"Bygga broar!" : Om skolans och socialtjänstens arbete med hemmasittande elever

Sammanfattning: The purpose of this study was to examine what approach schools and social services adopt towards students who are absent from middle- and high school under long periods, to examine the distribution of responsibilities between them and to assess the collaboration between the agencies. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five personnel from school health teams, and one from social services. The theories that were used was systems theory, labelling theory and empowerment. We found that both schools and social services provided counselling opportunities and sought to establish communication between the student and parent(s). However, while part of the schools response was to adjust the schooling plan, social services focused on mapping the individual ’s network and presented alternatives such as temporary foster placement. The cooperation between schools and social services is perceived differently between respondents. We conclude that a working method is needed to facilitate cooperation between schools and social services to ensure efficient deployment of their assistance for students and parents.