Childhood out-of-home care in Lombardy Region

Journal title MALTRATTAMENTO E ABUSO ALL’INFANZIA
Author/s Sarah Miragoli, Vittoria Badino, Luca Villa, Laura De Rui, Luca Milani
Publishing Year 2026 Issue 2026/2
Language Italian Pages 17 P. 13-29 File size 101 KB
DOI 10.3280/MAL2026-002002
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Children and adolescents placed in out-of-home residential care settings frequently exhibit emotional, behavioral, and relational difficulties, which may manifest through both internalizing and externalizing problems. These vulnerabilities unfold within complex developmental trajectories shaped by the interaction of individual, family-related, and contextual risk factors. The present study aims to analyze the incidence and main characteristics of residential placements involving minors (0–18 years) and young adults (18–21 years) in the Lombardy Region during the year 2024, providing an interpretative reading of the data in light of the main risk and resilience factors identified in the international literature. Overall, the findings highlight the multifactorial and complex nature of residential placement pathways, underscoring the importance of an integrated and multilevel approach in the care of vulnerable minors. This approach should consider the interactions between individual, familial, and contextual factors in order to guide protective interventions and educational programs capable of promoting well-being and positive developmental trajectories among children and adolescents in residential care.

Keywords: out-of-home care, Lombardy Region, welfare policies, taking charge, risk factors.

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Sarah Miragoli, Vittoria Badino, Luca Villa, Laura De Rui, Luca Milani, I collocamenti dei minori in strutture residenziali in Regione Lombardia in "MALTRATTAMENTO E ABUSO ALL’INFANZIA" 2/2026, pp 13-29, DOI: 10.3280/MAL2026-002002