This book contributes to the growing academic literature on children's caring responsibilities in families affected by HIV and AIDS and offers a comparative perspective between the global North and South. The book is based on findings from a qualitative research study that involved fieldwork with children with caring responsibilities, parents and relatives living with HIV/AIDS and service providers in the UK and Tanzania. The research was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (grant number RES-000-22-1732-A) from 2006–07, and the data produced by the study have been deposited with the UK Data Archive, Economic and Social Data Service, University of Essex. The research developed from shared research interests when Ruth Evans and Saul Becker were based at the Institute of Applied Social Studies, University of Birmingham. Saul and Ruth moved to the School of Sociology and Social Policy, University of Nottingham, during the course of the study, and the book was completed after Ruth's move to the Department of Geography, School of Human and Environmental Sciences, University of Reading. We would like to thank the ESRC for funding the study and our colleagues at the University of Birmingham, University of Nottingham and the University of Reading for institutional and informal support and encouragement throughout the research and writing process.

This research would not have been possible without the help of many individuals and organisations in Tanzania and the UK. We would like to express particular thanks to the Research Advisory Group who offered advice and guidance throughout the study. We are grateful to Magda Conway, Alex Fox, Jenny Frank, Yvonne Heath, Tracey Jones, Helen Leadbitter, Lois Robinson and Elsbeth Robson. We are also grateful to the Institute of Development Studies, University of Dar es Salaam, for hosting Ruth Evans as part of the Research Associate Scheme during the fieldwork in Tanzania and would particularly like to thank Dr Rose Shayo and Edson Nyingi for their assistance.

A number of individuals and organisations provided assistance and support with the research in various ways.