research report

Delivering children's services in the UK and other parts of the world - a short policy context

Paper that aims to articulate the variety of models for children’s services delivery that exist internationally and places these in the context of current UK policy and practice. The key sections present outlines of the different policy and service provision approaches to children’s services in the UK and the top performing OECD countries. This latter group comprises the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden), and the Netherlands. Brief reference is made to other countries, where appropriate.

Care in crisis 2012

This is the second report detailing the depth of the care funding crisis. In May 2011, Age UK published its first Care in Crisis report, setting out the background to the current care funding crisis and our fears for a system facing four years of public spending cuts.

It was predicted that these would reduce spending on older people’s care by £300 million over 4 years and that real spending on older people’s care would be £250 million lower in 2014 than in 2004.

The quantification of prison population projections

This article examines projections, or statistical forecasts, of prison populations from a social perspective, treating them as social actors in their own right. Linear regression – the almost universal foundation of prison population projections – is in simple terms the act of drawing a straight line through the data at an angle which best ‘fits’ the observed data, that is, what has already happened.

Evaluating the effectiveness of home detention curfew and open prison in Scotland

Home Detention Curfew (HDC) and open prison are both forms of ‘conditional liberty’, where prisoners are allowed controlled access to the community. Schemes of conditional liberty are intended to provide a gradual transition from prison to community thus facilitating a person’s reintegration. On an HDC licence, prisoners live at home but must wear an electronically monitored tag and keep to a curfew; in open prison, prisoners live at the prison but can be granted home leave and participate in activities that prepare them for release.

Fostering aspirations: reforming the foster care system in England and Wales

Report that puts forward recommendations for how the foster care system should be reformed. It argues that people must be realistic but ambitious about what the care system can offer.

While it is extremely difficult to exactly replicate the support and care that a loving family brings, research published in May 2011 revealed the significant benefits that can flow from stable long-term foster placements.

Working outside the box: An evaluation of short breaks and intensive support services to families and disabled young people whose behaviour is severely challenging. Summary report

The summary report brings together the main findings from the evaluation undertaken of three Action for Children services in Cardiff, Glasgow and Edinburgh. These provide specialist short breaks and intensive support services to families and young people with developmental disabilities and whose behaviour is severely challenging. This summary report describes the aims of the evaluation and the methodologies used.

New approaches to supporting carers’ health and well-being: Evidence from the National Carers’ Strategy Demonstrator Sites programme

The National Carers’ Strategy Demonstrator Sites programme was developed by the Department of Health as part of the commitments made in the July 2008 National Carers’ Strategy Carers at the Heart of 21st Century Families and Communities. These commitments included new measures to improve carers’ health and well-being and were incorporated into DH financial plans in 2008-9.This report explores the extent to which the DS were able to meet their objectives and draws out learning from their experiences of delivering services to carers in new ways.