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Short-fibre paper residuals (deinking paper fibre (DPF) or paper mill sludge) represents a major waste formed during the processing of recycled paper and is known to contain significant quantities of copper. It is often spread onto agricultural land to help increase soil pH and improve structure by adding soil organic matter (SOM). A number of agricultural sites in England and Wales that had received large and repeated applications were sampled to investigate the long-term effects of this practice on soil quality and plant copper content. We found that the composition of DPF waste has changed significantly between 1999 and 2006 with concentrations of Cu increasing and organic matter content declining. Whilst repeated additions of DPF to agricultural land always increased soil Cu, an associated increase in SOM was not always apparent. There was no link between SOM and bioavailable Cu nor between soil bioavailable Cu and plant Cu. In contrast to previous reports, our findings indicate that improvement in soil quality following the long-term application of DPF was site-specific and in some cases it may have reduced soil quality rather than enhanced it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Devolution to Scotland and Wales was a central pillar of the legislative agenda of the Labour government elected in 1997, yet despite the constitutional significance of this programme it was undertaken without particular enthusiasm by the then prime minister, Tony Blair. Nowhere was this blend of significant change, yet pervasive lack of passion (or interest) more apparent than devolution to Wales. Drawing upon recently released archival documents, this article will explore the New Labour government's approach to devolution in Wales. These papers provide fresh evidence of the second order nature, and treatment, of Welsh devolution compared to the attention provided to Scottish devolution, as well as of the narcissism of small details which pervaded Whitehall's discussions of Welsh devolution (with considerable energy, for example, dedicated to questions about the titles which leading figures in the Assembly would be given). These papers also bear testament to the struggles which Ron Davies, the then secretary of state for Wales, faced in securing even a minor scheme of devolution and the tensions he experienced with the centre of government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how the spaces through which legal trials take place shape attitudes towards justice. There has been a growing academic interest in the role of courts in configuring the relationships between trial participants and consequently reproducing pre‐established hierarchies of power. This paper builds on this work to consider the spatiality of trials from the perspective of a particular group of court users: defendants. Drawing on qualitative data drawn from a longitudinal study conducted in prisons in England and Wales, the paper examines how defendants perceive trial spaces, exploring in particular how such insights expand beyond the narrow focus on the courtroom to draw in experiences of transportation, holding cells, bodily restrictions, and the provision of food. In doing so, we seek to contribute to debates concerning penal consciousness, whereby the subjectivity and embodiment of individual participants illuminate differential experiences of the material and legal nature of trial processes. The paper concludes by emphasising how a focus on penal consciousness can help to address perceptions of the injustice of trial outcomes while improving the accessibility of courts. There has been a growing academic interest in the role of courts in configuring the relationships between trial participants and consequently reproducing pre‐established hierarchies of power. This paper builds on this work to consider the spatiality of trials from the perspective of a particular group of court users: defendants. Drawing on qualitative data drawn from a longitudinal study conducted in prisons in England and Wales, the paper examines how defendants perceive trial spaces, exploring in particular how such insights expand beyond the narrow focus on the courtroom to draw in experiences of transportation, holding cells, bodily restrictions, and the provision of food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly (BBF) in Great Britain study was conducted during 2017–2019 comprising three country studies: BBF England, Wales and Scotland. It was part of an international project being coordinated during the same period by the Yale School of Public Health across five world regions to inform countries and guide policies to improve the environment for the promotion, protection and support of breastfeeding. This paper reports on the application of the BBF process that is based on an implementation science approach, across the countries that constitute Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland). The process involves assessing 54 benchmarks across eight interlocking gears that drive a country's 'engine' towards a sustainable policy approach to supporting, promoting and protecting breastfeeding. It takes a consensus‐oriented approach to the evaluation of benchmarks and the development of recommendations. This paper provides a critical overview of how the process was conducted, the findings and recommendations that emerged and how these were managed. We draw on critical theory as a theoretical framework for explaining the different outcomes for each country and some considerations for future action. Key messages: Undertaking an international, comparable approach to develop evidence‐based policy recommendations for scaling up the breastfeeding environment can provide useful data on which to draw explanations and conclusions on national variation.The findings from the BBF process across England, Scotland and Wales suggest that improving breastfeeding in Great Britain is dependent on the degree of political will and having a coordinated national breastfeeding strategy in place or not, along with access to robust breastfeeding data.A critical theory lens helps to bring to light some differences in the research and policy process that can explain differences between countries in the United Kingdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The 2022/23 influenza season in the United Kingdom saw the return of influenza to prepandemic levels following two seasons with low influenza activity. The early season was dominated by A(H3N2), with cocirculation of A(H1N1), reaching a peak late December 2022, while influenza B circulated at low levels during the latter part of the season. From September to March 2022/23, influenza vaccines were offered, free of charge, to all aged 2–13 (and 14–15 in Scotland and Wales), adults up to 49 years of age with clinical risk conditions and adults aged 50 and above across the mainland United Kingdom. Methods: End‐of‐season adjusted vaccine effectiveness (VE) estimates against sentinel primary‐care attendance for influenza‐like illness, where influenza infection was laboratory confirmed, were calculated using the test negative design, adjusting for potential confounders. Methods: Results In the mainland United Kingdom, end‐of‐season VE against all laboratory‐confirmed influenza for all those > 65 years of age, most of whom received adjuvanted quadrivalent vaccines, was 30% (95% CI: −6% to 54%). VE for those aged 18–64, who largely received cell‐based vaccines, was 47% (95% CI: 37%–56%). Overall VE for 2–17 year olds, predominantly receiving live attenuated vaccines, was 66% (95% CI: 53%–76%). Conclusion: The paper provides evidence of moderate influenza VE in 2022/23. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the impact of the European Regulation on insolvency proceedings in England and Wales. Types of insolvency proceedings directly covered by the Regulation; Application of the Regulation to insolvency proceedings concerning insurance undertakings; Absence of special provision made by the Regulation for groups of companies.

