Based on a three-year national research study, this volume explores the current state of residential child care at grass roots level and compares the present situation to that of ten years ago in 1987. Returning to three local authorities visited by David Berridge and described by him in "Children's Homes" (1985), the authors outline: what the homes are like now; how they are run; and who lives in them and why. Using material gathered from week-long visits to individual homes, the authors then draw upon their own conclusions about the state of residential child care provision in the light of the 1989 Children's Act and recent economic and social developments to make recommendations for policy, practice and the future management for children's homes.