakeholders should develop additional support for children whose placement is largely foster care, as this group was most at risk for low attainment. |
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| Keywords: |
Children in care; education; social care; administrative data |
| College: |
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Funders: |
This research was supported by Health and Care Research Wales [SCG-21-1861], a networked organisation, supported by the Welsh Government, which brings together a wide range of partners across the NHS in Wales, local authorities, universities, research institutions, third sector and others. This research was supported by Administrative Data Research (ADR) Centre Wales. ADR Wales brings together data science experts at Swansea University Medical School, staff from the Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research and Data (WISERD) at Cardiff University, and specialist teams within the Welsh Government to develop new evidence which supports the Programme for Government by using the SAIL Databank at Swansea University to link and analyse anonymised data. ADR Wales [ES/W012227/1] is part of the Economic and Social Research Council (part of UK Research and Innovation)-funded ADR UK programme. |
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