November 2007 Archives

by Mike McNabb

Spot the difference: in October 1992, trade and industry secretary Michael Heseltine announced the closure of 31 coal mines; in May 2007, Remploy, the government-funded company that provides employment to disabled people, announced proposals to close 32 of its factories and to merge a further 11.

By Clare Jerrom

It astounds me that at a time of increased awareness about bullying in schools and initiatives being launched left right and centre to tackle this growing issue that we have such appalling examples of bullying on tv and in the press every single day.

by Lauren Revans

Richard Farnell, a professor at the Applied Research Centre in Sustainable Regeneration at Coventry University, has called for local authorities to help churches, mosques and other faith groups play a bigger role in supporting frontline council services.

By Caroline Lovell

Here’s the Yankee Doodle Dandy take on being a social worker…slightly different, don't you think?

Honoree Social Workers Talk of Job Satisfaction

Once again we have four feature articles in this weeks issue.

Our lead feature looks at the disparity in pay rises between senior employees and the frontlilne workers. We have the views of four people from different parts of the sector, in our article "Pound for pound the bosses are quids in"

by Mithran Samuel

The publication of the annual star ratings is not quite the event in the social care calendar that it once was. For one thing, they now only cover adult services, while the spectre of zero-star authorities being dumped in special measures and facing intervention are, thankfully, behind us. Gradual improvement is now the name of the game, with the Commission for Social Care Inspection shining a spotlight on those councils which are not improving quickly enough rather than the proverbial basketcases, as in days of yore. Council leaders argue that this somewhat dull picture appears all the more creditable given the tough environment of recent years - rising demand, budgetary constraints and efficiency targets. But amid the celebrations of today, there are some potential pitfalls ahead.

by Keith Hassell

I thought they were taking the proverbial. It was half time at Wembley, two-nil down against Croatia. The weather was foul, the pitch a bog and the mood was murderous. The England team had skulked off with boos ringing in their ears.

By Caroline Lovell

I’ve found this brilliant feature in the New York Times magazine which looks at what leads young Moroccans to become militant Muslims.

By Caroline Lovell

Who knew that being compared to ITV’s X Factor judge Simon Cowell could lead someone to such rage? But in a quiet corner of Wales, a throw-away comment caused a serious knuckle sandwich.

By Caroline Lovell

Hands up. I admit it. I LOVE trashy TV. Give me a double bill of Colin Fry’s Sixth Sense or Judge Judy any day. But in Spain day-time TV seems to have a much darker side.

by Simeon Brody

A poll on the Community Care website last week showed that a staggering 98% of social care professionals felt the pay gap between public sector senior management and staff had grown too wide. Rarely does a poll generate such overwhelming strength of feeling.

In this weeks Community Care we have three feature articles.

Firstly, our lead feature by Derren Hayes looks at the growth of call centres hadling social servies enquiries, in his piece entitled An answer to Gershon's call?

Next we have Amy Taylor's piece on the unveiling of a national contract for placing children in residential care. Click to read Not just a pretty placement

by Mike McNabb

When will Britain accept that it is no longer a colonial power that can organise the world along its own lines and instead start looking after the people who live here?

by Natalie Valios

My name is Natalie and I am a social gambler. This revelation came about during research for a feature on problem gamblers. Obviously there’s a huge divide between problem gamblers and social gamblers, but still the latter label was never one I’d considered attaching to myself before.

by Adam McCulloch

Sometimes you hear stories that involve so many issues that you don’t know where to start separating them out.

Here are two stories that to me bring together questions involving the possible exploitation of staff – many of whom are recent immigrants – standards in residential homes and home care, the private sector’s pursuit of profit and the British tendency to turn a blind eye when it comes to issues affecting the elderly.

by Mithran Samuel

How to combat hardcore heroin addiction is one of the great domestic public policy questions. Official figures suggest 10% of addicts commit 75% of acquisitive crimes in Britain, and this group appear to be the hardest to treat with conventional methods, such as methadone. So it was encouraging to learn, on Monday's Today programme, of a scheme that appears to have cut crime rates and contact with dealers significantly. Wasn't it? No it wasn't, if the country's second most popular daily was to be believed. The Daily Mail ran a story headlined: "£2.5m to treat drug addicts - with heroin."

by Keith Sellick

At first glance this story seems to be a cut and dried offence.

by Keith Hassell

Barry George was an accident waiting to happen. A loner diagnosed with six personality disorders and having learning disabilities and epilepsy was vulnerable to having his behaviour misinterpreted.

by Simeon Brody

There's a new political site set up for lefties called Liberal Conspiracy. Worth checking out as they have blog posts on trade union action at a care home, Ken Livingstone's report on Islamophobia and one on unemployment.

In Community Care this week, there are four featured articles.

Firstly we have our lead feature, Corin Williams looks at the Statement of Social Works Roles and Tasks "Who are you?"

In the children's section, Natalie Valios looks at funding for communication aids, in her piece entitled "Speak easy"

by Simeon Brody

Racial or ethnic prejudices, sometimes unconscious, can lead social workers to see abuse or neglect where none exists, according to a US government report.

by Adam McCulloch

Never feels nice to be sworn at. In the workplace it is said that swearing violently may be therapeutic to those feeling the urge to let things out, but when you perceive yourself to be on the receiving end it is anything but therapeutic... unless you are very weird or delight in public recognition of your awful driving.

by Mithran Samuel

Community Care was one of a number of news organisations to trumpet the return of the delayed discharge as a political issue, after government figures this month appeared to show a 30% hike in the number of days patients spent in hospital when ready for discharge from 2005-6 to 2006-7.

by Adam McCulloch

I wonder how care home owners and home care providers feel about the potential of technology to render them obsolete.

by Lauren Revans

Normally I quite like Jonathan Ross – even if he is vastly overpaid. But on Friday night, he definitely overstepped the mark.