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Background This paper tells the story of Central England People First's ( CEPF) History Project. Method This was an inclusive research project, owned and controlled by members of CEPF which sought to chart its 21-year history, 1990-2012. Results It illustrates both the strengths of such a project and some of the challenges. Conclusion It concludes that using inclusive research methods enabled the story to be told, but that it was less successful in addressing questions about why the organization grew and prospered in the 1990s, only to struggle in its later years, and what this tells us about the conditions which enable self-advocacy to flourish. The paper was collaboratively written by the CEPF History Project team and an academic ally. Different fonts differentiate the contributions, although it is acknowledged that lots of the ideas were shared. Accessible Abstract This paper explores issues in telling the history of self advocacy using inclusive research methods. It explains how and why CEPF recorded its history, what we found out, and some of the questions we have had to think about: whose voices we hear, what to include, what to leave out, what parts of the research people with learning difficulties can do, what self advocacy means to different people, how to make use of research other people have done., It raises some new questions about directions for inclusive research. The Paper was written by the CEPF History team - Craig Hart, Ian Davies, Angela Still and Catherine O'Byrne - working with Jan Walmsley. We wanted to make it clear what were Jan Walmsley's ideas and what were our ideas. We have done this by writing our ideas in a different font. BUT lots of the ideas belong to all of us. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper presents findings from qualitative interviews with 24 young people (11-17 years) who have been referred to Children's Social Care Services in England. The paper explores young people's experiences of help seeking and their experiences of receiving help for maltreatment through statutory agencies. A central finding is the importance of relationships for young people when seeking and receiving help. It is through trusting relationships with professionals that young people are most likely to disclose maltreatment and/or engage with services. The paper concludes that young people's expectations and needs are not always met by the current safeguarding system and that the system needs to become more child-centred if it is to address the concerns maltreated young people have consistently voiced through research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disgust is a complex phenomenon that pervades a number of social situations. To date, disgust has primarily been understood as an individually experienced emotion or as a way of defining boundaries between people or objects; the detailed social practices through which disgust is choreographed, however, have yet to be fully explored. The social implications of disgust are particularly apparent when food and eating are involved, as it is in such settings that individuals, objects, and social boundaries coincide. In this paper, I argue that the enactment of disgust is an inherently social event, and that we can evidence it as such through the way in which it is produced and oriented to in everyday interaction. The setting for this paper is family mealtimes, as a situation in which children and parents explore the boundaries of what is, and what is not, disgusting. A large corpus of video and audio recordings of mealtimes in England and Scotland were analysed using a discursive psychological approach, with a focus on explicating the sequential and prosodic features of disgust markers (DMs), such as 'eugh' and 'yuck'. The analysis demonstrates that DMs are typically preceded by a 'noticing' by speakers and that 'eugh' is usually uttered alone and at the start of a turn in talk. It is argued that, regardless of their putative status as emotions or cultural concepts, DMs work as assessments of food and eating practices in everyday interaction. They orient others to a trouble source and attend to people's entitlements to 'know' disgust. The implications for our understanding of disgust as a social psychological concept are further explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Plynlimon catchments are the UK's most intensively studied long-term research basins, with 40 years of hydrological and hydrochemical observations. Used to study the impacts of land cover, their establishment, progress and achievements is a complex story of scientific advances in response to national needs, set against a background of academic controversy and competing stakeholder pressures, that remains relevant today. Established to answer the important practical question 'Do forests use more water than grassland in our climate?', these research basins helped to revolutionise our fundamental understanding of forest hydrology in Britain, and became a multi-disciplinary 'outdoor laboratory' encompassing floods and droughts, acidification and water chemistry, process studies and climate change used by many universities and research organisations. The findings of the studies there have been widely published, with over 500 papers in refereed journals, and the measurements shared with the international research community. Nevertheless, many data users remain unaware of how and why the catchments were established, the challenges that were overcome, and the ways in which the research programme evolved to meet changing needs. As the study enters its fifth decade, this paper takes the opportunity to look back at its establishment, assess the outputs and offer guidance to other researchers wishing to embark on new catchment or observatory studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that the standards agenda works in opposition to the inclusion agenda despite government rhetoric, which suggests that both agendas are complementary. The paper emphasises the need to embrace a broader understanding of what constitutes achievement in order to enable all learners to experience success. In developing this critique of recent and current policies of inclusion, the paper draws on earlier papers that have contributed to the debate. This paper argues that the current Code of Practice perpetuates a deficit model of the child, which is largely at odds with notions of inclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Risk-based governance is argued by many to hold the promise of a more rational and efficient state, by making explicit the limitations of state interventions and focusing finite resources on those targets where probable damage is greatest. This paper challenges the assumption that risk-based governance has the potential for universal and uniform application, by comparing contemporary flood management in Germany and England. On first inspection, flooding appears to be a paradigmatic case of risk colonizing European policy discourses, with the traditional notion of flood defense giving way to flood risk management in the context of climate change, increasingly frequent flood disasters, political and cost pressures on flood protection, and publicly available European-wide flood assessments. Drawing on in-depth empirical research, this paper shows how the role, and even the definition, of 'risk' is institutionally shaped, and how the respective institutional environments of German and English flood management practices impede and promote risk colonization. In particular, the use and conceptualizations of risk in governance are variously promoted, filtered, or constrained by the administrative procedures, structures, and political expectations embedded within flood management and wider polities of each country. The findings of this research are