Children under the age of five should not be placed in residential care as they suffer long-term consequences from not having a personal carer who can take on the role of a parent, according to a new study.

The study, entitled Children in Out-of-Home Care in Malta, was launched by the office of the Commissioner for Children this morning. A first of its kind, the study exposes the reality lived by the 332 children who do not live with their biological parents in Malta and Gozo.

Out of the 62 children under five who are in care, 28 are the children of irregular migrants The first part of the three-pronged study shows that the majority of children under the age of three live at the Ursuline Creche in Sliema..

Due to lack of human resources in residential homes, there is a low child-to-carer ratio with one person looking after seven toddlers. As a result, children spent more time than expected in their cots.

The second part of the study looks at the psychological and behavioural and academic profile of children in out-of-home care. Out of the 270 children over five, 262 are Maltese. The majority, 154, live in residential homes, 108 are in foster care and eight are in mental health settings.

Most were placed in care because their parents had inadequate parental skills or mental health problems. Some children were exposed to abuse and neglect. The majority spent over four years in care. The report showed that children in foster care did significantly better than children in residential care in terms of psychological functioning and more resources should be injected into ensuring children can be brought up in a family setting.

The third and final section explores the long term outcome of young people leaving care. As things stand children leave homes at the age of 16. The report exposes the lack of a support structure that helps these children transition from care to an independent life. It recommends, among other things, increasing the age of leaving care to 21.

This section includes the experiences of nine people who left care and who are now adults. Some speak about the support they received through care with some describing it as a safe place away from home.

But others spoke about abuse while in care with one girl saying she was sexually abused by a maintenance man while in care. Others spoke about lack of personal attention and privacy while in care and the need to have mentors.

Many spoke about the anger and confusion on being abandoned by their parents, about their coping mechanisms and how they felt lost when the time came for them to leave.

Others pointed out that they felt it was unfair that their parents stopped them from being fostered or adopted by another family.

The full report can be viewed on www.tfal.org.mt

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