In modern knowledge‐based societies human capital is the single most important determinant of regional inequalities in productivity and standards of living. Using a newly constructed data set that allows the analysis of educational attainments at different levels of geography, this paper evaluates spatial inequalities and the degree of convergence in the distribution of human capital across areas in England and Wales during the second decade of the 21st century. Our results show this was a period characterised by a large increase in educational attainment and skill intensity. However, the growth in skill intensity was far from uniform across space. In particular, we find strong evidence of both absolute σ‐divergence and β‐convergence in the distribution of skills. Thus, even if low‐skill areas grew on average more than other areas with higher skill intensity at the start of the period, the stochastic dominance analyses provide strong evidence of an unambiguous increase in absolute inequalities so that by end of the decade the skill gap between low‐ and high‐skill areas had significantly widened. We present new spatial and aspatial evidence that sheds light on those inequalities and the changes in the spatial configuration of human capital over the last decade. Despite the implementation of policies aimed at reducing regional inequalities, many low skill areas struggled to attract talent so that the gap with most skilled areas widened over that period likely contributing to the persistence of the well‐documented large spatial economic inequalities in this country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports teacher and learner perspectives on how assessment and reform influences pedagogical practices and behaviours. The research was conducted in a context of policy reform, at a time when Wales' revised General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) specifications had been implemented, and learners were preparing for their assessments; but, also during the period of debate on the development of Wales' new curriculum, which has taken a distinct and contrasting position on assessment to the assumptions underlying the reform of Welsh GCSEs implemented from 2015. These data, therefore, offer unique insights into the affordances and limitations of two sharply contrasting systems at a time of considerable change, offering reflections on the current curriculum and its attendant assessment practices, and also a prospective analysis of how the principles embedded in the new curriculum could challenge these existing assumptions and conventions. Findings suggest that teachers and learners currently inhabit an assessment‐driven system, which encourages performative practices in pedagogy and is governed by external accountability; and that these practices are at odds with the principles of assessment articulated in Successful Futures. Consequently, teachers in this study expressed uncertainty about how assessment for certification purposes at GCSE could be compatible with the principles of the Curriculum for Wales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paid carers play an important role in helping older adults with care needs to remain living in their own homes. This paper examines changes in the home care field, specifically the emergence of self‐employed care entrepreneurs ('microentrepreneurs'). To do this, it employs Bourdieu's concepts of field, capital and habitus. Drawing on 105 semi‐structured interviews with stakeholders working in home care, the paper describes how the interaction of changes to field structures, and altered practices of care have challenged the taken‐for‐granted acceptance of traditional, transactional forms of care provision. This process has been highly dependent on local state actors, their ability to mobilise relevant forms of capital and the factors which shaped their habitus. It should be seen within the context of changes to local field structures and the hierarchical classification processes which underpin them. These changes threaten the distribution of capital in the home care field in ways that are beneficial to microentrepreneurs. Bourdieu might categorise these developments as 'partial revolutions', which do not challenge the fundamental axioms of the field. However, for care entrepreneurs, formerly employed as low‐paid home‐care workers, a revolution that is only partial may be better than none at all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on the notion of generative mechanisms as constitutive rules, this paper advocates a shift away from the notion of routines as sources of ongoing change and towards a rule‐based understanding of routines as institutional facts. While the recent practice turn to routines studies has highlighted sources of endogenous change, this paper adopts a Critical Realist stance to investigate exogenous forces that account for the emergence of a new routine. To this end, the paper endeavours to analyse the passing of new legislation in the criminal justice system of England and Wales. By examining what makes the rules of the game change between the Police and the Crown Prosecution Service, the paper explains an instance of institutionalisation in the making. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. Our contribution stresses that constitutive rules play a pivotal role for recognising, identifying and labelling organisational routines, thus generating order, stability and patterning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public responses to an 'upward trend' in recorded dog theft offences in England and Wales led to the creation of the Pet Theft Taskforce in May 2021, followed by a policy paper recommending the development of a new 'pet abduction' offence. Despite this, the experiential nature of dog theft, what impact this has on victims, and how they go about searching for their stolen dogs have been overlooked. Building on interdisciplinary research on dog theft, and wider literature on the impact of absence and loss on human victims, this paper explores the experiential dimension of this crime and the spatial and temporal practices of search/ing. Drawing on 15 semi‐structured interviews with victims of dog theft (10) and community resolution groups (5), key themes emerged from our analyses: (i) more‐than‐human families and (ii) spatial and temporal practices of search/ing. The dogs in this study occupy an absent presence, their bodies not visibly present but occupying a space in the minds and words of their humans. From the realisation of loss through to ongoing searches to possible reunite, participant experiences are filled with emotions that reflect a traumatic experience and 'ambiguous absence'. With expectations of police support rarely met, victims started physically searching themselves, moving from the local to regional and national, while connecting with animal professionals and community resolution