important for the design and implementation of supranational policies and regulations that endorse risk-based approaches, such as the recent EU Flood Directive, as well as scholarly debate as to how to legitimately define the limits of governance in the face of uncertainty and accountability pressures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper draws on a small-scale study examining the experiences of highly vulnerable families with complex and enduring needs. The previous UK government and the current government have sought to develop policy and service initiatives that target families who present high levels of need and require high cost services. However, to date remarkably little is known about family perspectives and experiences. In this paper, family accounts of their experiences are presented and it is suggested that from these come some difficult practice questions. The family data reveal evident gaps in existing practice and challenges social work to 'think family' in new ways. The paper explores how families understand they are understood at the point of engagement, the assumptions that are made about family knowledge, and how families share and withhold information about their needs and experiences. In the discussion, the argument is made for the development of nuanced practice capable of recognizing and working with the ways highly vulnerable families 'do family', and the processes that support and inhibit professional interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT As there are a number of high-profile public inquiries into child death tragedies, 'information sharing' has now become a moral and political imperative across England and Wales for improving the welfare and protection of children. This paper discusses multi-agency information practices, at the stage of referral, which were observed and documented in the day-to-day practice of child protection work. Drawing on transcribed, professional narrative accounts, a 'jigsaw' metaphor is used to describe the process of piecing information together to ascertain a 'full' picture of children and families lives. However, these accounts highlight that there is something of a mismatch between the jigsaw, as articulated in the conceptual abstract accounts, and jigsaw practices operating on the ground. It is argued that abstracting professional information practices from situated contexts creates impoverished understandings of these practices. Thus, reported findings in this paper highlight the inherent complexities of jigsaw practices in the 'everyday' of child protection work, which challenges objectivist assumptions about a stability of meaning, and further highlight that the 'endpoint' of reaching a 'full' picture of a child's life is not fixed, nor does it have the same meaning for all professionals, but rather it is a complex process involving sense-making, translation in context and organizational relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with the challenges involved in the transformation of the prison into a performance-oriented accounting entity. It examines the implication of private sector accounting and consulting expertise in redefining prison values and prison performance, and it discusses the consequences this had for definitions of risk and responsibility. The paper shows how the reforms promoted a systemic decentring of Prison Service accountability. Prison managers and regulators came to be inserted into hierarchies of expertise and credibility shaped by quests for commensuration and auditability. Further, the paper shows how the reform attempts brought about a situation of institutional lock-in by contributing, as the outgoing HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers has put it in 2010, to the creation of an inflated prison system 'too big to fail, and too big to succeed'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poland's accession to the European Union in May 2004 brought many new possibilities and opportunities for Polish migrants to the United Kingdom. However, the focus on individual migrants has underestimated the complex roles of families in migration strategies and decision making. This paper brings together data from two studies of Polish migrants in London. In 2006-2007, we carried out a qualitative study, Recent Polish Migrants in London. That research examined how families may be reconfigured in different ways through migration, for example, transnational networks and splits within families. While the study participants represented varied examples of family reunification, they also revealed the complex decision making processes about leaving, staying, rejoining and returning. In our most recent study, Polish Children in London Primary Schools, we interviewed parents, who had migrated with children, about their experiences and expectations of London schools. This study revealed that the age of children was usually a factor in family migration decision making. There was a common expectation that younger children could easily adapt to a new school and learn English quickly. Drawing on the findings of these two studies, this paper will explore firstly, the variety of family migration strategies and secondly, the factors that inform migrants' decisions to bring their families (especially children) or to leave them back home. Finally, the paper concludes by considering some of the policy implications of our findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessible summary This paper stems from a pilot project offering residential experiences for young people with Autism., The project aimed to offer residential experiences to the young people and help them to develop life skills that would aid their transition to adulthood., The primary purpose of this paper is to analyse the viewpoints of the young people, their parents/carers and the educational and care professionals involved in order to understand the potential impact of projects of this nature., Summary Laying the foundations for an effective transition into independent adulthood is widely perceived as a key priority for practice with children/young people who have Autistic Spectrum Conditions. However, theory and research indicate that, for those children affected, autism often prevents the acquisition, development and expression of key life-skills which might assist their inclusion in the wider community. In exploring these issues, the authors of this paper report on the Phenomenographic analysis of a Residential Project, involving 16 children per young people who had Autistic Spectrum Conditions, at a Special School in the North West of England. The primary conclusion from this study is that provision for many children and young people with Autistic Spectrum Conditions is most meaningful if it is enabled by practice which: supports the wider human rights and needs of their family; realistically prepares the individual for a life outside of school and the home; and also enriches the unique lifeworld of each young person. