The Hidden Heartache of Residential Care: Understanding Emotional Transitions

“Don’t forget the children that have moved on and don’t forget us”

Leaving care is a time that is often recognised as challenging for children, but rarely do we consider how deeply these moments affect their caregivers. My recent qualitative study explores this emotionally fraught and often overlooked experience, uncovering a powerful paradox at the centre of residential care: caregivers are encouraged to form strong, attachment-based bonds with children, yet receive little recognition or support when the placement ends and those bonds are inevitably broken.

Drawing on attachment theory and interviews with residential care professionals, my research reveals that caregivers often experience significant emotional and moral distress when children move on. These feelings of loss are frequently ambiguous, disenfranchised, and compounded by systemic pressures, leaving staff with limited opportunities to process their emotions.

The findings suggest that ruptured attachments can impact not only caregivers’ well-being, but also the quality of care provided to future children. To address this, the study calls for greater organisational awareness, and for services to offer dedicated time, space, and reflective support to help caregivers navigate these emotionally laden transitions.

By amplifying the voices of frontline carers, this research broadens the conversation within the ‘leaving care’ literature — urging a more holistic, compassionate understanding of everyone affected by placement transitions, not just the young people themselves.

Read the full study here

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