Approaches for the Seamless Integration of Male Leavers into the Community from Selected Children’s Homes in Nakuru, Nandi and Uasin Gishu Counties, Kenya

The progression from institutional care to the community is still a huge obstacle for many care leavers, especially for male institutional care leavers whose reintegration needs have not been effectively met in Kenya. While institutional care offers support and protection during childhood, little is known about what strategies help to make it easier to rejoin community life upon leaving. This study sought to find out the approaches for the seamless integration of male leavers into the community after leaving care. This was a qualitative study that utilized a case study methodology, where purposive sampling was used to select twenty male care leavers from the selected children's homes in Nakuru, Nandi and Uasin Gishu counties using a snowball sampling technique. Semi-structured interviews were used to gather data and a modified Attride-Stirling Thematic Network Analysis was used to analyze the data. Ethical standards and steps taken to guarantee the trustworthiness of the study were followed throughout the study. The results indicated that successful community integration requires institutional, family, community and policy interventions that are coordinated. Key strategies found were improving aftercare, promoting economic empowerment through education, vocational training and employment, strengthening psychosocial support, building good family and community relationships and strengthening collaborative partnerships between children's homes, government and the local communities. These strategies were seen as necessary to help deal with social and economic problems after care. The study adds to the existing scarce literature on male care leavers in Kenya by providing evidence-based strategies on how to improve post-care services, policies and programs for sustainable integration within communities.
Keywords: Institutional care, male care leavers, aftercare, community integration, reintegration strategies and Kenya

Gender and Development Studies

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