Recognition and residential childcare: a small scale study of the applicability of Honneth’s conceptual framework

Despite concerns, there is a commonly shared agreement that some residential childcare provision will always be necessary and that if it is good quality, it has the potential to help children achieve their potential and achieve positive long-term outcomes.

This does then raise the question as to what is meant by ‘good quality’ or ‘quality care’. Through interviews with key stakeholders including young people in care, this research study sets out to explore their understandings and experiences of quality care. The findings reveal that among the many factors that could contribute to quality care (including high quality facilities and a well-qualified staff group) a central theme was the quality of relationships between staff and young people.