Need,well‐being and outcomes: the development of policy‐thinking for children's services 1989–2004

This paper describes how government policy thinking about the well‐being of children and young people developed between the Children Act 1989 and the Children Act 2004. These two Acts are milestone statements about how services to children in England and Wales should be delivered. It is an account informed by the author's own experience as a government adviser on children's social care over much of this period and supporting documentation. It traces the strands of government policy thinking about how to deliver services for children from children in need to the articulation of the five Every Child Matters outcomes. It argues that attempts to achieve coordinated service planning for children and young people played a significant role in the formulation of shared objectives and the articulation of child outcomes. However, it argues that looking at real outcomes exposes how children in the UK do relatively badly compared with other rich nations. It questions whether we can realistically expect our services to deliver significantly improved outcomes given the impact of enduring inequality in our society. This paper is dedicated to the memory of David Lambert CBE, former Assistant Chief Inspector of the Social Services Inspectorate in London, who died suddenly on 7 October 2010. He lent me articles to assist me in writing this paper.     

From Destruction to Reconciliation

SUMMARY

Daniel Johnson discusses how the application of “restorative justice” in his own life and in the life of the victim of his criminal offense contributed to his personal regeneration and healing for his victim. Mr. Johnson challenges criminal justice policy-makers to create conditions where “restorative justice” can be employed in the broadest sense in order to do what contemporary, punitive, retributive criminal justice systems are largely incapable of doing, that is, facilitate lasting offender rehabilitation and healing for crime victims and communities, and to offer opportunities for victim-offender reconciliations.     

Providing Mental Health Services to Older People Living in Rural Communities

Summary

Rural dwelling elders who experience mental health problems often have difficulty finding help since rural communities often lack adequate mental health service providers. This paper reports on the initial phase of a 5-year, interdisciplinary clinical research study that is testing the effectiveness of providing a home delivered, therapeutic psychosocial intervention, aimed at improving the emotional well-being and the quality of life of medically frail elders who live in rural communities. In the early phases of this study, the clinical research team encountered a number of interesting and often unanticipated challenges as it attempted to recruit study participants and provide services to them. In this article, we examine these challenges and share what we have learned so far about providing mental health services to elderly persons living in rural environments.     

The Making of COBRS 2.0

Abstract

Recently introduced advances in microcomputer technology offer opportunities for improving child welfare agencies' access to powerful case assessment and program evaluation tools. This paper discusses the process of fitting a child behavior outcome measurement system to a menu driven microcomputer program. Traditional strategies for measuring outcome effectiveness, managerial priorities and operational constraints are examined in terms of their bearing on the introduction of new microcomputer technology. The developmental process is traced to show how these factors influenced the addition of a number of user options to the basic program to enhance its adaptability to specific agency needs. Initial user feedback indicated general satisfaction with the basic program and the applicability of its output, little or no experimentation, as yet, in adapting the system, and, a minor need to adjust the sequencing of operator activities to better fit the realities of agency work rhythms.     

'The more things change…': Barriers to community services utilisation in Queensland

Community services are central to the lives of many elderly Australians or Australians with disabilities if they are to remain in the community. Over the past two decades, significant advances have been made in policy and associated programs, significantly improving the standards of service delivery. This research reports on the perceptions of service providers in community services for people with disabilities in six communities in Queensland. It illustrates that significant barriers to service utilisation remain, despite reform. It suggests that continuous efforts to promote service access need to be built in at the program level.     

Usability Study of a Distance Continuing Education Website for Human Service Professionals

ABSTRACT

A usability test of a distance continuing education website for human service professionals is discussed. The website's purpose was to help meet the continuing education needs of human service professionals in a largely rural Midwestern state. The purpose of the usability evaluation was to assess the website's ease of use, efficiency, and user satisfaction in a representative sample of human service professionals. Users completed eleven basic search tasks with the site and report their impressions of the information presented. In addition, performance data including success, time on task, and efficiency were gathered. Implications of user satisfaction and performance data highlight the importance of stakeholder's involvement in the early stages of website design.     

北京外国人社区生活调查研究

改革开放以来,中国经济和社会取得了长足发展,来京的外国人逐年增多。调查显示,外国人对所在社区评价总体比较高,但他们的评价也因年龄、性别、来源地、滞留时间等不同而略有差异,他们参与社区活动的意愿与选择也并不相同。居住在北京城市社区的外国人对所在社区的审视为我们展现了一个由外向内的独特评价视角,这对于我们构建和谐社区、提升社区服务有着重要的现实意义。     

邮政储蓄银行小额信贷之路初探

邮政储蓄银行已正式挂牌,在社区银行定位的同时被委以服务于农村的重任。组建邮政储蓄银行,实施邮政储弩金融业务的专业化经营不仅符合国际邮政储蓄金融制度变革的潮流,而且对推动我国金融体制改革的深化,进一步完善我国金融市场的建设具有十分积极的意义。本文对邮政储蓄银行成立后开展小额信贷业务的可行性、必要性及经营战略进行了一些探索,以期对新成立的邮政储蓄银行有所借鉴。     

国内外自然文化遗产保护与开发比较分析

国家重点风景名胜区是国家乃至人类的自然文化遗产资源,必须通过严格的保护和合理的开发,使其世代传承、永续利用。发达国家对自然文化遗产的保护与发展经过长时间的探索,取得了很多的经验;中国的遗产保护事业起步较晚,与世界上先进国家相比有很大差距。国内外遗产资源保护和开发问题理论和实践的分析,对中国科学保护和合理开发遗产资源多有启示。     

Moving On From Supportive Housing (MOSH): Development and evaluation of a transitional skill-building curriculum for providers helping residents exit homeless services

This article describes the development and evaluation of MOSH (Moving On From Supportive Housing), a transitional skill-building curriculum for providers helping residents exit homeless services to mainstream housing without embedded supports. In this evaluation, we assess the feasibility, acceptability, fit, and potential efficacy of the MOSH curriculum to improve proximal provider-level outcomes, including self-efficacy to provide MOSH-related independent living skills and supports. Homeless-services providers (N = 49) from a range of programs and settings participated in the training. Findings from focus groups and pre- and posttest surveys indicate high levels of overall satisfaction with the training. The majority of trainees perceived the training to be useful to their work and potentially useful for service recipients, felt the training would fit well within their existing day-to-day work, and said they were very likely to use MOSH skills in such work. Statistically significant improvements in self-efficacy regarding all skills but one were also found. MOSH holds promise as an intervention that can enhance provider practice and promotion of independent living skills in homeless services. Although these initial findings on MOSH are encouraging, further research will be needed to evaluate provider knowledge gains and effective use of these skills in practice.