New chair bridges the gap between research and child protection
Dr Anouk Goemans has been appointed professor by special appointment of Youth Services and Child Protection from an Educational and Legal Perspective as of 1 November 2024. This chair is funded by the 'Stichting Steunfonds Pro Juventute' support fund foundation and serves as a bridge between the Department of Child Law and Health Law and the Institute of Education and Child Studies.
Professor Mariëlle Bruning, Professor Lenneke Alink and their colleagues from Leiden Law School and the Faculty of Social Sciences have already established a close collaboration in teaching and research over the past decade. They regularly carry out multidisciplinary research projects in the fields of youth services and child protection, child abuse and family law. They also teach courses as part of the Leiden minor in Child Abuse.
'We're very pleased with the new chair, which is at the intersection of educational theory and law, and we look forward to working with Anouk Goemans. This appointment will allow us to focus on building bridges between research, practice and supporting professionals working in youth services and child protection by applying academic knowledge and expertise.'
Connection between science and practice
Anouk Goemans previously worked with an NWO Rubicon grant for a year as a visiting researcher at University College London and as an associate professor at the Institute of Education and Child Studies on the topic of youth services, foster care and decision making. In 2020, she made the transition to the field and joined a certified institution, Jeugdbescherming West, where she worked as a researcher and behavioural scientist. Her research primarily focuses on the connection between science and practice. She will work one day per week at both the Department of Child Law and Health Law and the Institute of Education and Child Studies.
‘I see this chair as a fantastic opportunity to take the interaction between research and practice to the next level’
Anoek Goemans says: ‘I am looking forward to exploring various issues in the field of youth services and child protection in more depth. Consider, for example, the topic of determining perspective. I'd like to study the question of how we determine the perspective of children placed in care, in a way that is valid, reliable, traceable and transparent. How do we do that with the involvement of the parents and young people affected? I also see this chair as a fantastic opportunity to take the interaction between research and practice to the next level and to support families and young people in the best possible way.'
The chair is funded by a named fund at LUF, made possible by Stichting Steunfonds Pro Juventute. The aim of the fund is to promote scientific research and education in the field of youth care and youth protection from a pedagogical and legal perspective, including by financing the special chair in Pedagogy and Law.
Editor: Sanne de Boer (Universiteit Leiden)