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Several studies have used the Forms of Self-Criticism/Reassurance Scale (FSCRS; Gilbert, Clarke, Hempel, Miles, & Irons, 2004) when exploring the role of emotion regulation in psychopathology. However, psychometric evaluation of the FSCRS is limited. The present study sought to confirm the factor structure of the FSCRS based on theoretical and empirical grounds in a large sample of the general population. Method: The FSCRS was completed by a large sample of men and women ( N= 1,570) as part of an online survey. The data were randomly split in order to perform both independent exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFA). One-, two- and three-factor solutions were examined. Results: A three-factor model of reassured-self (RS) and the two types of self-criticism, inadequate-self (IS), and hated-self (HS), proved to be the best-fitting measurement model in this sample (χ2= 800.3, df= 148, p < .001; CFI [comparative fit index]= .966, TLI [Tucker Lewis index]= .961, RMSEA [root mean square error of the approximation]= .074). Although very similar to the original questionnaire, there were some differences in terms of the items that were retained. Validity was confirmed with the shortened FSCRS showing the same associations with mood and sex as the original version of the FSCRS. Conclusion: A three-factor model (RS, IS and HS) provided the best-fitting structure and confirmed the separation of different types of self-criticism. Future research should explore the degree to which these separable aspects of self-criticism are theoretically and clinically meaningful and to identify the role of self-reassurance in ameliorating their effects. Practitioner Points Positive clinical implications The current paper has established that the FSCRS consists of self-reassurance and two separable factors of self-criticism (inadequate-self and hated-self)., The current paper refined a measure to test the role of different kinds of self-criticism in the aetiology of psychopathology as well as evaluate outcomes following intervention., Cautions and limitations The current study did not recruit a clinical sample and responses from a clinical group may have revealed a different factor solution., A high percentage of the sample was classed as 'white' and female so the results of this study may not be representative of the general population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Refugee young people entering foster care face transitions as they settle into life in a new country and household. Drawing on findings from a study on foster care for refugee young people in England, this paper examines encounters and negotiations with the public worlds of the asylum system and foster care delivery within the intimate setting of the household and everyday domestic practices in foster care. The paper considers Derrida's neologism 'hostipitality' to explore challenges in hospitality in this context. The framework of 'family practices' is then applied to explore how foster carers and young people 'did' family in foster care. It was found that family practices were inhibited by tensions and challenges in the notion of 'hospitality', but family practices also offered opportunities to respond and promote young people's sense of belonging in the family in this environment. It concludes that hospitality at the threshold is necessary, but that the most successful foster care relationships were able to move through and beyond hospitality to relationships of family-like intimacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using Ellen Herman's concept of 'kinship by design' ( KBD), this paper analyses recent efforts to reform adoption in England, arguing that they represent an attempt to curtail the powers of adoption professionals and their established practices of assessing and responding to risk. Examining policy contexts and relevant research, the paper looks at various facets of contemporary KBD in England as they relate to adoptable children, the treatment of adopters, matching, support and systemic governance of adoption within a mixed economy. From this analysis, it is suggested that the evidence base for many of the reforms is limited and that in important respects represents a 'manufactured crisis' used to justify radical changes, which, in turn, pose significant risks to wider policy and practice in child welfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper tells the stories of two trainee teachers and their personal experiences of dyslexia. Both informants were English and training to be primary school teachers in England. Through drawing on their own experiences of education, the stories illustrate how dyslexia has shaped the self-concept, self-esteem and resilience of each informant. The narratives presented in this paper illustrate powerfully the ways in which teachers can have a positive or negative impact on the self-concepts of students with dyslexia. Both had been inspired by teachers they had met, and these positive role models had given them the confidence to pursue their own ambitions. However, both had encountered teachers who lacked empathy and patience, and these teachers had a detrimental impact on their self-concepts. For both of these trainee teachers, personal experiences of dyslexia also shaped their professional identities as teachers. Both trainees described themselves as caring and empathic teachers, suggesting that personal experiences of dyslexia had a positive impact on teacher professional identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a description of the background characteristics and attainment profile of pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) in England, and of those missing a value for this variable. Free school meal eligibility is a measure of low parental income, widely used in social policy research as an individual indicator of potential disadvantage. It is routinely treated as context for judging both individual and school‐level attainment, as an indicator of school composition, and has been proposed as the basis for the pupil premium funding policy for schools. Knowledge of the quality, reach and limitations of FSM as an indicator is therefore fundamental to accurate decision‐making in a number of important areas. This paper uses a national dataset of all pupils (PLASC) for 2007. It looks at the relationship between different indicators of pupil background and attainment to help decide how useful FSM remains in relation to its suggested alternatives, and how to handle the crucial question of missing data and to describe more fully than previously the national picture of who is eligible for free school meals. The results show that, while the distinction between take‐up and eligibility has been eroded, FSM remains a useful and clear stratifying variable for pupil attainment patterns in school, linked to type of school attended, school mobility, living in care, special needs, first language and minority ethnic group. The pupils missing FSM values fall into two groups, based largely on their type of school and how long they have been there. One group attends fee‐paying schools and is most similar to non‐FSM pupils elsewhere and could be aggregated with them in future analyses that do not want to omit them. The remaining missing FSM pupils form a deprived and perhaps super‐deprived group. These should not be omitted, nor assumed to be like non‐FSM pupils, as currently happens in official school performance figures in England in a way that disadvantages schools with very deprived intakes. The proposal here is that missing FSM pupils in state‐funded institutions should be treated in future as a third distinct group. If these issues about missing data are resolved, and other limitations accepted, FSM remains a better indicator of low socioeconomic status than the current alternatives discussed in the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper considers the importance of the notion of turbulence for the theorisation of mobility. Turbulence, as disordered and unpredictable mobilities, can be contrasted with smooth 'laminar' flow - where everything is moving 'correctly'. This paper borrows from the philosophies of Michel Serres and Manuel DeLanda to think about turbulence as a process which makes visible the always-contingent orderings of infrastructural mobilities. The paper is illustrated with examples from container shipping and, particularly, the grounding of the MSC Napoli container ship off the coast of Southern England. Turbulent mobilities are contrasted with the smooth operation of infrastructural mobilities that are supposed to remain silent and invisible. The dramatic and very visible instances