This is a qualitative study on mental health among unaccompanied children in Swedish residential care. The purpose of the study is to increase the understanding of the work and interaction with these children for anyone that in one way or another encounters unaccompanied children in their profession. To achieve this, we examined the experiences of staff members in residential care regarding mental health among unaccompanied children, by conducting semi-structured interviews of staff members. This study includes descriptions of how the interviewees experience mental illness and what challenges and difficulties they encounter in their work. Furthermore, the study also includes factors the interviewees believe are important in promoting mental health. The results show that mental illness amongst unaccompanied children in residential care is a recurring issue. The interviewees describe that mental illness can be expressed in anxiety, aggression, depression, insomnia, self-harm, isolation and psychosomatic symptoms. Socio-cultural differences is stated in the results as a challenge in ways that the children and the staff members have different norms and values. Moreover it is also described that the children’s view on what mental illness is, how they talk about it and how they handle it, is different from what the staff are used to and can lead to misunderstandings. Furthermore the results also show that interviewees believe the main cause behind the children’s poor well-being is the challenges they meet and the pressure they feel when they arrive to a new country. Challenges and pressure such as learning a new language and integrating in a new society. The interviewees describe it as being important to support and be available for the children, and for the children to find and be part of meaningful connections. Keywords: unaccompanied children/youth/minors, mental illness, mental health, residental care homes, refugees

The master thesis focuses on the topic of primary prevention policy aimed at using of alcohol and tobacco among children and youth. The main goal of the thesis is to to find out how is this policy implemented and to identify the possibilities for improvement and other changes. In the theoretical part of this study the analysis of the strategic primary prevention documents and legislative is presented. Also the problematics of using alcohol and tobacco among children and youth and theory of implementation of public policy is complemented. In the practical part of the study the qualitative research is presented. The research was realised by semi-standardized interviews among 16 representatives of the primary prevention policy - school methodists of prevention, methodists of prevention in pedagogical psychological advice bureau, county school prevention coordinators, representatives of the NGO sector and state administration. The results of the research show that the implementation of the primary prevention policy is not effective. The research shows that the policy has many deficiencies which are demonstrated most in the school environment.

The aim of this master thesis is analysing the accessibility of social services in Pardubicky region and analysing the accessibility of social services in the area around the town of Usti nad Orlici. In the theoretical part of this thesis is the definition of social politics and principles and models of social politics. Next, this thesis describes models of social politics in the selected states of EU- in Sweden, Germany, Great Britain, France and Slovakia. Following of this section follows description of the social politics and system of social services (definition, quality standards and types of the social services) in the Czech Republic. The last section of the theoretical part compares legislations of the social services in the Czech Republic,France and Slovakia. The practical part of this thesis is focused on social services in Pardubicky region. The introduction of the practical part describes the planning of social services in Pardubicky region. The next section analyse the accessibility of social services for different groups in Pardubicky region. More detailed analyses of accessibility of social services in Pardubicky region is focused on area around the town of Usti nad Orlici