groups. Virtual space was seen as vital, with social media amplifying the virtual presence of specific stolen dogs. Conceived as a more‐human‐focused animal geography, the research brings together an empirical example at the potential intersection of animal geographies and policing. The experiential evidence in this paper suggests changes to organisational practices (standardised police approach; centralised microchip database; mandatory microchip‐scanning by animal professionals) and national government policy interventions ('pet abduction' offence) might have a positive impact on victim experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the research problem that arises from evidence that, despite supportive policy contexts, enactment of pedagogies that attend to young children's participation rights in classroom settings is highly variable. We report our exploration of the ways in which the child, and child participation are constructed in early education settings in Wales, where legislation and policy around children's rights has been a key feature of the Welsh Government agenda post‐devolution. Data were gathered via a qualitative online bilingual (English and Welsh) survey offered via email to teachers of children aged 3–7 in Wales. The overarching research question of the project was: How do teachers of children 3–7 years understand and enact the notion of participation as it relates to the children they teach? Data analysis focused on research participants' apparent constructions of the children they teach and their capabilities, and unpacked the ways in which these constructions relate to the reported opportunities for participation. The discussion is informed by the notion of the threshold concept, described by Meyer & Land as akin to a portal that opens new and previously inaccessible ways of thinking. We consider the extent to which the conceptual construction of the capable child maybe a threshold concept in shaping the realisation of children's participation rights in educative contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Co‐production values lived experience as it promotes individuals as assets and offers insight where little is known about a problem. This paper critically considers the pragmatic approach to co‐design adopted in Wales with young people and parents affected by child criminal exploitation during the COVID‐19 pandemic. It suggests that combining co‐design with data collection facilitated the recruitment, sensitisation and facilitation of vulnerable groups. By placing informed consent at the forefront of co‐design, young people and parents decided how they wanted their voices heard. Further, combining data gathering with co‐design contextualised solution development within their lived experiences. However, embedding these solutions into policy and practice remains subject to existing power imbalances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on research that explored the experiences of secondary Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) professionals' simultaneous negotiation and implementation of the new Curriculum for Wales (CfW) Health and Well‐Being (HWB) Area of Learning and Experience (AoLE) and policies focused on the transformation of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) in Wales. The study was an exploratory case study of PETE professionals working within one university's ITE programme. Data were generated through documentary analysis of PETE and ITE programme materials and semi‐structured interviews with staff involved in programme management and delivery. Data analysis employed Ball and colleagues' conceptualisation of policy actors and contexts to critically examine the varied policy positions that PETE professionals adopt in navigating and negotiating enactment of the HWB AoLE within their ITE provision. Attention is drawn to the significance of historical and culturally situated dimensions of secondary physical education and PETE in Wales, and significant changes to the professional culture of ITE, in shaping PETE educators' engagement with the HWB AoLE. The paper concludes by contending that ITE institutions in Wales need to further consider how PETE (and other) educators can be actively supported to engage in sophisticated policy work within their institutions and across policy and professional networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the 1970s a series of events irrevocably changed the way in which policing was carried out in England and Wales. This paper describes how the police became politicized as it enforced government policies that resulted in violent police/public confrontation. It then explores how the Metropolitan Police Service began a process of re-engagement with the highly complex society of London, by community-focused policing models. The theoretical and practical difficulties of community policing are discussed in relation to legislation that required greater community involvement in policing. A theme of accountability is generated throughout the paper showing how political extremism challenged a bi-partite system of police governance, unique to the Metropolitan Police in the context of the UK, by demanding local accountability. This resulted in conflicting legislation that promotes both localized and centralized forms of accountability. The paper concludes with a speculative theory of how policing may develop in London as a department of a local government. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite predominantly lower social class origins, the second generation of established immigrant groups in the UK are now attaining high levels of education. However, they continue to experience poorer labour market outcomes than the majority population. These worse outcomes are often attributed in part to their disadvantaged origins, which do not, by contrast, appear to constrain their educational success. This paper engages with this paradox. We discuss potential mechanisms for second‐generation educational success and how far we might expect these to be replicated in labour market outcomes. We substantiate our discussion with new empirical analysis. Drawing on a unique longitudinal study of England and Wales spanning 40 years and encompassing one per cent of the population, we present evidence on the educational and labour market outcomes of the second generation of four groups of immigrants and the white British majority, controlling for multiple measures of social origins. We demonstrate that second‐generation men and women's educational advantage is only partially reflected in the labour market. We reflect on the implications of our findings for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term value‐based healthcare (VBHC) describes an approach to the organization and delivery of care that emphasizes reducing the cost of care while improving outcomes. This involves increased investment