Articles by Date : October 01 2007 - October 31 2007

GSCC health standards caught in discrimination row
Do social workers with health problems present a potential danger to clients? The GSCC's official standards seem to suggest so. Louise Tickle reports.... more
(18 October 2007 12:32)

Public Law Outline Q & A
WHAT IS THE PUBLIC LAW OUTLINE? The Public Law Outline will replace the existing Protocol for Judicial Case Management in Public Law Children.... more
(31 October 2007 14:00)

Legal update: courts confirm councils' power to protect vulnerable adults
Ed Mitchell on a case that confirmed local authorities' power to intervene in order to protect vulnerable adults more
(24 October 2007 13:59)

Unison accepts pay offer as council staff strike threat evaporates
Unison has accepted the 2.475% average increase in pay for council staff offered by the government and employers for this year. more
(31 October 2007 09:57)

Ormiston Children and Families Trust: its work with the children of prisoners
Nicky Shorten explains how the Ormiston Children and Families Trust in Norfolk is bringing together young people who have parents or relatives in.... more
(31 October 2007 17:01)

National body that binds together support groups
NETWORKING: helping practitioners and service users connect with like-minded people more
(31 October 2007 16:52)

Boost for nutrition of elderly people in hospital and care homes
The government published the UK's first nutrition action plan for older people yesterday in an attempt to tackle malnutrition in hospitals and care.... more
(31 October 2007 16:27)

Spending wisely?
Is your local authority wasting money? more
(31 October 2007 16:08)

Problem areas for social workers in family court work
ASSESSMENTS The strict deadlines imposed by the courts for parent and child assessments can place social workers under immense pressure, and.... more
(31 October 2007 15:47)

Scotland's vulnerable adult safeguards: the debate
Scotland has new laws to protect vulnerable adults. But there is unease at how the powers for professionals could overrride the rights of a.... more
(31 October 2007 15:21)

Swinfen Hall YOI: how it won a top best practice award
The World Health Organization has recognised the efforts of a Staffordshire young offender institution to improve the mental well-being of its.... more
(31 October 2007 14:56)

Editorial Comment: Keepers of the ration book
You could be forgiven for thinking that our system for assessing who should receive state-funded care only works for people in the midst of a crisis. more
(31 October 2007 14:41)

Editorial Comment: Was safety compromised?
In the same week that paranoid schizophrenic Ronald Dixon was detained indefinitely for stabbing inexperienced mental health worker Ashleigh Ewing to.... more
(31 October 2007 14:38)

Too many meetings, not enough time, say social care managers
Only one in ten managers in the social care sector says they can relax outside the office because of the pressures of work, according to new.... more
(31 October 2007 14:28)

Front Line Focus: It's time we grew up
In an increasingly secularised society where commitments are often side-stepped, key rites of passage are now being lost more
(31 October 2007 14:28)

Lone parents in London lag behind national employment rates
A shortage of flexible job opportunities and marginal financial payoffs are holding lone parents in London back from returning to work, say.... more
(31 October 2007 14:23)

How the child protection system under utilises the extended family
Child protection can focus too much on the use of foster care as an alternative to keeping the child in the mother's home. Cathy Ashley looks at the.... more
(31 October 2007 14:20)

Hackney's model for change draws widespread interest
Despite some anxieties, Claire Chamberlain finds reaction to the London borough's shake-up of social services to be positive, in her latest update more
(31 October 2007 14:12)

The Big Picture: How safety trumped fun
Enthusiasm and a "can-do" attitude helped start Community Links. But have those values now been stifled by professional caution? more
(31 October 2007 13:59)

Service User Voice: Complain? don't bother...
The complaints system in social care is more akin to a compliance system, but, if common sense were used it needn't be this way more
(31 October 2007 13:51)

Research: children with antisocial personality disorders
Young people and children with conduct disorders are at greater risk of developing persistent and intractable patterns of problem behaviour in adult.... more
(31 October 2007 13:43)

Key Messages
The messages for practitioners flow from the key features of effective interventions that have been identified in the main article. more
(31 October 2007 13:34)

New guidance needed on abortion for serious handicap, MPs say
The government should produce guidance on defining foetal abnormality for doctors and their patients when considering abortion, a group of MPs have.... more
(31 October 2007 13:32)

