Facilitating access to services for children and families: lessons from Sure Start Local Programmes

With the introduction of the highly publicized Sure Start Local Programme (SSLP) initiative in 1998, the UK government introduced a community‐based set of provisions targeted at families with children under 4 years who were living in some of the 20% most deprived and disadvantaged geographical areas in England. These programmes were designed to combat the adverse effects of poverty and disadvantage on the long‐term outcomes for children and families. One challenging dimension for programme development has been the facilitation of access to the services on offer in these programmes. Drawing on findings from the implementation module within the government‐commissioned National Evaluation of Sure Start, this paper examines the way in which SSLPs have sought to facilitate access to services for their local communities and to encourage community members to take up and continue using those services. This paper presents a detailed overview of programme activity in respect of access. It identifies a continuum of access and a model of three styles of parental service use. The paper highlights the implications of the SSLP implementation process for the development of subsequent related initiatives such as children’s centres and extended schools.     

Governance and Participation in Local Welfare: The Case of the Italian Piani di Zona

This article analyses four cases of governance in Italian local welfare systems. Following Law 328/2000, the design and management of the social services system in Italy involve different public responsibility levels, mainly regional and municipal. In order to manage social policies, Italian municipalities have to join in new inter‐municipal groupings called ‘Piani di Zona’ (Area Plans). Moreover, the law provides for engaging in these Plans even local third‐sector organizations and citizens. The article attempts to highlight the implications of this complex system that is leading local authorities to open new governance arenas. We hereby present the results of a research project on two Piani di Zona in the Region of Lombardy (Northern Italy) and on two in the Region of Campania (Southern Italy), carried out by means of institutional analysis. We particularly focus on the dynamics of participation triggered by the Piani di Zona. Our hypothesis is that the role of public administration is a fundamental variable to understand the different ways of participating. In this sense, we discuss the dynamics of local governance by relaying them to four main questions: who participates in what, where and how?     

从社区治安到社区安全治理:城市社区关系的嬗变

随着社区治理的全球化兴起,社区安全治理也将随之受到关注。从社区治安转向社区安全治理的过程,伴随着对社区关系产生直接或间接的影响。本论文试图通过反思社区关系的可能变化来论证从社区治安转向社区安全治理的必然性,以此呈现出社区安全治理的优势。     

When Social Partners Unite – Explaining Continuity and Change in Austrian and Dutch Labour Market Governance

Why do Austria and the Netherlands, two highly corporatist, coordinated, consensual countries diverge with respect to the involvement of social partners in their Public Employment Service? By comparing and contrasting the competing predictions of the power‐resource, employer‐centred and social partnership approaches, we identify a key omitted variable that can explain the observed variations: the ability of the social partners to unite on reform positions. We demonstrate that when the social partners are divided, their collective power is reduced and partisan‐based policy outcomes become more pronounced. In turn, when the social partners jointly favour a particular outcome, their collective power increases and they can override governmental reform plans, even if the government holds a large legislative majority. These findings highlight the causal importance of power relations between and within the social partners for institutional continuity and change.     

论公共参与的动员与公共行政伦理

公共行政不只是公务人员的活动,还应包括广大公众,因此动员公众参与到公共事务之中,就成为公务行为的重要内容。在我国,公共参与动员有着特别的意义,要从公共行政伦理建设的角度重视公共参与的动员,并切实地促成积极的公共参与的实现。     

A Joined-up Approach to User Participation in Public Services: Strengthening the "Participation Chain"

Participation has emerged as a key theme for social policy and administration in the UK. Public service providers are often keen to consult users, and users themselves want to make their voices heard. Despite this, however, there is a perennial problem in getting people to participate, and participation is often better supported in principle than in practice. The motivations of key actors are crucial, but are often poorly understood. This article attempts to build a more detailed understanding of the motivations to participate of one key group: service users. Using Mutual Incentives Theory, it shows the extent to which users are motivated by individualistic or collectivistic concerns. These “demand side” factors are then combined with others on the “supply side” in a model we call the “participation chain”. This model provides a systematic framework for understanding what makes public service users participate, and seeks to demonstrate that, while the question of participation requires a combination of answers, it is a combination that can be predicted, planned for and acted upon.     

公民有序参与:公共决策科学化、民主化的基石

公民有序参与公共决策有助于实现公共决策科学化和民主化。当前公民参与公共决策存在参与体制不完善、参与渠道不畅通、参与法制不完备、参与主体不成熟等问题,严重影响了公共政策的质量,需不断完善和发展。健全公民有序参与公共决策的机制需不断推进政治体制改革,实现公共决策的科学化、民主化;加速政治转型,不断拓宽公民参与决策的新渠道;完善法律,实现公民参与公共决策的法制化;提高公民素质,增强参与意识。     

Poverty,Government Policy and Public Opinion in Britain and Israel: A Comparative Analysis

What are the effects of public opinion on social welfare policies? To what extent is increased financial strain associated with stronger support for anti‐poverty policies? This article tests welfare state theory by comparing poverty, government policy and public opinion on poverty in the UK and Israel, based on rich and detailed comparable survey data on the conditions of the poor in both countries. The results show that, despite similar levels of income poverty and inequality, the poor have a considerably lower standard of living in Israel than the UK. There is considerably greater public support for the poor in Israel but limited government action to end poverty, whereas in the UK there is more limited public support for the poor but significant government action on poverty and exclusion. In both countries there appears to be only a limited connection between social solidarity with the poor and the political elite's rhetoric and action.     

