Completed project on the pathways of adolescents in care
Adolescents placed in care between 1950 and 1985 in the cantons of Fribourg, Neuchâtel, Lucerne and Basel (both demi-cantons) had only limited opportunities to acquire vital knowledge and skills.
The study highlights the problems faced by adolescents placed in care and what impacts these had on their lives going forward. The research team studied adolescents placed in care between 1950 and 1985 in the cantons of Fribourg, Neuchâtel, Lucerne and Basel (both Basel-Stadt and Basel-Land) with the aid of reference groups. The results show what the young people were faced with: a lack of encouragement and support, limited or no training opportunities, inadequate preparation for life after their placement, a failure to support them in attaining independence, and experiences of exclusion, disparagement, arbitrariness and discrimination. Such experiences shaped the lives of these young people and continue to do so today in some cases. This lack of preparation for life after care can, for example, be countered by strengthening social work, avoiding gaps in education and providing support for care leavers.