How do the child welfare services in Norway work with young people leaving care?

Young people leaving care are vulnerable youths in need of assistance. During recent years there has been a debate in Norway questioning if the support given is random and insufficient. This paper explores how the child welfare services in Norway assist young people leaving care in the transition to adulthood. The discussion is based upon a survey sent to all child welfare services in Norway. Even though most of the services report having a systematic practice, only a few have written guidelines. They also report difficulties motivating young people to receive further support, having too little time and starting the work too late. This could be due to the fact that providing assistance after 18 years is not mandatory, creating a situation of negotiation where both organizational and relational issues become important