Welcome to Social Policy Digest
Welcome to the Social Policy Digest Online. The Digest is designed as a key resource for all those working in UK social policy — policymakers, researchers, teachers and students, campaigners, journalists, and practitioners. It provides an easily accessible listing of new developments across the whole social policy field.
The Digest is a companion to two journals — the Journal of Social Policy and Social Policy and Society — both of which are published on behalf of the Social Policy Association by Cambridge University Press.
- Government drops compulsory ID cards
- Bill planned on anti-social behaviour
- National security strategy outlined
A think-tank report set out the principles that should underpin national security strategy, in policy areas including defence, counter-terrorism, and energy security.
Source: Shared Responsibilities: A national security strategy for the United Kingdom, Institute for Public Policy Research (020 7470 6100)
Links: Summary | IPPR press release | BBC report | Telegraph report
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Community sentences 'more effective' than prison
A study found that the majority of community sentences provided similar or better value for money and effectiveness than short-term prison sentences. In 2007 – the latest year for which data was available - diverting short-term prisoners who were drug-users to community-based sentences could have saved almost £1 billion over the lifetime of the offenders concerned.
Source: Matrix Knowledge, Are Short Term Prison Sentences an Efficient and Effective Use of Public Resources?, Make Justice Work (020 7031 1164)
Links: Report | Guardian report
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Sentencing young offenders – consultation
An official advisory body began consultation on the principles that should apply when courts sentenced young offenders. It said that young people under 18 could differ significantly in maturity, and that the individual circumstances of each offender would need to be considered carefully: but the closer an offender was to age 18 when the offence was committed, and the greater the maturity of the offender or the sophistication of the offence, the closer the sentence was likely to be to that which would be imposed on an adult.
Source: Overarching Principles: Sentencing Youths, Sentencing Guidelines Council (020 7411 5551)
Links: Consultation document | Advice | SGC press release
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Government plan for Britain's future – education entitlements 'guaranteed'
- Schools – White Paper
The government published a White Paper on the schools system in England. It said that the White Paper was based on three principles – new guarantees for pupils and parents, a significant devolution of power to school leaders, and an 'uncompromising' approach to school improvement. Parents would have legally enforceable guarantees in relation to school provision, including access to one-to-one and small-group teaching for children who had failed to reach the expected levels in English and maths. From September 2010, newly-qualified teachers would need a licence to work in the classroom, which would have to be renewed every five years. Under plans for a new school 'report card', schools would be given a single grade – A to D – based on a measures including test results, the social background of their intake, pupils' views, attendance, and pupils' well-being. High-performing schools would be encouraged to take over their less successful neighbours, creating chains of schools with a shared 'brand' identity. Centrally controlled national strategies, which included the literacy and numeracy hours, would be abandoned.
Source: Your Child, Your Schools, Our Future: Building a 21st century schools system, Cm 7588, Department for Children, Schools and Families, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: White Paper | Summary | Parent guarantee | Pupil guarantee | Report card prospectus | Hansard | DCSF press release | NUT press release | NASUWT press release | Voice press release | ATL press release | SSAT press release | NAHT press release (1) | NAHT press release (2) | NCB press release | 4Children press release | Conservative Party press release | Telegraph report | BBC report | Guardian report | Community Care report
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- School finances – audit report
An audit report said that schools in England could save £400 million a year if they improved procurement practices. Schools were also holding cash reserves of nearly £2 billion: almost 2 out of 5 schools held more than the recommended amount, and these excessive balances totalled over £500 million.
Source: Valuable Lessons: Improving economy and efficiency in schools, Audit Commission (0800 502030)
Links: Report | Audit Commission press release | Guardian report | BBC report | Local Government Chronicle report
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Transgender community – demographic information
Researchers sought to develop reliable estimates of the size, growth, and geographic distribution of the transgender community.
Source: Bernard Reed, Stephenne Rhodes, Pieta Schofield and Kevan Wylie, Gender Variance in the UK: Prevalence, incidence, growth and geographic distribution, Gender Identity Research and Education Society (01372 801554)
Links: Report
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Government plan for Britain's future – draft legislative programme
- Call to revive democratic system
A think-tank report said that the political system was unrepresentative and over-centralized. It called for reform of Parliament, greater powers for local government, and greater public influence over public services.
Source: Jonty Olliff-Cooper, Resuscitating Democracy, Demos, available from Central Books (020 8986 5488)
Links: Report | Summary
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Society 'should be based on people power'
A think-tank report said that political power should be held at the lowest level possible: instead of 'devolving' power, the assumption should be that power was vested in people. Only when there was good reason should power be consolidated upwards to communities, local agencies, national government, or international bodies.
Source: Richard Reeves and Philip Collins, The Liberal Republic, Demos, available from Central Books (020 8986 5488)
Links: Report | Summary | Demos press release
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Government plan for Britain's future – democratic and constitutional reform
- Government plan for Britain's future – health 'entitlements' replace targets
- Progress report on Darzi review
The government published a progress report one year after the Darzi report on improving the quality of NHS care. It said that 'major improvements' had been delivered: accordingly the government planned to remove the 13-week and 26-week in-patient performance targets, in order to reduce the burden on frontline staff – thus 'freeing them up to focus on delivering high quality care'.
Source: High Quality Care For All: Our Journey So Far, Department of Health (08701 555455)
Links: Report | Letter | DH press release | RCP press release | NIHCE press release | RCN press release | NHS Confederation press release
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Government plan for Britain's future – social/affordable housing
- Plans for reform of council housing finance
The government announced that it would publish a consultation document on reform of council housing finance. The plan was to dismantle the housing revenue account subsidy system, and to replace it with a devolved system of responsibility and funding. The aim was to increase local responsibility and accountability for long-term planning, asset management, and meeting the housing needs of local people.
Source: House of Commons Hansard, Written Ministerial Statement 30 June 2009, columns 7-10WS, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Hansard | London Councils press release | CIH press release
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Call for new regeneration funding schemes
A report by an all-party group of MPs examined conditions in the regeneration industry in the wake of the economic recession, and assessed the viability of existing regeneration financing models. It highlighted the need for cities to have additional financial tools and revenue-raising options. Accelerated development zones (ADZs) – schemes under which future increases in tax revenue caused by new development were used to fund infrastructure spending – should be introduced as a key step towards achieving this objective.
Source: Regeneration and the Recession: Unlocking the money, All Party Urban Development Group (0207 802 0128)
Links: Report | APUDG press release | New Start report
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- New Towns – new book
A new book examined how the 'New Towns' came to be built in the period 1946-1970, how they aged, and the challenges and opportunities they faced as they began phases of renewal.
Source: Anthony Alexander, Britain's New Towns: Garden cities to sustainable communities, Routledge (01264 343071)
Links: Summary
Date Created: 03 Jul 2009
- Government plan for Britain's future – more power for local communities
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