A Study of the Closed Childcare Institution Service in Estonia

This article presents empirical findings about children’s experiences in the closed childcare institution service (CCIS) in Estonia and the assistance children receive from their own perspectives and those of parents and practitioners. The study draws on the lived experiences of 12 children/young people, four parents, and 26 practitioners working with children in need in the CCIS system through interviews conducted May–August 2022. Four main themes emerged from the data analysis: negative factors arising from the child’s development environment, inadequate early identification and inefficient networking as risk factors in aggravating the need for assistance, shortcomings in the organisation of services, suitability and unsuitability of the service. The results of this study indicate that most of the children’s problems and difficulties originated in the home environment, the family’s inability to cope, and a lack of parental ability. The ‘journey’ toward the CCIS began, in part, because timely services and support were unavailable. On the one hand, the children’s relationship – more precisely, the supporting relationship – with their child protective worker was inadequate, but on the other, it turned out that there were no suitable services available before referral to the CCIS, and the children’s and families’ difficulties were therefore not identified at an early stage. Negative experiences among families and children in need reduce their openness to assistance, which makes further intervention difficult. Systemic support, including quality of relationships, interagency collaboration, and practical support by practitioners, is the basis for improving permanence, positive navigation of difficulties, and stability as well as promoting resilience.