新媒体时代政府回应公共参与的路径选择

传统媒体因单向传播而缺乏互动机制,新媒体的出现改变了政府向受众的单向传播,成为公众参与的积极推动力量。然而,新媒体对公众参与也带来了不可避免的消极影响。因此,政府需要积极回应,发挥新媒体在公共参与中的优点,遏制其缺点,促进公民参与,使新媒体成为政府与公众沟通的桥梁。     

Organizational Form as a Mechanism to Involve Staff,Public and Users in Public Services: A Study of the Governance of NHS Foundation Trusts

In addition to introducing markets and market‐like structures into public services, New Labour wished to promote the involvement of users and the public in decision‐making in other ways than as individual consumers. One way was to involve the public in the governance of organizations. This could be done by removing public services from state control, and transferring them to mutual ownership; or by increasing public involvement in the governance of public bodies. NHS foundation trusts (FTs) were presented as mutuals. Our study shows FTs are not mutuals, as they continue to be owned by the state. Moreover, staff of FTs were generally not engaging with the new governance structures. In general, there was mixed experience of the new structures enabling governors to increase accountability of the hospitals to the public. On the other hand, having a membership did enhance the legitimacy of FTs, as opposed to other NHS organizations. The findings of the study are of current interest as the coalition government is continuing with the policy of FTs, and also encouraging mutuals and other forms of public involvement.     

Head Start,Prekindergarten, and Academic School Readiness: A Comparison Among Regions in the United States

ABSTRACT

Child care programs (including Head Start, prekindergarten [pre-K], and other center-based care) can differ, with patterns of use based on their location. Yet little research has examined how Head Start and pre-K programs affect children's academic school readiness, including vocabulary and reading skills at school entry, in the South as compared to other regions. To examine this further, secondary data (n = 2,803) collected in the Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study were examined. Overall findings suggest, regardless of region, that Head Start and pre-K participants had higher academic skills at school entry than did their counterparts. In addition, when Head Start was compared to other center-based care and pre-K was compared to other care arrangements, both had larger effects on improving academic skills in the South compared with in other regions. These findings imply that Head Start and pre-K programs should target children who otherwise would receive nonparental non-center-based care. Future research should focus on why the effects of Head Start and pre-K vary between the South and other regions.     

The Changing Governance of Welfare: Recent Trends in its Primary Functions, Scale, and Modes of Coordination

This paper discusses four dimensions of the capitalist state's role in economic and social reproduction: its economic and social policy roles, the scales on which these roles are performed, and the modes of governance with which they are associated. It describes the typical postwar welfare regime on these dimensions, analyses the crisis in the governance of welfare that began to emerge in the late 1970s and 1980s, and characterizes the new regime that is tendentially replacing the postwar welfare state.     

Transferring HIV/AIDS Related Healthcare from Non‐governmental Organizations to the Public Healthcare System in South Africa: Opportunities and Challenges

Almost two decades after the transition to a post‐apartheid regime, South Africa is still high‐ranking in the incidence of chronic diseases like tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, diabetes and hypertension. This article explores the transition from HIV/AIDS related healthcare offered by internationally supported non‐governmental organizations (NGOs) in rural areas to the inclusion of this healthcare into the public healthcare system. This transition is part of a wider process that represents the exact reverse of healthcare reforms in Western industrialized countries. Instead of a transition from public healthcare to privatized or marketized healthcare, the transition in South Africa is from partly private healthcare to a public healthcare system in which the private commercial health sector as well as all services provided by NGOs will be integrated. In that process, many obstacles obscure intended outcomes, such as equal access to healthcare. Some obstacles are evident in the case studies of two internationally supported NGOs in the field of HIV/AIDS healthcare. We will conclude that governance structures of public and private NGO‐based healthcare are often difficult to integrate; implementation timelines and priorities do not always coincide; and the public healthcare system is still too weak to deliver good quality healthcare in rural areas without continued NGO support.     

New Governance and the Case of Activation Policies: Comparing Experiences in Denmark and the Netherlands

This article explores the importance of new forms of governance in active labour market policies (activation) in two countries: Denmark and the Netherlands. Drawing on research with key stakeholders in these countries, we analyse how new governance, and particularly processes of contracting-out and localization, have found expression in recent reforms to activation. We conclude that localization and contracting-out may have a future role to play in the development of more locally responsive and individually focused services. But both countries have encountered problems in promoting joined-up services through local jobcentres, while contracting-out has not always led to the tailored, individually focused services envisaged by policy-makers. In both countries, there are also concerns that the restriction of the Public Employment Service to a 'gatekeeping and signposting' role will lead to inconsistencies in the quality of services, exposing the most disadvantaged to greater social risk.     