earlier in the care pathway e.g., in the prevention, timely diagnosis, and screening for complications in order to maximize the overall impact of care. Key elements of VBHC include the collection and interpretation of relevant data to drive quality improvement and appropriateness of care, a focus on a continuum of care from prevention through to complications, an awareness of the financial drivers of the cost of care and a recognition that meaningful outcomes of care are those that are important to patients. Although VBHC has its origins in North America and has mostly been applied to private health systems, the principles can also be applied to national health services. In publicly funded health systems, where resources are finite, VBHC initiatives aim to eliminate ineffective care that has no beneficial impact or added value for patients and to optimize patient outcomes by delivering care that meets the changing healthcare needs of a population over time. The National Health Service in Wales has established a VBHC Office and has begun to realize the benefits of adopting VBHC approaches. The Irish Health Service Executive (HSE) can learn from the approaches used in Wales. In this paper we explore some of the principles of VBHC through case studies from Ireland and Wales highlighting how national health services are using VBHC to achieve improvement in outcomes for people living with diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: Long‐acting injectable buprenorphine (LAIB) is a new treatment for opioid use disorder that is generating positive outcomes. Negative effects are typically mild and transient, but can occasionally be serious, resulting in treatment discontinuation/non‐adherence. This paper aims to analyse patients' accounts of how they felt during the first 72 h after initiating LAIB. Methods: Semi‐structured interviews were conducted (June 2021–March 2022) with 26 people (18 males and 8 females) who had started LAIB within the previous 72 h. Participants were recruited from treatment services in England and Wales and were interviewed by telephone using a topic guide. Interviews were audio‐recorded, transcribed and coded. The concepts of embodiment and embodied cognition framed the analyses. Data on participants' substance use, initiation onto LAIB and feelings were tabulated. Next, participants' accounts of how they felt were analysed following the stages of Iterative Categorization. Results: Participants reported complex combinations of changing negative and positive feelings. Bodily experiences included withdrawal symptoms, poor sleep, injection‐site pain/soreness, lethargy and heightened senses inducing nausea ('distressed bodies'), but also enhanced somatic wellbeing, improved sleep, better skin, increased appetite, reduced constipation and heightened senses inducing pleasure ('returning body functions'). Cognitive responses included anxiety, uncertainties and low mood/depression ('the mind in crisis') and improved mood, greater positivity and reduced craving ('feeling psychologically better'). Whereas most negative effects reported are widely recognized, the early benefits of treatment described are less well‐documented and may be an overlooked distinctive feature of LAIB. Conclusions: During the first 72 h after initiating long‐acting injectable buprenorphine, new patients report experiencing a range of interconnected positive and negative short‐term effects. Providing new patients with information about the range and nature of these effects can prepare them for what to expect and help them manage feelings and reduce anxiety. In turn, this may increase medication adherence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rights that guarantee public passage across private land are known as rights of way. In this paper, we argue that rights of way are a literal manifestation of a politics of space. The paper's purpose is to suggest rights of way are central to issues surrounding social and spatial inequality, specifically with regards to public access to urban and rural space. They are a neglected topic in geographical research, despite their relevance to many sub‐branches, including landscape studies, urban natures, GIS, and open‐source geospatial research. Rights of way in England and Wales are currently facing their biggest legal threat to date. On 1 January 2026, unregistered rights of way are set to be extinguished. Path extinguishment threatens thousands of kilometres of footpaths, bridleways, restricted byways, and byways open to all traffic. The paper concludes by examining how geographical approaches help reveal the cultural and historical value of two at‐risk footpaths in Coventry, England. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper demonstrates the applicability of GIS tools for investigating the implications of changes in public service provision following a prolonged period of economic austerity in the UK. Using the example of geographical accessibility to public library service points in Wales, levels of provision are estimated for two cross‐sections in time to gain an understanding of the potential implications of changes in service delivery models. Accessibility scores for small areas, generated using sophisticated floating catchment area (FCA) methods, enable complex spatial interactions between library service capacity and potential demand to be evaluated within realistic geographical service areas. Extending these models, we demonstrate how indicators of library service "quality" can be incorporated into access measures using the example of library operating hours for sites in three bordering Welsh local authorities, each of which have experienced differing policy responses to library service reconfiguration. Overall, the level of geographical accessibility to public library provision in Wales was found to have declined, on average, between 2011 and 2018, coinciding with a notable reduction in public library funding over the same period. While this finding is not unexpected, given an overall decrease in public library service points, this study reveals spatial inequalities in provision with areas of declining provision coinciding with pockets of greater economic deprivation. From a policy perspective, this paper demonstrates how network‐based GIS tools can aid scenario/sensitivity modelling to inform public service decision‐making processes. Our future research will extend these techniques to examine the implications of service reconfiguration strategies on potentially disadvantaged groups such as the elderly and the unemployed who rely on public libraries for access to e‐government and broader IT services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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An introduction is presented in which the editors discuss issues arising from the implementation of curriculum reform, based on a review of the education system, in Wales.

