Residential Care as a Space Creating Secure Attachment between Children, Their Parents and the Educational Staff

Different models enable us to understand the role of Residential care. The primary model was based on imposing order and discipline on the children and was considered advantageous because of its easy implementation. The facility’s fundamental critique was its lack of impact on the child’s situation in the long-term, as it was conceived as a temporary "home care" model, which would lay the necessary foundations to return to initial processes.

Bolby`s attachment approach derived from his work with orphaned children. It therefore, delineates a natural connection between the attachment approach, which aims to create a space where the children experience a safe attachment with a permanent staff member, and residential care. According to Bolby, experiencing a safe attachment later in life, can compensate for a damaged attachment experienced in childhood. On the other hand, understanding that unsafe attachments and internal working models can lead to dysfunctional states and even psychopathology in adulthood.

Talpiot’s Therapeutic Residential Care is based on the attachment approach. It embraces the family home model, housing two counselors and a common space for the at risk children. Our work is distinguished by our desire to bring about change. This is manifest in the child`s attachment experience with the counselors, as well as our investment of resources in parental training that forms the basis of a process that leads to a renewed experience of safe attachment with the child`s biological parents.