Risk and vulnerability

How do we define risk and vulnerability in the context of children and young people?

We are dealing with the prediction of likely future harm which can be a challenging and complex process. This leads us to consider many difficult questions:

• When and how does the state or society decide that children and young people are being exposed to too much risk?
• What risks are acceptable and even necessary as we help children and young people to grow and develop?
• What role does culture and social context play in defining risk and vulnerability?
• What are the most likely circumstances that cause the state to become involved in the lives of vulnerable children and young people?
• How do we assess risk factors such as drugs, alcohol and mental health problems when thinking about the care of children and young people?

Consider these questions while watching the short talk.

The ‘See Also’ section below has a link to the newspaper article mentioned by Graham in his talk.