The paper explores tensions in the articulation of progression in learning across the Humanities disciplines. Informed by our review of research in the Humanities disciplines, international curricula on progression in these areas and reflections from professional activity within the newly defined Humanities 'Area of Learning and Experience' in the new Welsh curriculum, this paper describes how learning progression in Humanities has been conceptualised within the new curriculum and then delineates and critically reviews four challenges that emerged when identifying and describing the progression in learning in the new Humanities curriculum. Tensions include the relationship between disciplines; the balance between knowledge, skills and values; the differences between underlying models of progression in Humanities; and balancing the complexity of learning with practical considerations for a national curriculum. Underpinned by the Integrity Model of Change, this paper makes a contribution, through providing new insights on broad aspects of learning progression in Humanities and highlighting the potential benefits and challenges of taking particular decisions within each of these four tensions. Implications for curriculum planning and future research are offered, including the fundamental role of professional learning in curriculum development and enactment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In the United Kingdom, policy and guidance changes regarding the role of dental therapists (DTs) were implemented in recent years with a view to changing dental care to a more preventive‐focussed, teamwork approach. However, success in the adoption of this model of working has been varied. Aims: Adopting a realist approach, our aim was, to examine the use of DTs in general dental practices in Wales, exploring what works, why, how and in what circumstances. Materials and Methods: The research comprised two stages. (a) A structured literature search, dual‐coding papers for high‐level factors describing the conditions or context(s) under which the mechanisms operated to produce outcomes. From this, we derived theories about how skill‐mix operates in the general dental service. (b) Six case studies of general dental practices (three with a dental therapist/three without a dental therapist) employing a range of skill‐mix models incorporating semi‐structured interviews with all team members. We used the case studies/interviews to explore and refine the theories derived from the literature. Results: Eighty‐four papers were coded. From this coding, we identified seven theories which reflected factors influencing general dental practices within three broad contexts: the dental practice as a business, as a healthcare provider and as a workplace. We tested these theories in interviews with 38 dental team members across the six care studies. As a result, we amended five of the theories. Conclusion: Our analysis provides theory about outcomes that DTs may facilitate and the mechanisms that may assist the work of DTs within different contexts of general dental practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the British NHS the principle of exceptionality involves assessing whether a patient is sufficiently different from the generality of patients to justify providing a treatment, such as an expensive cancer drug, not approved for routine funding. In England, individual requests for certain high‐cost treatments are considered by local panels that examine exceptionality alongside treatment efficacy and cost as the main criteria for funding. This was also the case in Wales until September 2017. Our paper draws on audio recordings of panel meetings and interviews in a Welsh Health Board to investigate how exceptionality was constructed in discussions. It focuses on the problematic combination of different decision criteria in meeting talk, particularly regarding the discourses associated with efficacy and exceptionality. Exceptionality is a fluid category that raised questions about the evidence‐based nature of panel decision making. In particular, the paper discusses the use of subgroup data from RCTs and the difficulty of deciding how small a subgroup of patients should be before it is deemed exceptional. Determining exceptionality has been an important mechanism for deciding that a minority of NHS patients can still receive high‐cost treatments not routinely provided for all. As a neglected rationing mechanism it warrants sociological examination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provides a detailed picture of how the on‐going challenge of teacher shortages in England and Wales is driving the deployment of teaching assistants (TAs) to cover classes in place of teachers. Analyses of data from a survey of nearly 6000 TAs in mainstream and special schools found that TAs cover classes for up to 4 h a week, with one in four covering classes because schools do not have enough teachers and/or are unable to get external supply teachers. The conditions under which TAs cover classes are challenging and a cause of stress and anxiety. Unlike teachers, TAs cover classes without a lesson plan or support from another TA. The majority of TAs said that covering classes inevitably involves them having to teach pupils – despite national guidance stipulating that cover by TAs should not involve ‘active teaching’. Three in four TAs report that their own role is not covered when they cover for teachers. Being deployed to cover classes disrupts and diverts TAs from carrying out their regular duties of delivering curriculum interventions and providing classroom support. Consequently, TAs feel that undertaking cover negatively impacts the quality of learning and provision for pupils with additional needs, as well as their workload, wellbeing, sense of effectiveness and job satisfaction. The conclusion that TAs actively teach lessons to whole classes has potentially significant real‐world consequences and implications for policy and practice. This paper calls for an urgent policy response to what is, in essence, a troubling symptom of the current teacher recruitment and retention crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the abuse of children by members of religious groups and particularly within religious institutions. It also discusses various news papers considering child and institutional abuse, using publicly available evidence after legal investigations. McLoone-Richards and David Pilgrim express their views in their news papers. It concludes that the person who has been abused in their childhood should be listened to, taken seriously, and given the support and care they require.

Devolution to Scotland and Wales was a central pillar of the legislative agenda of the Labour government elected in 1997, yet despite the constitutional significance of this programme it was undertaken without particular enthusiasm by the then prime minister, Tony Blair. Nowhere was this blend of significant change, yet pervasive lack of passion (or interest) more apparent than devolution to Wales. Drawing upon recently released archival documents, this article will explore the New Labour government's approach to devolution in Wales. These papers provide fresh evidence of the second order nature, and treatment, of Welsh devolution compared to the attention provided to Scottish devolution, as well as of the narcissism of small details which pervaded Whitehall's discussions of Welsh devolution (with considerable energy, for example, dedicated to questions about the titles which leading figures in the Assembly would be given). These papers also bear testament to the struggles which Ron Davies, the then secretary of state for Wales, faced in securing even a minor scheme of devolution and the tensions he experienced with the centre of government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Burial grounds and secular settlements in early medieval Wales (fifth to eleventh centuries AD) are understood to have been in geographically separate locations. In contrast, it is known that in England and on the Continent during this period burial began to be integrated within settlements. Changes in burial practice also occurred in Ireland, where early medieval 'cemetery settlements' with integrated burial and non‐funerary activity are a relatively recent