Multilocal housing arrangements of young people in residential care

Abstract

In the field of child and youth care, previous research has overlooked the fact that many young people in residential care may have multiple residences, in addition to their placement. Tackling this gap, the objective of this study is to examine the multilocal housing arrangements of young people in residential care. We asked what specific living arrangements these young people have, how they evaluate their places of residence and how these places differ for them. Addressing these questions, we administered an online survey among young people living in residential settings in the German-speaking part of Switzerland. The sample consists of 563 people between 12 and 17 years. The results show that 83 per cent of participants live in at least one other place in addition to the residential care facility. Although the ratings of their places of residence varied, all other places were rated significantly better than the residential care facility. The findings show that young people in residential care do feel attached to multiple places of residence. Therefore, in order to better identify the different types of challenges faced by these young people, the findings can provide suggestions for improving residential care services as a specific place of residence.