挑战、批判与反思:解读当代西方的新公共参与理论

自20世纪末期进入信息社会以来,无论是中国还是西方、发达国家亦或发展中国家,"公共参与"的需求都不断"膨胀".本文认为其动因在于:教育、信息技术、民主行政的需要,产生了所谓"新公共参与".之后文章分析了新公共参与产生的社会背景;新公共参与与传统的参与理论之差异与共性;为什么公民与政府官员都"不喜欢"公共参与.此外,文章还指出新公共参与主要倡导与强调的是公共参与不仅分享政府的权力,更重要的是分担政府的责任;在此基础上又进一步剖析了对于新公共参与理论的批判与反思.     

Disaster Preparedness among Older Adults: Social Support,Community Participation,and Demographic Characteristics

This study examined factors associated with disaster preparedness among older adults, with special attention paid to demographic characteristics, social support, and community participation. From a larger study about disaster preparedness of persons with disabilities, a total of 719 adults aged 55 years and older were used for this study. The results of the logistic regressions indicate that individuals who have higher levels of social support and more connections to community organizations are more likely to be prepared for disaster-related emergency situations. In another model, using resource preparedness as the dependent variable, an interaction effect between social support and income was found. Overall, higher income and higher informal support are related to a higher level of resources for disaster preparedness. However, the relationship between income and disaster preparedness is much stronger for those sub-groups receiving more informal support. The findings of this study expand knowledge regarding issues of disaster preparedness among older adults and demonstrates the importance of social resources and networks. This study suggests an intervention model for decision-makers and community leaders in terms of providing information and advice to members of their communities about how to adequately prepare for natural disasters.     

Partnerships, Power and the "New" Politics of Community Participation in British Health Care

Multi–sectoral approaches to health improvement in its broadest sense have entailed an emphasis by the British government upon partnership working in and around community involvement in planning processes. New service planning and delivery organizations in the health service—primary care groups and primary care trusts—thus have to ensure that public and patient involvement strategies reflect a coordinated, if not integrated, multi–sectoral approach to such involvement. But how are these enforced partnership arrangements shaping the approach taken by primary care groups and trusts to the issue of public and patient involvement? More particularly, is the traditional dominance of health service managers and the medical profession in decision–making processes under challenge? This article draws on a study of primary care groups and trusts in three districts in order to gauge perceptions and calculations with regard to partnerships for involvement. Results appear to suggest that health service managers and practitioners continue to exercise considerable influence in comparison to that of patients and citizens. But, if the findings are viewed in the broader contexts of government managerialist strategies of surveillance and accountability and the growth of service–user and advocacy organizations, partnerships may offer significant scope for “lay” challenges to managerial and medical power.     

社区参与:增权视域下社区人力资源发展的现状及其反思

随着社区建设的不断深入,促进社区参与,培育社区意识,增强社区社会资本,成为社区人力资源开发的重要内容与目标。当前社区建设面临着居民社区参与不足、社区缺乏组织性、社区活动流于形式以及社区归属感淡薄等问题。开发社区人力资源必须从增权视阈出发,发挥社区居民思维上的主体性及其在实践中的参与性。     

Labour Markets,Care Regimes and Foreign Care Worker Policies in East Asia

This article analyzes the politics of foreign care worker policies in Japan, Korea and Taiwan. In the face of socio‐demographic challenges, these countries have responded differently to the increasing demand for hiring foreign care workers, creating distinct policies with respect to the origins of the foreign care workforce, the size of the foreign care workforce in the labour market, and job specifications. In this article, I argue that the interaction of female employment patterns, the public provision (or lack) of social care, and labour market policies in the care service sector determines the diverging political pathways of foreign care worker policies in these three countries over the past two decades.     

Governance,credit access and clean cooking technologies in Sub-Saharan Africa: Implications for energy transition

There is a global effort toward reducing or eliminating dirty fuels and technologies for cooking due to their severe health, environmental and economic implications. Reducing dirty energy usage requires an effective transition toward clean fuels and technologies for cooking. Effective governance and financial systems are needed to hasten the transition toward clean fuels and technologies for cooking. However, not much is known empirically about the role of access to credit and governance in the transition towards clean cooking technologies, especially in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This study, therefore, utilizes the two-step-dynamic system generalized method of moment estimator to investigate the effect of access to credit and governance on the adoption of clean cooking technologies in SSA. The findings indicate that access to credit and governance variables do not facilitate clean cooking technologies usage. The conditional analysis also reveals that the governance variables moderate the effect of access to credit to impede the adoption of clean fuels and technologies for cooking. The findings indicate that economic growth, education, and rural population drive the adoption of clean cooking technologies. Sensitivity checks show that the effect of access to credit and governance on clean fuels and cooking technologies usage differs among income and regional groups within SSA. We, therefore, argue that better financial and governance systems are required to hasten the transition toward clean fuels and technologies for cooking in SSA.