of turbulence, that no system can ever predict or make disappear, provide an entry point into the ordering of a mobile world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces new, homogenized UK national and regional rainfall series derived from 5-km gridded daily and monthly precipitation data. These new series have the advantage that they are based on readings from a dense network of rain gauges rather than a maximum of seven per region. Series developed by alternative statistical methods are analysed and compared. Error estimates are derived for the series, based on linear regressive residuals. Using individual regressions for each calendar month, the monthly series are extended back to 1766 for monthly precipitation in England and Wales (EW), to 1873 for monthly values for each of the five EW sub-regions, and to 1931 for daily values in all regions. A follow-up paper will provide analysis of how mean precipitation totals and extremes have changed over the respective periods. Copyright © 2011 Royal Meteorological Society [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Terms such as 'oppida' have often obscured how we understand the nature and role of the dyke complexes which emerged at the end of the Iron Age. Developing from recent research at the Late Iron Age complex of Bagendon in Gloucestershire, this paper argues that a group of such polyfocal complexes share common characteristics, most significantly a relationship with 'banjo' enclosures, as part of wider landscape constructs. The paper suggests that the topography and morphology of these complexes have important implications for understanding the role of these sites and the nature of social change in the Late Iron Age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Against a background of research and national statistics that consistently show that educational participation and achievement of young people in and leaving care is significantly lower than is the case for the non-care population, previous research has shown the positive impact that social, leisure and informal learning activities can have on the educational participation and achievements of young people, and particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. The UK: Care Matters Green Paper stated that involvement in leisure and social activities can have a positive impact on the self-esteem of young people in and leaving care and upon their educational attainment and later success in the labour market. This paper reports on the English results of a cross-national study of young people from a public care background and their pathways to education in Europe. Using case study examples it explores the impact that social, leisure and informal learning activities can have on educational participation and educational pathways of young people in and leaving care. The paper argues that, in view of these findings, encouraging and supporting young people in and leaving care into these types of activities should be a priority for social care professionals, carers and teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper presents ethical dilemmas concerning the termination of pregnancy, the management of childbirth, and the withdrawal of life-support from infants in special care, for a small sample of British Pakistani Muslim parents of babies diagnosed with fatal abnormalities. Case studies illustrating these dilemmas are taken from a qualitative study of 66 families of Pakistani origin referred to a genetics clinic in Southern England. The paper shows how parents negotiated between the authoritative knowledge of their doctors, religious experts, and senior family members in response to the ethical dilemmas they faced. There was little knowledge or open discussion of the view that Islam permits the termination of pregnancy for serious or fatal abnormality within 120 days and there was considerable disquiet over the idea of ending a pregnancy. For some parents, whether their newborn baby would draw breath was a main worry, with implications for the baby's Muslim identity and for the recognition of loss the parents would receive from family and community. This concern sometimes conflicted with doctors' concerns to minimize risk to future pregnancies by not performing a Caesarean delivery if a baby is sure to die. The paper also identifies parents' concerns and feelings of wrong-doing regarding the withdrawal of artificial life-support from infants with multiple abnormalities. The conclusion considers some of the implications of these observations for the counselling and support of Muslim parents following the pre- or neo-natal diagnosis of fatal abnormalities in their children. [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.

This paper intervenes in the debate on ethnic segregation in British cities by paying attention to the hitherto neglected phenomenon of territorial stigmatisation. It discusses the stigma attached to the neighbourhood of St Paul's, Bristol; how it emerged, how it is felt and negotiated by local residents 'from below', and its effects on how that neighbourhood is managed by policy elites 'from above'. The paper critically reviews some recent influential treatments of ethnic segregation in the UK and the moral panic over ghettoisation, before explaining how the racialisation of urban space and extreme events such as the riots of 1980 and recent high-profile activities connected to Bristol's drugs economy have installed a damaging reputation of St Paul's as a segregated 'ghetto' of vice and dereliction. Using a mixed-methods approach, we show that black-white segregation in St Paul's is in fact low, and then explain how its ghetto reputation affects the experiences of residents. The paper concludes by arguing that in order to understand the complexities of ethnically diverse urban communities in Britain, territorial stigmatisation must be subjected to analytical scrutiny to complement the high-profile statistical approaches of recent years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infection of pigs with influenza A H1N1 2009 virus (A(H1N1)pdm09) was first detected in England in November 2009 following global spread of the virus in the human population. This paper describes clinical and epidemiological findings in the first English pig farms in which A(H1N1)pdm09 influenza virus was detected. These farms showed differences in disease presentation, spread and duration of infection. The factors likely to influence these features are described and relate to whether pigs were housed or outdoors, the age of the pigs, intercurrent disease and the management system of the unit. Infection could be mild or clinically inapparent in breeding pigs with more typical respiratory disease being identified later in their progeny. Mortality was low where disease was uncomplicated by environmental stresses or concurrent infections. Where deaths occurred in pigs infected with A(H1N1)pdm09 influenza, they were mainly due to other infections, including streptococcal disease due to Streptococcus suis infection. This paper demonstrates the ease with which A(H1N1)pdm09 virus was transmitted horizontally and maintained in a pig population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper examines the nature of supply chain linkages for microbrewing and contributes to existing geographical work on the specialist brewery industry. It argues that a commodity chain and, more specifically, a 'whole chain' approach, can be employed to examine such linkages and to contextualise economic relations. After outlining the main features of a whole chain methodology, the paper applies it to a case study of a real ale microbrewery in Northumberland in the North East of England. As well as examining the 'upstream' and 'downstream' nature of the microbrewer's own business supply chain, material from interviews with wholesalers, bottlers, pubs