discovery. This paper presents a reassessment of the archaeological evidence from five published early medieval Welsh cemeteries and one recently‐excavated example. It will demonstrate that these Welsh cemeteries share a number of attributes with Irish cemetery settlements and will critically evaluate the significance of this for our understanding of early medieval Wales. The paper will conclude that such sites are better conceptualized as 'multifunctional cemeteries', rather than 'cemetery settlements'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a rapid response analysis of the changing geographies of ethnic diversity and segregation in England and Wales using Census data covering the last 30 years (1991, 2001, 2011 and 2021), a period of significant social, economic and political change. Presenting the first detailed analysis of 2021 Census small area ethnic group data, we find that the growth of ethnic diversity at the national level is mirrored across residential neighbourhoods. Increasing numbers of neighbourhoods are home to a substantial mix of people from different ethnic groups, and this growing neighbourhood ethnic diversity has been spatially diffusing across all regions of England and Wales. We argue that to understand the ethnic mosaic across England and Wales, it is more illuminating to consider mix than majority: places labelled as 'minority‐majority' are, in fact, ethnically diverse spaces, home to sizable proportions of people from many ethnic groups. Increasing ethnic diversity is matched by decreasing residential segregation, for all ethnic groups—majority and minority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Successful communication is vital to quality of life. One group commonly facing speech and communication difficulties is individuals with intellectual disability (ID). A novel route to encourage clear speech is offered by mainstream smart speakers (e.g., Amazon Alexa and Google Home). Smart speakers offer four factors important for learning: reward immediacy, spaced practice, autonomy/intrinsic motivation and reduced social barriers. Yet the potential of smart speakers to improve speech intelligibility has not been explored before. Aims: To determine whether providing individuals with intellectual disabilities with smart speaker devices improved ratings of speech intelligibility for (1) phrases related to device use and (2) unrelated words via a semi‐randomized controlled trial. Methods & Procedures: In a semi‐randomized controlled trial, an intervention group of adults with ID (N = 21) received smart speakers, while a control group (N = 22) did not. Before and after about 12 weeks, participants were recorded saying smart speaker‐related phrases and unrelated words. Naïve participants then rated the intelligibility of the speech recordings. Outcomes & Results: The group that received smart speakers made significantly larger intelligibility gains than the control group. Although the effect size was modest, this difference was found for both smart speaker‐related phrases and unrelated words. Conclusions & Implications: While the mechanism of action remains to be determined, the presence of smart speakers in the home had a demonstrable impact on ratings of speech intelligibility, and could provide cost‐effective inclusive support for speech and communication improvement, improving the quality of life of vulnerable populations. What this paper addsWhat is already known on the subjectSpeech intelligibility is a key obstacle for social relationships and quality of life across several vulnerable populations (children with speech difficulties, older adults with dementia, individuals with ID). Anecdotal reports suggest mainstream smart speakers (e.g., Amazon Alexa, Google Home), could improve speech intelligibility.What this paper adds to existing knowledgeWe used a semi‐randomized controlled trial to show that using a smart speaker for about 12 weeks could improve ratings of speech intelligibility in adults with ID for both smart speaker‐related phrases and unrelated words.What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?These initial findings suggest that smart speaker technology could be a novel, and inclusive, route to improving speech intelligibility in vulnerable populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author discusses the asset management in water industry in England and Wales. He is critical about the water leakage which accounts for 21 percent of water supplied in the area. It discusses several disadvantages of the privatization of the water industry which includes fixed costs, commercial model and commercial values of the private sector knowledge.

When a pregnancy ends in England and Wales, statutory time away from paid employment is limited to circumstances where there is a live birth or stillbirth. Forms of leave, such as Maternity Leave or Paternity Leave, depend on parental status derived from the civil registration of a new person or a post‐viability stillbirth. Other early pregnancy endings, such as miscarriage or abortion, do not provide specific time off work after pregnancy. This paper uses the concept of reproductive governance to analyze current and shifting biopolitical truth discourses, strategies of intervention, and modes of subjectification around post‐pregnancy leaves. It shows how different inclusions and exclusions are generated by the classificatory boundaries which act as political technologies in this field. Contributing to an area that is under‐researched in the literature, we provide a review of post‐pregnancy statutory employment leave entitlements in this context. We then consider proposals for change presented in the United Kingdom political system in relation to more inclusive leave benefits offered by some employers and different pregnancy ending leaves offered in other jurisdictions. We argue that current arrangements and proposals do not adequately reflect the complexity and diversity of pregnancy endings. We conclude with a call to policymakers in all contexts to carefully assess the consequences of new ideas around leaves for pregnancy endings and to formulate inclusive and fair proposals for change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper unpacks new firm exit in a novel way. It theorizes that, even after controlling for a wide range of human capital and other factors, access to, and the management of, an overdraft facility powerfully influences the exit chances of a new firm. It then unpacks exits, distinguishing between new firms that exit leaving no debts (pure exiters) and those that exit leaving a debt (defaulters). A second distinction is between those exiting in the short‐ and the longer‐run. Using a bank‐based dataset, comprising nearly 6,000 new businesses in England and Wales tracked over a decade, it shows that, although there are similarities, financial management plays an important, but very different, role in explaining exit across the four groups. Overall, new firms with an overdraft have lower exit rates than those without, but the reverse is the case for defaulters. A second finding is that, although exceeding the terms of an overdraft enhances short‐run survival, it lowers survival in the longer‐run. These results highlight the powerful insights provided by private information held by the bank that is not normally available to academic researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to expand understandings of 'public geographies', not usually associated with historical geography, through considering voluntarism. It seeks to bring together debates on research practice, positionality and the 'surprise' instances of user engagement. To do so, it draws on two experiences and opportunities that emerged during my doctoral research in Wales on the cultural-historical geographies of scouting in Britain: first, curating an exhibition and second, cataloguing and 'making' an archive collection. Both of these were voluntary collaborative activities and outside 'the research project', and yet they shaped and influenced the research process in unique and unforeseen ways. Overall, the paper uses these examples as a way into exploring geographical debates on research users, non-academic communities and the role of the researcher as a volunteer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper sheds new light on return migration from Australia to the UK in the latter nineteenth century. It uses data from shipping records, and from a random sample of the 23,000 Australian‐born in the 1911 Census of England and Wales. Based on these sources, it estimates some 20% of migrants to Australia returned: higher among the wealthy, but still 12% of semi‐ and unskilled working class migrants returned. There was a preponderance of women among returnees. From that, and other evidence such as the geographic spread of returnees across England, the paper argues that social networks played critical roles in decisions to return. