Positive Publications/ Anglia Polytechnic University, Faculty of Health and Social Work
Since the introduction of direct payments in 1997, only limited progress has been made in introducing schemes for people with learning difficulties. This article reviews the developments and the challenges, including the difficulties caused by publicity over the South Lanarkshire case. Care managers should do more to support and promote direct payments which are "exciting, challenging, innovative tools that help us towards empowerment and equality".
Since the introduction of direct payments in 1997, only limited progress has been made in introducing schemes for people with learning difficulties. This article reviews the developments and the challenges, including the difficulties caused by publicity over the South Lanarkshire case. Care managers should do more to support and promote direct payments which are "exciting, challenging, innovative tools that help us towards empowerment and equality".
Subject terms:
learning disabilities, physical disabilities, social workers, care management, direct payments, empowerment, equal opportunities;
Disability and Society, 15(3), May 2000, pp.411-425.
Publisher:
Taylor and Francis
'Quality of life' experiences for people with disabilities who are highly dependent on services that are delivered in home-based environments are strongly influenced by the nature of their interactions with service workers. This paper discusses findings of a study involving 14 agencies in Western Australia, which provide living environment services for young people with disabilities and older adults, to gain insight into service users' daily experiences and their perceptions of quality in receiving services.
'Quality of life' experiences for people with disabilities who are highly dependent on services that are delivered in home-based environments are strongly influenced by the nature of their interactions with service workers. This paper discusses findings of a study involving 14 agencies in Western Australia, which provide living environment services for young people with disabilities and older adults, to gain insight into service users' daily experiences and their perceptions of quality in receiving services.
Subject terms:
models, physical disabilities, quality of life, social networks, social care provision, social workers, social worker-service user relationships, user views, evaluation;
Describes the practical, social and emotional impact of home enteral tube feeding on disabled children, their families and carers. Discusses the daily experiences of families and children coping with tube feeding; the involvement of non-parent carers and their training, guidance and insurance needs; and the support offered to families by health, education and social care professionals.
Describes the practical, social and emotional impact of home enteral tube feeding on disabled children, their families and carers. Discusses the daily experiences of families and children coping with tube feeding; the involvement of non-parent carers and their training, guidance and insurance needs; and the support offered to families by health, education and social care professionals.
Subject terms:
insurance, nutrition, parents, physical disabilities, schools, social work assistants, social workers, training, carers, children, families, health professionals;
Reports on the realities of handling extreme domestic violence in a multidisciplinary team.
Reports on the realities of handling extreme domestic violence in a multidisciplinary team.
Subject terms:
marriage, marriage breakdown, multidisciplinary services, partners, physical disabilities, police, risk, short break care, social services, social work methods, social workers, violence, visual impairment, adult abuse, attitudes, care management, domestic violence;
This paper reviews the evidence for the effectiveness of different kinds of family support services, focusing on those that social services departments are likely to commission or provide to support families who are disadvantaged or experiencing particular difficulties in their lives. The aims of this paper are: to describe different methods of evaluation, and outline some of the problems and issues raised by evaluating social welfare provision in general and family support services in particular; to provide a brief overview of the research evidence on ‘what works’ in different kinds of family support provided for children in need; to bring together information on various measures and scales which have been used to evaluate family support services.
This paper reviews the evidence for the effectiveness of different kinds of family support services, focusing on those that social services departments are likely to commission or provide to support families who are disadvantaged or experiencing particular difficulties in their lives. The aims of this paper are: to describe different methods of evaluation, and outline some of the problems and issues raised by evaluating social welfare provision in general and family support services in particular; to provide a brief overview of the research evidence on ‘what works’ in different kinds of family support provided for children in need; to bring together information on various measures and scales which have been used to evaluate family support services.
Extended abstract:
Author
Statham, June;
Title
Outcomes and effectiveness of family support services: a research review.
Publisher
Institute of Education, University of London in association with Thomas Coram Research Unit, 2000.
Summary
This paper reviews the evidence for the effectiveness of different kinds of family support services, focusing on those that social services departments are likely to commission or provide to support families who are disadvantaged or experiencing particular difficulties in their lives. The aims of this paper are: to describe different methods of evaluation, and outline some of the problems and issues raised by evaluating social welfare provision in general and family support services in particular; to provide a brief overview of the research evidence on 'what works' in different kinds of family support provided for children in need; to bring together information on various measures and scales which have been used to evaluate family support services.
Context
Current government policy stresses the importance of evaluation and assessing the outcomes of services that are provided or purchased by local authorities. There is a new emphasis on evidence-based practice, grounded in information from research that attempts to show what works both in individual cases and in the planning of services. Agencies in both the statutory and independent sectors are increasingly expected to demonstrate successful outcomes in order to obtain funding and meet government targets.
Method
Due to this being a research review many methodologies are laid out and explained to the reader, however due to the nature of this review it is not possible to set out a method.
Contents
This review is divided into five sections. The introduction lays out the aims of the review and provides background information. The second section sets up the conceptual framework. It investigates what is meant by family support services and evaluation. It thengoes on to explore different research methodologies as a way to assess effectiveness, and issues in evaluating family support services. Section three reviews what is known about the effectiveness of different kinds of services to support families, covering (amongst others); day care and early education, befriending and social support, and family group conferences. Section four looks at measuring outcomes and costs. Section five offers conclusions on this subject.
Conclusion
" Much of the evidence for the effectiveness of family support services comes from the USA, where there is a strong tradition of systematic programme evaluation and a particular approach to family support. The findings from this research need to be applied withcaution in different social welfare contexts, and it needs to be recognised that different policies and ways of thinking about children would lead to different ways of conceptualising the evaluation of family support."
112 references
ISBN 0 85473 627 1
Subject terms:
intervention, literature reviews, mental health problems, outcomes, parent-child relations, parents, physical disabilities, social workers, babies, children, day services, families, family centres, family group conferences, evaluation, evidence-based practice, foster care, health visiting;