and other brewers is included to develop a locally sensitive cultural economy perspective. The paper reveals the complex nature of economic relationships and organisation for microbrewing, the different forms of trust that typify such supply chain relationships and tensions between difference and localness in relation to selling real ale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT From the findings of a study examining the perspective of parents using Intensive Family Support Service based in northern England, this paper examines the constituent elements required for effective relationship-based practice. Although the study is based in a single site in England, the findings are more broadly relevant, given both national and international interests in relationship-based practice in child protection. The participants in this study - parents whose children had been assessed as being 'at the edge of care'- were asked to comment on the intervention they had received. Analysis of parents' interviews suggests that the service user-worker relationship was critical to their positive experience of the service. The paper provides an analysis of parents' descriptions of 'positive relationships' and identifies the key themes. It then considers these findings in the context of contemporary children and families' social work practice. Engaging with current debates, the paper makes reference to the impact of modernization, which has served to erode effective face-to-face work with families, given excessive 'backroom' demands of administration and audit. Discussion engages with an emerging emphasis on effective relationship-based practice following reports from Munro and the Social Work Reform Board. In this context, the paper concludes that the views of these families whose children are on the 'edge of care' offers insights into the skills required for relationship-based practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) were established under the Children Act 2004 and have responsibility for coordinating and ensuring the effectiveness of the work of partner bodies to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. Drawing on data from a Department for Children, Schools and Families and Department of Health-funded evaluation, the paper examines the development of LSCBs and the challenges and issues that have been encountered by Boards in implementing new arrangements. In doing so, the paper contributes to current debates about some of the limitations of New Labour's safeguarding reforms as a vehicle for improving outcomes for children and families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the major riots within England in August 2011, the efficacy of public order police decision making was brought into a sharp focus. None the less, the reform of this mode of policing within the UK was already underway with a strong emphasis upon policing through consent and the need to facilitate peaceful protest through dialogue and communication. This paper reports upon a critical 'test case' for this 'new approach' by analysing the policing of a series of protests against Government policy across 3 days that surrounded a Government party conference in Sheffield, a large city in the north of England. This paper draws out lessons to be learned from what proved to be a highly successful dialogue-based approach to policing protests. We contend that dialogue and liaison were effective because they allowed for an ongoing dynamic risk assessment that improved command-level decision making and enhanced police proportionality. The subsequent impact upon crowd dynamics allowed for an improved capacity for proactive public order management, encouraged 'self-regulation' in the crowd, and avoided the unnecessary police use of force at moments of tension. The implications of the analysis for theory and practice are discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the wake of the 2011 'riots', public order policing tactics in England and Wales have once again been brought into question. Yet, the riots came two years since police regulatory authorities in the UK called for fundamental reforms to the policing of public order. Questions are raised about why the change called for appears to have been so slow and what can be done to assist reform. This paper suggests that developing an evidence-based policing approach within the field of public order policing to inform police decision-making would provide the answers. By doing so, the paper addresses some of the possible barriers to implementing evidence-based policing in public order and calls for police academic partnership to overcome these to make 'change' an ongoing reality. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the wider social impacts of hosting the London 2012 Olympic Games and its 'legacy' ambitions in East London, emphasizing securitization as an inbuilt feature of the urban regeneration project. Drawing on extensive original empirical research, the paper analyses the modalities of Olympic safety and security practices within the Olympic Park itself and their wider impact, while also connecting this research to theorization and debates in urban sociology and criminology. In this complex setting, a raft of formal and informal, often subtle, regulatory mechanisms have emerged, especially as visions of social ordering focused on 'cleansing' and 'purifying' have 'leaked out' from the hyper-securitized 'sterilized' environment of the Olympic Park and become embedded within the Olympic neighbourhood. In such complex circumstances, applying Douglas' (1966) work on purity and danger to the spatial realm provides a key conceptual framework to understand the form and impact of such processes. The imposition of order can be seen to not only perform 'cleansing' functions, but also articulate multiple symbolic, expressive and instrumental roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ever since the failed 1999 Royal Commission, England has been attempting to reform its long-term care funding system. More than a decade later, significant changes to the means tested arrangements are yet to be introduced, whilst the pressure to achieve long-term reform mounts linked to increases in public expenditure and ever growing demand for better services. This paper examines the pros and cons of alternative options for reforming the English long-term care funding arrangements by examining the rationale for and consequences of the recent long-term care developments in Germany, Japan and France. In particular, the paper examines the implications of the reform options adopted in the different countries examined for equity and efficiency in the use of long-term care resources and for the sustainability of the long-term care system as a whole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the wider social impacts of hosting the London 2012 Olympic Games and its 'legacy' ambitions in East London, emphasizing securitization as an inbuilt feature of the urban regeneration project. Drawing on extensive original empirical research, the paper analyses the modalities of Olympic safety and security practices within the Olympic Park itself and their wider impact, while also connecting this research to theorization and debates in urban sociology and criminology. In this complex setting, a raft of formal and informal, often subtle, regulatory mechanisms have emerged, especially as visions of social ordering focused on 'cleansing' and 'purifying' have 'leaked out' from the hyper-securitized 'sterilized' environment of the Olympic Park and become embedded within the Olympic neighbourhood. In such complex circumstances, applying Douglas' (1966) work on purity and danger to the spatial realm provides a key conceptual framework to understand the form and impact of such processes. The imposition of order can be seen to not only perform 