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we report findings from a qualitative, multidisciplinary analysis of 20 Child Practice Reviews (CPRs) (previously Serious Case Review) in Wales. The reviews were analysed from three different disciplinary perspectives: law, criminology and practice (social work). The following cross‐cutting themes were identified from our coding of the reviews: (i) hierarchy of knowledge, where certain sources of knowledge were privileged over others; (ii) information sharing/recording, where deficiencies of sharing or recording of information were evident; (iii) partial assessment, where certain assessments were not always holistic; and lastly, (iv) voice of the child, where the experience or perspective of the child was not always considered. In addition, our analysis revealed a range of challenges to the CPR process as implemented. This paper is the first to explore themes emerging from (Welsh) CPRs and is also the first to do so from a multidisciplinary perspective. We conclude by highlighting the recommendations for practice, such as the need for greater learning pan‐Wales, regular publication of the major themes emerging from CPRs and the need for deposit of CPRs in a central repository to facilitate learning from reviews. 'Report[s] findings from a qualitative, multidisciplinary analysis of 20 Child Practice Reviews... in Wales' Key Practitioner Messages: There is an urgent need for multidisciplinary training on contemporary data protection requirements as per the General Data Protection Regulation for all safeguarding boards.Creative methods are required to disseminate the messages from Child Practice Reviews more widely.Child Practice Reviews should be deposited and indexed in a central repository to facilitate learning across Wales.Guidance and training for Child Practice Reviews should be revisited, so that the child is repositioned at the centre of the process and the voice of the child is heard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thousands of examiners are employed to mark candidate scripts from the suite of public examinations offered to students during the compulsory and post-compulsory schooling phases in England, Northern Ireland and Wales. All examiners undergo training to ensure that they interpret correctly, and apply consistently, the mark scheme for their particular paper. Traditionally this training has been delivered face-to-face, but several benefits of an online training environment have been identified. This paper outlines the findings of an experimental study designed to quantify and compare the effects of face-to-face and online training on experienced examiners' marking reliability. A sample of 89 experienced examiners was randomly allocated to either a face-to-face or online training group. The participants marked 30 General Certificate of Secondary Education History scripts prior to receiving training and another 30 scripts following training. Two measures of reliability were calculated: marking accuracy (absolute mark differences) and consistency (rank order correlations). The findings suggest that both modes of training had comparable, statistically significant positive effects on examiners' accuracy and consistency. The evidence indicates that online training may be an effective alternative to face-to-face training for the purposes of standardising examiners' marking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whilst sex-work policy in England and Wales claims gender-neutrality, local and national prostitution strategies primarily focus on female street-based sex workers. Men who sell sex are generally absent or inadequately considered in such policies, and measures to regulate commercial sex markets are rarely considered in terms of their impact on male working practice. Drawing on the Coordinated Prostitution Strategy for England and Wales, this paper has two aims: first, to offer a gender-based critique of the current policy framework for England and Wales by arguing that sex-work policy is infused by a gendered understanding of sex work in which male identities are neglected or assumed deviant; and second to explore the notion that understanding sex work as it is performed locally is valuable when generating local and national policy. Informed by gendered readings of policy, social understandings of masculinity, and the (in)visibility of male sexual commerce this paper explores male sex work in the context of Manchester, England. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 will be implemented in England and Wales in 2007 and have consequences for dietitians who work with people who may lack capacity to make specific decisions. This paper will explore issues arising from the introduction of the Act and considers the implications for dietitians involved in the delivery of clinical care, using enteral feeding as an illustrative example. If patients lack capacity to make specific decisions, dietitians will be required to record if, how and why they reached a decision, how they are involved in the decision making process and need to be able to justify their actions in relation to those decisions. This paper discusses the importance of dietitians’ involvement in best interests decision making and considers the implications of decision making where people have drawn up a Lasting Power of Attorney. The role of such advance decisions is discussed and consideration is given to the potential compatibility of perspectives between the patient and family that may give rise to disputes. Dietitians may be well placed within multidisciplinary team working to ensure patients and their carers are part of the decision making process through effective communication and support for patients. Dietitians in England and Wales must consider the implications of the MCA upon their clinical practice and others outside these jurisdictions may like to reflect on the relevance of such developments in their own contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper discusses some key findings taken from a qualitative study conducted with gay and lesbian adopters and foster carers in England and Wales. The study examined the experiences of 24 self‐identified lesbians and gay men, who had been involved in adoption or fostering processes since the introduction of the Adoption and Children Act, 2002. This article will explore why participants chose to adopt or foster and their approach to relationships generated through these routes. Findings indicate that gay and lesbian applicants troubled dominant conceptualisations of family and kinship and revealed both heteronormative and nuclear constructions of parenting within adoption and fostering social work. In contrast, participants often demonstrated a reflexive and creative approach to caring for looked after children. This paper will therefore consider how professionals can recognise nuanced or complex relationships, situated beyond traditional frameworks, through drawing upon wider concepts within sociological literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Wales has a long history of migration; however, the introduction of dispersed asylum seekers in 2001 has led to Wales becoming a more superdiverse nation. Wales has often been positioned as a more “tolerant nation” than England; however, the increasingly superdiverse nature of Wales in a postdevolution era may now be calling this tolerance thesis into question. Models of refugee and asylum seeker integration suggest that the absence of racism plays a key role in integration. This paper reports the findings of research that centres on refugee and asylum seeker integration in Wales. Nineteen interviews were conducted with refugees