research and evaluation

Living with social evils – the voices of unheard groups

In a contribution to the JRF's 'social evils' series, Chris Creegan focuses on the social evils of British society experienced by people whose voices are not usually heard. The research used workshops/discussion groups with lone parents, ex-offenders, unemployed and other vulnerable and socially excluded people to explore their personal experiences of living and coping with social evils. Suggestions for overcoming them point to both individual and collective responsibility.

Boarding school provision for vulnerable children: pathfinder evaluation

This is an evaluation report of the Boarding Provision for Vulnerable Children Pathfinder announced in the white paper 'Higher standards, better schools for all' (2005). The Pathfinder was intended to explore whether boarding school provision might be used to provide support, stability and improved life chances for a larger number of vulnerable children and young people. Ten local authorities and fifty boarding schools originally signed up to the Pathfinder.

Issues in Earlier Intervention: Identifying and supporting children with additional needs

Earlier intervention is a cornerstone of government policy on supporting children and families with additional needs. This review and scoping study was commissioned to provide a more in-depth understanding of what is meant by ‘earlier intervention’ (defined as intervening early in the life course of a problem, or with a population at risk of identifying that problem, but not necessarily early in life).

Addressing in-work poverty

This report describes how the rise of poverty among children in working-families is undermining the drive to end child poverty as a whole, and what can be done about it. The existence of 'in-work' poverty has only been officially recognised in the last couple of years. Yet the steady upward trend and number of children involved mean that it should be given high priority. The report includes an in-depth analysis of the progress that has been made on in-work poverty among children since the start of the government's poverty programme in the late 1990s.

Motivations for Undertaking the New Social Work Degree : Report - August 2005

In January 2005, the Social Work Services Policy Division of the Scottish Executive commissioned the British Market Research Bureau (BMRB) to undertake research to understand why social work students are undertaking the new social work degree and the postgraduate degree. This resource is the full report detailing the findings of this research.

Poverty, inequality and human rights

This research examines how human rights have been used internationally to shape new conceptions of poverty and new approaches to combating it, and assesses the lessons for the UK. People working to tackle poverty in the UK are increasingly interested in using human rights in their work. This study looks at how this has been done in other countries, its impact on affected communities, debate, policy and government programmes, and its relevance for the UK.