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Role theory and family values: a conceptual framework for family and social work reciprocation
- Authors:
- RAPAPROT Joan, BAIANI Poirier
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 32(3), 2016/17, pp.169-182.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
This article has two main parts. The first focuses on the theoretical and sociopolitical context surrounding the legal category of the nearest relative in England under the Mental Health Act 1983. It provides a brief overview of a study of the role’s functioning and the theoretical development of Reciprocal Role Valorization. The second concentrates on the Family Group Conference, its innovative developments in the New Brunswick, Canada and how the theory arising out of the nearest relative study relates to the province’s initiative. The importance of specialist postqualifying professional development and professional maturity to enable social workers to unlock family potential is also argued in the context of increasing interest in strengths based social work. (Edited publisher abstract)
Child neglect: policy, response and developments in England
- Authors:
- TAYLOR Julie, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 32(1), 2016, pp.39-51.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
Despite headline reactions to child sexual exploitation and abuse or murdered children, child neglect continues to be one of our most pervasive and intractable child protection problems. It is the main reason why children’s social care services become involved with families. Moreover it has the largest impact on future outcomes for both children and society. In England the child protection system has evolved largely in response to high profile child protection inquiries, but remains vague on what it considers to be its cornerstone: professional judgement about when a threshold for intervention is reached and at what level. The article looks at some promising initiatives and models that highlight what can be done to help neglected children and families. The role of place and community in neglect is increasingly being seen as the new frontier for intervention. Sustained involvement with families over the long term, interpersonal supportive yet firm interactions that keep children central are costly to deliver and are not crowd-pleasers. Nonetheless such programmes are key in making a difference for neglected children. (Edited publisher abstract)
Complexity, connectivity, and management information systems: new possibilities for understanding social care
- Author:
- DOWNS Clive G.
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 25(2/3), 2007, pp.93-102.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
Complexity research is a relatively new discipline that has developed from advances in biology, physics, computer science, and the social sciences. Organizations providing social care can be seen as complex systems, and the new perspective of complexity may give insights that will enable policy-makers and managers to make the provision of social care more effective. This article presents data from a survey of social care that has a 'Zipf-type' distribution, characteristic of complex systems. The article also considers the ontotology of social care organisations, and the relevance of this in complexity research.
No easy answers: the Warwickshire resource allocation study
- Author:
- GLASBY Jon
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 21(1), 2003, pp.25-39.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
Presents the findings of a study on the use of deprivation measures to allocate resources between different geographical areas of a local authority. The study sought to consider the scope for replacing Warwickshire's current resource allocation procedures with a new deprivation measure: the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DETR) Indices of Deprivation 2000. As well as carrying out a literature review, the study incorporated a survey of all English local authorities to learn from their methods of resource allocation and their experiences of the DETR Indices of Deprivation 2000. Concludes that there are no easy answers to resource allocation and sets out a series of dilemmas that will need to be resolved by any social services department seeking to base its funding processes on a more rational and explicit methodology.
Developing and implementing a local performance measurement system in older people's services
- Authors:
- CLARKSON Paul, CHALLIS David
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 20(3), 2002, pp.3-16.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
Summarises work in developing and implementing a local performance measurement system within older people's services, drawing on work undertaken by the Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU). Difficulties in developing such systems include central government demands for data that are not always appropriate to local concerns, technological problems and problems with interpretation. The work attempted to confront these difficulties by outlining a model of the most important domains for monitoring, devising a suite of indicators to comment on organisational objectives and using comparative analysis to formulate questions concerning key areas of variation. The system offers a number of benefits and focused implementation can overcome difficulties and increase co-operation from staff.
Black-led initiatives in mental health: an overview
- Author:
- KEATING Frank
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 20(2), 2002, pp.9-19.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
The author argues that the contributions of Black-led initiatives to mental health service provision in the United Kingdom have not been documented fully and go largely ignored despite the history of failure of mainstream mental health services to meet the needs of black and minority ethnic communities. Against this background, the author analyses models of service provision in relation to mental health services for black and minority ethnic communities. The article offers an illustrative account of some of the key issues facing Black-led initiatives in mental health.
Reactivity and responsiveness in children's service systems
- Authors:
- NUGENT William R., GLISSON Charles
- Journal article citation:
- Social Services Research, 25(3), 1999, pp.41-60.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
This American study examines the extent to which public children's service systems respond to the mental health problems of children in state custody. Looks at how one state system is responsive versus reactive to the mental health problems of the children in it's care. A responsive system is one in which services are provided to meet each child's unique mental health needs. A reactive system is one in which service providers take actions to avoid providing needed mental health services. The results found a service system more reactive than responsive to children's mental health problems.
More than just a quick fix? The potential of joint commissioning in services for people with learning disabilities
- Author:
- CAMBRIDGE Paul
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 17(2), 1999, pp.12-22.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
Joint working between health and social services has a long record of fragmentation and under-performance in community services for people with learning disabilities. This article examines the renewed potential for joint commissioning in the context of the Government's emerging social care policy agenda, including its commitment to partnership and performance management. Drawing on case evidence from learning disability and the wider academic literature, it identifies pointers for the development of joint commissioning in learning disability and argues for the monitoring and evaluation of emerging models.
Deprivation indexes: do they measure up?
- Author:
- CUBEY David
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 17(2), 1999, pp.23-32.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
How to allocate or target resources to those most in need of services has been of central concern to social services departments over the past 20 years. The focus of this article is the identification of a valid and reliable model to allocate social services resources to the elderly population in East Sussex. The model operationalises at District level and combines the results with those obtained from operationalising a synthetic model of the levels of disability in the elderly population. It is argued that this model can be validly and reliably applied to other local authorities.
Developing an economic analysis of family support programs: the case of a neighbourhood family centre in Blaenau, Gwent
- Authors:
- DENNISTON Kristin, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Social Services Research, 4, 1998, pp.42-54.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
This article reports on research into the feasibility of applying economic analysis to evaluate family support programs. The aims of the first stage of research were to identify key concepts and definitions, identify and negotiate access to data for use in the analysis, examine the data quality, and design an economic model for analysing the family centre program. The second stage will measure the effectiveness and efficiency of the family centre program as well as assess the feasibility of using the various methods of economic analysis outlined in the first stage of research. This paper reports key findings from stage one.