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Social Work vocabulary · Children, Families and Care

Looked-after child

Meaning in social work, with examples

nounCommon term

In social work, looked-after child means: A child who is cared for by a local authority, for example in foster care or a children's home, either under a court order or with the parents' agreement.

In Turkish: koruma altındaki çocuk, devlet korumasındaki çocuk, bakım altındaki çocuk

How it is used

An official UK term, often shortened to LAC, although many young people dislike that label and services increasingly say 'children in care' or 'care-experienced'. US texts usually say 'children in foster care' or 'children in out-of-home care'.

Example sentences

  1. Every looked-after child has a care plan that is reviewed regularly.

  2. The school has a designated teacher for looked-after children.

Common collocations

  • looked-after children
  • looked-after child review
  • designated teacher for looked-after children
  • children in care
  • foster careA form of care in which a child who cannot live with their own parents lives, for a short or long time, with another approved family.
  • residential careCare in which people live in a staffed setting, such as a children's home or a care home for older or disabled adults, rather than in a family home.
  • care leaverA young person who has spent time in care, for example in foster or residential care, and has moved on to adult life, usually between the ages of 16 and 18.
  • placementThe home or setting where a child in care or an adult needing care is placed to live; also a period of supervised practice for social work students.

More terms: Children, Families and Care

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