'cleansing' functions, but also articulate multiple symbolic, expressive and instrumental roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper discusses findings from an evaluation of an advocacy scheme for parents whose children were subject to child protection proceedings including a pilot project where co-operation between parents and professionals was an issue. Encouraging findings of parents' experiences of being heard, being able to listen, and, in some cases, to act on concerns about their children's welfare are outlined. Three case studies offer accounts of practices that are gendered and occur against a backdrop of ethnic disadvantage. The paper suggests that current debates about reform need to recognize the need to support parents to manage intimidating systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper describes a project undertaken by family centre staff, drawing on the ideas of the Marlborough Family Service in using multi-family groups as part of their parenting assessments. Child protection assessments are complex and have a far reaching effect on the lives of vulnerable children; practitioners can carry the burden of assessing parents' capacities to meet their children's needs without adequate supervision or support. Our project was developed following the implementation of a new policy, the Public Law Outline, requiring parenting assessments to be completed within a 40-week time frame. We were concerned that this would not afford the opportunity to develop a sufficient relationship with families to provide a thorough assessment. The paper describes the incorporation of multi-family days into the parenting assessments and the effect of this work on clients and practitioners. This paper is a practice paper, rather than a formal evaluation, and describes a project in which family centre workers sought to provide a model of assessment based on working as part of a team, managing uncertainty and valuing the opportunity to develop a relationship with clients in order to make an assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of artists as precursors and agents of gentrification processes has been widely acknowledged and studied. Yet there has been limited consideration of the particular aesthetic practices and attitudes deployed by these artists, and the related urban landscapes they have helped shape and re-imagine. This paper uses the notion drawn from art history of the 'urban pastoral' to highlight largely disregarded socio-cultural and political relations of power accompanying gentrification. It focuses on a district of inner London called Hoxton where a deindustrialised location and a legacy of forms and practices of British working-class popular culture offered artists a rich resource and socio-spatial environment to work and operate during the 1990s. By indulging in fantasies and performances of the urban pastoral, these artists fashioned a new cultural landscape that not only catered to many of the lifestyle tastes and investment priorities within postindustrial London, but manipulated and downplayed the complex and potentially conflictual histories of the area. The paper argues that this capture of urban space through the pastoral is indicative of new forms of gentrification where class-based and race-related neighbourhood change occurs without direct displacement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last 40 years child protection systems in all Advanced Western Societies have been subject to high profile criticisms and regular major reviews. In many respects the Munro Review of Child Protection (2011) in England, is very different to those which have gone before. This paper summarises the main findings and recommendations of The Review and locates it in its immediate policy and practice contexts. The paper also begins to identify some of its possible gaps and challenges and argues that the success of The Review is likely to depend on cultural, political and economic factors well beyond its influence and outlines what these are. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper forms part of a series of papers investigating how a handful of European regions responded, in most cases successfully, to deepening global economic integration during the period 1995−2005. This particular case considers the response of the English region comprising the territories of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Milton Keynes (the 'UKJ1 region') located to the immediate West and Northwest of Greater London. It investigates why this region was able to exploit deepening global integration as well as it did, even though it does not have a major urban centre at its territorial core. It also asks what lessons the region's experience holds for other European regions. The messages to emerge from the case study are that the UKJ1 region's success in leveraging these global flows is inextricably linked to its functional interdependence with Greater London and that, to the extent policy factors played a role in this integration process, central government policy-making played a significantly more important role than regional government policy making. The messages to other European regions then are: ( i) to consider and cultivate all kinds of links between regions on the periphery of major national urban centres and those urban centres themselves; and ( ii) to communicate clearly and forcefully the strengths and vulnerabilities of individual regions to the national level policy-makers responsible for the pace of global integration. Resumen. Este artículo forma parte de una serie que investiga el modo en que unas pocas regiones europeas respondieron, en la mayoría de casos de modo exitoso, a la consecución de una integración económica global más profunda en el periodo 1995-2005. Este caso en particular considera la respuesta de la región inglesa que incluye los territorios de Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire y Milton Keynes (la región 'UKJ1' en NUTS), inmediatamente vecinos al oeste y noroeste del Gran Londres. Se investiga por qué esta región fue capaz de explotar en mayor profundidad la integración global tan bien como lo hizo, aunque no tenga un centro urbano importante en el núcleo de su territorio. También se pregunta acerca de las lecciones que la experiencia de esta región puede aportar a otras regiones europeas. Los mensajes que emergen del estudio de caso son que el éxito de la región UKJ1 en cuanto a aprovecharse de estos flujos globales está inextricablemente vinculado a su interdependencia funcional con el Gran Londres y que, en tanto que varios factores políticos han jugado un papel en este proceso de integración, la formulación de políticas del gobierno central ha jugado un papel significativamente más importante que las políticas formuladas a escala regional. Las lecciones para otras regiones europeas son por tanto: (i) considerar y cultivar todo tipo de vínculo entre regiones en la periferia de los principales centros urbanos nacionales y de los propios centros urbanos; y (ii) comunicar de manera clara y enérgica las fortalezas y vulnerabilidades de cada región a los formuladores de políticas responsables del avance de la integración global. