‘It's so much better than contact’: A qualitative study exploring children and young people's experiences of a sibling camp in the United Kingdom

Justin Mark Rogers, Mariya Ali

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

This article explores children and young people's experiences of a sibling camp based in the United Kingdom. Sibling camps are an intervention based on children's activity holidays that aim to promote meaningful contact for siblings separated in public care. This study adopted a qualitative approach using semi‐structured interviews with 11 children and young people; this included one sibling group of three and four sibling groups of two. The children's ages ranged from 8 to 17 years old, and they had all attended at least one camp with their sibling. Findings highlighted how the children valued the extended time they could spend with their siblings at camp, and how they felt this enabled them to better understand their siblings and improve their relationships. Findings also showed how the children developed close supportive relationships with the staff at the camps, who ensured they were cared for, and they also supported them with managing their relationships, which some participants acknowledged at times could be challenging. The participants also valued spending time with other sibling groups who also experienced separation. The study found camps provided a space for these children to maintain links with their siblings and to strengthen their sibling bonds.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)61-69
Number of pages9
JournalChild & Family Social Work
Volume26
Issue number1
Early online date16 Aug 2020
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 18 Jan 2021

Funding

This work was supported by internal funding from The University of Bath, Dean's Innovation Fund. Dr. Rogers also receives research funding from the Martin James Foundation.

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