Advocacy in Action
New and experienced advocates and service users can quickly benefit from reviewing this easy-to-read yet comprehensive short series, writes Russell.... more
(31 October 2007 11:47)

Career Clinic
Q: I'm a member of Unison and have been asked if I'd like to play a more active role, possibly as a shop steward. Although I am interested in taking.... more
(31 October 2007 11:35)

Money Magic: Looking for a loan?
Paul Lewis explains the pitfalls and traps you may face if you borrow money more
(31 October 2007 11:31)

On the Move
Latest movers and shakers in the social care field more
(31 October 2007 11:26)

Lifestyle review: The boyfriend with a straw
Mark Drinkwater finds laughter in the saddest things more
(31 October 2007 11:22)

Social skirmishes
Rosie Warlock is off on half-term holiday. Her colleague reports back on a month of social care conferences more
(31 October 2007 11:14)

Community Clairvoyance
The alternative horoscope for social workers more
(31 October 2007 11:12)

Diary; A lighter take on the working week.
A service manager writes more
(31 October 2007 11:08)

Comedians and social care
Three comedians share some entertaining experiences of their encounter with social care services more
(31 October 2007 10:58)

Older people: Knowsley Council's community engagement project
When Knowsley Council and the local primary care trust set up a community engagement project they were determined it would pay more than lip-service.... more
(31 October 2007 10:37)

Delivering and receiving services in rural areas
Each week the Social Care Institute for Excellence analyses research findings behind specific social work practices more
(31 October 2007 10:27)

Research Abstracts: Social Exclusion in Rural Areas
Title: The factors influencing access to health and social care in the farming communities of County Down, Northern Ireland Author: Heenan,.... more
(31 October 2007 10:18)

New build plea to ease plight of homeless
Other headlines today include: Minister's concern over rise in number of teenage pregnancies and Open verdict on death of GP patient. more
(31 October 2007 09:51)

Why benefits reform is a bit like squeezing a balloon
Gordon Brown's change in tax credit rules looked innocuous enough six months ago. But now complications have set in, writes Gary Vaux more
(31 October 2007 09:23)

Give refugees free English classes, says IPPR
Refugees should be given free English language classes to support their integration into Britain, a leading think tank has proposed. more
(30 October 2007 15:44)

'Government poverty unit must include Treasury'
Treasury officials must be involved in a new child poverty unit in Whitehall if it is to succeed, campaigners have said. more
(30 October 2007 15:39)

Misconduct: Staff allowed to work until found guilty
Legislation to be rewritten after judges say suspensions under Pova process violate human rights of care workers more
(30 October 2007 15:25)

'Reform benefits for carers' urges Counsel and Care
The government must recognise the growing number of older carers in its review of the 1999 strategy for carers, campaigners urged today. more
(30 October 2007 14:32)

Mike Wardle appointed as new chief executive of GSCC
Leaders in social care are hopeful that the new chief executive of the General Social Care Council, Mike Wardle, will be able to steer the sector.... more
(30 October 2007 12:21)

Ed Balls hails Child Poverty Unit
The Child Poverty Unit, which will begin work next month, will be based in the Deparment for Children, Schools and Families(DCSF) www.dscf.gov.uk. more
(30 October 2007 12:15)

Are you a rationer of services?
At a time of tightening eligibility criteria and funding cuts, more and more social workers are faced with the unpleasant task of breaking the news.... more
(30 October 2007 09:03)

Mental health workers to strike over nurse suspension
A three-day strike by 700 staff at Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust is to take place this week in protest at the suspension of.... more
(29 October 2007 16:27)

User-led Organisations Development Fund: Invitation to apply to become an Action and Learning Site
The Department of Health has established a project to address the recommendation in Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People (2005) that by 2010.... more
(27 October 2007 15:30)

Miscellaneous
Reviews that do not fit into our categories more
(29 October 2007 14:17)

Domestic Violence
All our Domestic Violence reviews more
(29 October 2007 13:58)

Asylum Seekers
All our reviews from the Asylum Seekers section more
(27 October 2007 13:49)

0-9
Please click on the title to view the full review more
(29 October 2007 12:18)