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay is one of a Literature Compass conference cluster based on a panel presented at the Renaissance Society of America convention 2010. The essays by Danielle Clarke, Johanna Harris, Lynne Magnusson and Elizabeth Scott-Baumann will appear in longer form in The Intellectual Culture of Puritan Women, 1558-1680, ed. Johanna Harris and Elizabeth Scott-Baumann (Palgrave, forthcoming 2010). In this paper, Magnusson argues that over 50 years and three reigns, Anne Bacon put her education to use to advance 'right reformation' in England. This paper explores the consistent humanist basis of her contribution towards the erection of a national church, especially during the period of her widowhood when she actively supports the losing presbyterian cause. It considers the afterlife in the 1580s and 1590s of her 1564 translation of the Apologie... of the Churche of Englande, showing how the bishops cited her words to support positions radically divided from her own views. Arguing against the widespread perception that her patronage of radical preachers in the 1580s and 1590s marked a descent into zealotry and a falling away from humanist ideals, Magnusson reads her 1585 epistle to Lord Burghley calling for a fair hearing of the radical puritan cause as a humanist's civic speech act and active intervention into the contentious religious politics of the time. Throughout her life, the combined ideals of civic humanism and Calvinist election shaped an energizing sense both of a significant personal vocation and of an effectual imagined community in which she and all the faithful could be fully contributing members. That is, humanism and protestantism opened up the prospect of a reformed church and social order, a reformed English nation, with imagined roles and relationships that motivated her action and shaped her identity. Bacon might be regarded as an exemplary officer of a church never fully erected, an exemplary citizen of a state that never came fully into being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationale People working in the health sector have been looking to complexity science to help them deal with the complex phenomena they encounter in their everyday working practice. While complexity science has assisted many in the field to look at the complex issues from a different viewpoint and explained the emergence of complex phenomena, however, practicable, pragmatic approaches and techniques have not been provided. Aims and objectives In this article, actual issues and challenges that these practitioners face and the needs they expressed during a workshop called 'Putting Complexity to Work - Supporting the Practitioners' are discussed. Conclusion As the nature of complexity offers no one single ultimate solution, the paper concludes that, for operationalizing the insights received from complexity science into their day-to-day work, practitioners in health care and other domains need to address a range of challenges that are outlined in the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the concept of local universality in relation to the regulation of animal health. Protocols have come to play an important role in medical practice, standardising diseases and the expertise required to identify them. Focusing on the use of protocols to identify bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in England and Wales, it is argued that the decontextualised expertise inherent to protocols comes unstuck in practice. Using ethnographies of two veterinary practices, the paper instead shows how forms of situated veterinary expertise emerge in response to practical contingencies, thereby enacting different ontological versions of bTB. The development of these skills stems from the relationships that organise bTB testing as well as through informal work-based modes of learning. Although these practices vary from place to place and depart from the bTB testing protocol, it is variation in practice rather than uniformity that effectively allows the protocol to work. In conclusion, the paper discusses how the management of animal health may be assisted by a flexible rather than uniform approach to disease and veterinary expertise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food insecurity in the UK is a pressing concern that is associated with poor health outcomes. Research to date has focused on the challenges for adults in providing food for families. However, there is little evidence showing how children and young people experience food insecurity, particularly outside of the home and school. This paper, drawing on 14 months of ethnography in a youth club in the North of England, explores how young people manage food insecurity. In this youth club, the circulation of takeaway food is part of an informal network where boys purchase, share and receive food. This practice allows the boys to participate meaningfully within their peer groups whilst also providing stable access to food. This peer practice, however, was not available to everyone. This was a gendered practice that for the girls held little benefit due to their concerns about eating and pressure to provide for others. Instead, some girls depend on romantic relationships for food provision that is equated with affection and care. The findings will be discussed through a 'materialities of care' perspective to explore the complex ways in which food as a practice of care is part of everyday routines embedded within local places. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to explore childcare social workers' attitudes towards female victims of domestic violence in England. The study discusses the concept of "mothering" and the processes through which mothers are potentially denigrated rather than empowered. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with social workers in a single child protection agency to investigate their perceptions of domestic violence, its gendered nature, and the implications for their practice. Participants' responses were coded using thematic analysis. The results demonstrated social workers' cognisance of the challenges domestic violence poses for abused mothers in terms of the ability to safely parent their children. Although the study is not without its limitations, it nevertheless indicates the need for a more holistic approach to safeguarding children within domestic violence settings. Moreover, it underscores the necessity for improving awareness about the prevalence and importance of domestic violence as a child safeguarding concern within social work training. Indeed, improved training would help to develop social workers' knowledge and understanding of service provisions and partner agencies, thus potentially improving practice in this critically important area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child welfare removals of children are among the most invasive decisions a state can make toward its citizens, and typically it is the courts that make these decisions. These interventions are regularly exposed to criticism. In this paper, we examine if and how care order proceedings could be improved in England, Finland, Norway, and California, USA. We have asked the judiciary decision‐makers about their view on what should be improved. Our findings show that the organization of the proceedings, including time and staff, are identified as issues in all four systems. Furthermore, the preparations by the child welfare agency are also mentioned as an issue, for English, Finnish, and Californian decision‐makers. Very few decision‐makers indicate features related to the individual, situational, and contextual dimensions, which is interesting since this would be expected from organization theory. The strong call for change in the way proceedings are organized indicates a need for modernization as well as better use of available competency from child development experts. The respondents focus on the elements that a decision‐maker has direct experience with and knowledge about, and this is indeed worth noting for policymakers in the four systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Healthy Child Programme is the universal public health system in England to assess and monitor child health from 0 to 19. Following a review of measures for closer monitoring at age 2 years, the Department of Health for England implemented the Ages & Stages Questionnaires®, Third Edition (ASQ‐3™; Hereon, ASQ‐3). Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the acceptability and understanding of the ASQ‐3 in England by health professionals and parents. Method: A mixed‐methods approach was used. This paper reports on the qualitative data drawn from interviews with 40 parents and 12 focus groups with 85 health professionals. The data were analysed using applied thematic analysis. Findings Overall, parents and health professionals found the ASQ‐3 acceptable and understandable and could use it as a measure at age 2 years. The ability to work in partnership was valued. Some limitations included potential to cause anxiety, concerns around the safety of some of the items, and use of Americanized language. Health professional's training in the use the ASQ‐3 was inconsistent. Conclusion: The ASQ‐3 is an acceptable and understandable measure to use as part of the 2‐year assessment with some adaptations to the English context and some standardized training for health professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This paper aims to compare changes over 2 years in patients' health-related quality of life (HRQL) with the health and social care costs of diagnosis and treatment of people newly referred to memory assessment services (MAS).Methods: We analysed observational data from 1318 patients referred to 69 MAS who completed resource use and HRQL questionnaires at baseline 3, 6, 12, and 24 months. We reported mean differences in HRQL (disease-specific DEMQOL and generic EQ-5D-3 L), quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), costs and cost-effectiveness between baseline, and 2-year follow-up.Results: Two years after referral to MAS, patients reported a higher DEMQOL score (mean gain 4.47, 95% confidence interval, 3.08-5.90) and EQ-5D-3 L (0.014, -0.011 to 0.039). Mean total costs and QALYs over 24 months was £2411 (£1721-£2873) and 0.027 (0.003-0.051), respectively. Assuming that patients' HRQL would not have altered over the 2 years had they not attended MAS, these outcomes suggest an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of £89 546 (£38 123-£145 864) based on changes in EQ-5D-3 L. If we assumed that patients' HRQL would have declined by about 10% over this period had they not attended MAS, the cost-effectiveness ratio would be £25 056. The largest MAS (N = 32; 46%) with over 50 new patients a month were more likely to be cost-effective than smaller ones (P < 0.01).Conclusions: MAS are effective and can be cost-effective for diagnosing and treating people with suspected dementia. Large variations in costs between clinics suggest that many MAS could improve their cost-effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within Northern Europe, gendered roles and responsibilities within the family have been challenged through an emergence of different family forms, increasing cultural diversity, and progressive developments in welfare policies. To varying degrees, welfare policies in different countries support a dual‐earner model and encourage men to be more active as fathers by reinforcing statutory rights and responsibilities. In child welfare practice, there has traditionally been a strong emphasis on the mother as primary carer for the child; the father has been less visible. This paper explores, in four national welfare contexts, how child welfare social workers include fathers in practice decisions. Data were collected using focus group interviews with social workers from England, Ireland, Norway, and Sweden. Similarities and differences emerge in relation to services and the focus of social work assessments. However, overall, the research suggests that despite gains in policy and legislation that promote gender equality, fathers remain largely absent in child welfare practice decisions about the parenting of their children. From the research, we raise questions for social work practice and the development of welfare policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses heterogeneous lockup agreements from the London Stock Market. With hand-collected data, I compare and contrast absolute-date lockups with the relative-date lockups and single lockups versus staggered lockups. This paper tests several potential explanations for the choice of lockup contracts: (i) information asymmetry, (ii) signaling, (iii) agency problem, and (iv) certification. I find strong evidence for information asymmetry and certification (VC and prestigious underwriters) and partial support for agency explanation for the choice of lockups. The insider selling activity and lockup expiration returns are also consistent with asymmetric information, certification and agency hypothesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding water demand and consumers' capacity for change is essential in underpinning water demand management and water efficiency programmes. This paper presents the outcomes of a qualitative study, which used discussion groups relating to water infrastructure with environmentally aware citizens in five London boroughs in the Lower Lea River Basin. The results showed a subtle interaction between users, water and technology. Users are generally unaware of their own water consumption. Individual perceptions of changes in water behaviour are constrained by habit and lack of knowledge about what changes can be made and how. Knowledge of environmental information was described as the inspiration behind making any changes. The paper concludes that access to information about water resources, infrastructure and conservation measures should be enhanced because although information sources are abundant, participants claimed they were inaccessible without considerable effort. Finally, an emphasis should also be put on helping the public form a more substantial part in environmental decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers how policy-led processes of education reform have reshaped the space in which to think about gender and literacy, both in England and elsewhere. In many jurisdictions, the discourse on quality in education now focuses almost exclusively on numerical outcomes, whether they derive from the school, and/or at local or national level. A heightened focus on performance data has brought new attention to the contrasts in the relative patterns of girls' and boys' attainment in literacy, whilst also changing expectations about what should be done about them. This paper highlights the politics that ensue as these data enter public discourse using examples of policy texts published in England, Ontario and Wales. It examines how these documents mobilise different explanations for the gender gap in the performance data that are then used to guide future action. What kinds of explanations for gender differences in literacy attainment have most purchase in different policy contexts? Which are most useful from a feminist perspective? These issues are considered in relation to the changing policy context in England, which is rapidly moving from a highly centralised system of directed support for school improvement to much more fragmented provision. This creates new conditions in which to act. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper explores non-relinquishing birth parents' experiences of contested child care and adoption proceedings. It highlights the perceptions and voices of birth parents which are rarely prioritized in dominant discourses of professional practice in this area. The paper reviews previous related research and also discusses a small-scale empirical study which elicited the perspectives of three birth parents whose children had been made subject to care proceedings and placed for adoption in England. Drawing on previous research and this study, the paper makes range of practice recommendations for sensitive professional practice with birth parents during contested child care and adoption proceedings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]