and asylum seekers who had been living in Wales for between 1 month and 12 years. Each interview was analysed using a discursive psychology approach. In this paper, I show that the interviewees appeared to negotiate a dilemma when talking about experiencing potentially racist incidents within the interviews, constructing them as trivial so as not to appear critical of the protection they have received in Wales. The findings also highlight the more everyday and banal forms of racism that are regularly experienced by refugees and asylum seekers living in Wales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper compares audit regulatory space in local government between the U.K.'s four countries – England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. It addresses current arrangements and practices, their historical background, and rationales for regulation in order to derive lessons for the future of public audit. It draws on the notion of regulatory space as extended through new audit spaces that specifically include public audit. The study is based on interviews with audit professionals and policy makers in each country, extensive documentation review, and observation. The comparison is structured by four themes: 'Organisation and fragmentation' concerns how the system is accredited and imbued with institutional capital. 'Independence and competition' addresses the independence of accounting firms and auditors, 'audit scope' reporting, and 'inspection' the assessments and rankings that have become part of public audit. The four countries exhibited similar emphasis on financial audit and reporting. They treated performance and fairness aspects differently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessible summary People with learning disabilities are involved in doing research more and more., A lot of papers have been written about this., These papers sometimes do not say whether people with learning disabilities decided what should be researched., This paper talks about how a group of people with learning disabilities and professionals worked together to decide what research they should do in their area., Summary While recent years have seen an increase in the number of participatory and inclusive research studies being undertaken where people with learning disabilities are active members of the research team, little has been published about how teams decide what to research. This paper aims to fill this gap by discussing how in one area of Wales a participatory workshop was held to try and identify priority areas for research. By sharing our experiences, we hope that other people will be encouraged to try similar approaches. First, however, this activity is set in the context of wider debates concerning participatory research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on papers related to higher education published in the October 2003 issue of the journal "Higher Education Quarterly." Separately the papers trace the recent history and development of college-based higher education in each territory, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The papers were presented at an invitation seminar held at The British Academy on June 12, 2002. Apart from the growing interest in home international studies and comparisons, especially in the post-devolution period, there were a number of contemporary policy reasons for focusing on this theme.

Having a good understanding of one's origins and history is known to be significant in identity development. Drawing on a large‐scale online survey of looked after children's subjective well‐being, this paper demonstrates that a significant number of children and young people (age 4–18 years) did not fully understand the reasons for their entry to care. The paper explores the effect of this lack of knowledge on children's well‐being and on their feelings of being settled in their current placement. The study reiterates the need for professionals to be honest and open with children in out‐of‐home care and the need to specifically address, perhaps repeatedly, why a child is not living with their birth family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Curriculum integration is a feature of many new curricula that have emerged in different countries since around the turn of the millennium. It focuses on removing the boundaries between traditional subject specialisms, to enable more holistic and 'joined‐up' learning opportunities. This study draws on the experiences of a group of primary and secondary teachers in Wales, engaged in creating a framework for an integrated curriculum for expressive arts. Whilst the teachers are united in their ambition for establishing a curriculum that gives greater status to the arts, curriculum integration presents significant challenges, notably in how subject knowledge is understood and presented within an integrated curriculum. The teachers take different approaches to curriculum integration, with primary teachers favouring a transdisciplinary approach, with child‐led learning and themes taking precedence, and secondary teachers opting for multidisciplinary approaches, where the themes are organising devices but where subjects take priority. Differing practices suggest differing conceptions of subject knowledge and mastery within an integrated curriculum. Drawing, in particular, on Bernstein's concepts relating to knowledge discourses, this paper suggests that the danger of an integrated curriculum is weakened disciplinary knowledge. Whilst this paper relates to the arts, the messages about curriculum integration might be applied more widely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current curriculum reform in Wales provides an opportunity for teachers to have greater freedom to develop pedagogical approaches that meet the needs of their pupils. The Successful Futures report recommends that teachers should have a greater autonomy in choosing how to deliver the curriculum, and ensuring it is done so in a manner that is meaningful and relevant to their pupils. Strengthening teachers' agency in relation to pedagogy, however, can sometimes be difficult to achieve because, for example, of perceived issues around workload and accountability. There are many 'off‐the‐peg' or ready‐made solutions to the challenges of curriculum reform, and in many cases, schools are responding to such challenges using ready‐made or bespoke approaches. This paper explores the nature of the tensions between the drive to empower professional contributions to curriculum reform, and increase autonomy for teachers, and the existing professional practices. In particular, as an example of the tensions, the paper considers how and why one school selected a commercial mindfulness package to contribute to the newly defined Health and Wellbeing Area of Experience, and the implication of this choice on teacher autonomy and pedagogical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable Intensification (SI) has been popularised in recent years as an approach seeking to balance the potentially conflicting demands of enhancing agricultural outputs with reducing the negative impacts arising from the current food system. Proponents have argued that SI can benefit from collaboration between farmers, but understanding is limited by a lack of data on current collaborative practices. Questions have also been raised as to whether the SI agenda pays sufficient attention to social sustainability as part of a fully integrated conception of SI. Tackling these issues, this paper reports on mixed methods data collection from seven case areas across the UK, with a particular focus on the experience of upland livestock farmers in north Wales. We evidence: (1) The extent, forms and preferences associated with farmers' collaboration; with findings demonstrating higher levels of collaboration than anticipated and a preference for informal forms of co‐working. (2) The underpinning and mutually reinforcing role of social interconnectedness in the delivery of diverse outcomes from collaboration. (3) How SI is perceived to threaten social sustainability, and thus work against a more integrated model of delivery. The paper concludes by arguing for a genuinely integrative model of SI to secure collaborations going forwards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]