A Joint Statement: Gender, faith, and COVID-19

In a statement made by Faith in Beijing, a group of religious organizations including Anglican Communion, actalliance, Islamic Relief Worldwide, World Council of Churches, and others, call for worldwide gender equality amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The statement mentions healthcare, education, prevention of sexual violence, and inter-religious dialogue. The statement is available on the Anglican Communion’s website

Near-Real-Time Analysis of Publicly Communicated Disaster Response Information

Analysis of a disaster event can identify strengths and weaknesses of the response implemented by the disaster management system; however, analysis does not typically occur until after the response phase is over. The result is that knowledge gained can only benefit future responses rather than the response under investigation. This article argues that there is an opportunity to conduct analysis while the response is operational due to the increasing availability of information within hours and days of a disaster event. Hence, this article introduces a methodology for analyzing publicly communicated disaster response information in near-real-time. A classification scheme for the disaster information needs of the public has been developed to facilitate analysis and has led to the establishment of best observed practice standards for content and timeliness. By comparing the information shared with the public within days of a disaster to these standards, information gaps are revealed that can be investigated further. The result is identification of potential deficiencies in communicating critical disaster response information to the public at a time when they can still be corrected

The monitored performance of four social houses certified to the Code for Sustainable Homes Level 5

This paper presents the energy and water use of 4 social houses certified to the Code for Sustainable Homes Level 5 in Gainsborough, UK. The houses were monitored over 2 years, from July 2012 to September 2014. As the houses have the same construction and energy efficiency characteristics, the study offered a unique opportunity to investigate the effects of occupant behaviour on the dwellings performance. Electricity, gas and water consumptions were measured through data logging and meter readings. Surveys and interviews were conducted throughout to gain insights into tenants understanding and interactions with low energy features in their homes. Significant differences were observed in the amount of energy and water used. The annual space heating consumptions differentiated by a factor of 2.2 per square metre of floor area. Hot water heating demands varied by a factor of 3.5 per square metre of floor area or by 2.5 per person per year. Mains water consumptions varied by a factor of 2.2 litres per person per day in 2013

Towards a contemporary social care ‘prevention narrative’ of principled complexity: An integrative literature review

Prevention has become increasingly central in social care policy and commissioning strategies within the United Kingdom (UK). Commonly there is reliance on understandings borrowed from the sphere of public health, leaning on a prevention discourse characterised by the 'upstream and downstream' metaphor. Whilst framing both structural factors and responses to individual circumstances, the public health approach nonetheless suggests linearity in a cause and effect relationship. Social care and illness follow many trajectories and this conceptualisation of prevention may limit its effectiveness and scope in social care. Undertaken as part of a commissioned evaluation of the Social Services and Wellbeing Act (2014) Wales, a systematic integrative review was conducted to establish the key current debates within prevention work, and how prevention is conceptually framed, implemented and evaluated within the social care context. The databases Scopus, ASSIA, CINAHL and Social Care Online were initially searched in September 2019 resulting in 52 documents being incorporated for analysis. A further re-run of searches was run in March 2021, identifying a further 14 documents, thereby creating a total of 66. Predominantly, these were journal articles or research reports (n = 53), with the remainder guidance or strategy documents, briefings or process evaluations (n = 13). These were categorised by their primary theme and focus, as well as document format and research method before undergoing thematic analysis. This highlighted the continued prominence of three-tiered, linear public health narratives in the framing of prevention for social care, with prevention work often categorised and enacted with inconsistency. Common drivers for prevention activity continue to be cost reduction and reduced dependence on the care system in the future. Through exploring prevention for older people and caregivers, we argue for an approach to prevention aligning with the complexities of the social world surrounding it. Building on developments in complexity theory in social science and healthcare, we offer an alternative view of social care prevention guided by principles rooted in the everyday realities of communities, service users and caregivers

Decision-making and future planning for children with life-limiting conditions: a qualitative systematic review and thematic synthesis

Background In the last decade, the number of children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions in England has almost doubled, and it is estimated that worldwide, there are 1.2 million children with palliative care needs. Families and professionals caring for children with life-limiting conditions are likely to face a number of difficult treatment decisions and develop plans for future care over the course of the child's life, but little is known about the process by which these decisions and plans are made. Methods The purpose of this review is to synthesize findings from qualitative research that has investigated decision-making and future planning for children with life-limiting conditions. A systematic search of six online databases was conducted and identified 887 papers for review; five papers were selected for inclusion, using predefined criteria. Reference list searching and contacting authors identified a further four papers for inclusion. Results Results sections of the papers were coded and synthesized into themes. Nineteen descriptive themes were identified, and these were further synthesized into four analytical themes. Analytical themes were ‘decision factors’, ‘family factors’, ‘relational factors’ and ‘system factors’. Conclusions Review findings indicate that decision-making and future planning is difficult and needs to be individualized for each family. However, deficits in understanding the dynamic, relational and contextual aspects of decision-making remain and require further research

Cyber threat intelligence sharing: Survey and research directions

Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) sharing has become a novel weapon in the arsenal of cyber defenders to proactively mitigate increasing cyber attacks. Automating the process of CTI sharing, and even the basic consumption, has raised new challenges for researchers and practitioners. This extensive literature survey explores the current state-of-the-art and approaches different problem areas of interest pertaining to the larger field of sharing cyber threat intelligence. The motivation for this research stems from the recent emergence of sharing cyber threat intelligence and the involved challenges of automating its processes. This work comprises a considerable amount of articles from academic and gray literature, and focuses on technical and non-technical challenges. Moreover, the findings reveal which topics were widely discussed, and hence considered relevant by the authors and cyber threat intelligence sharing communities

Street work policy in England, UK: insights from stakeholders

Published with permission by the ICE under the CC-BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)Road works and street works can be highly disruptive, expensive and deleterious to highway structures and infrastructure planning, yet these activities must take place if modern societies are to continue to function. In helping to strike this balance, this study investigates the public policy landscape of highway excavation management in England. Semi-structured interviews with industry stakeholders highlighted the complexity of the industry and revealed that a number of issues compromise effective management. Principal problems included Street Authorities failing to take enough ownership of the coordination process, highway legislation not encouraging joint working due to inherent challenges arising from reinstatement guarantees, and entrenched attitudes and adversarial practices in the construction industry encouraging silo working. Key recommendations include amending highway legislation to support and recognise multi-agency working and Street Authorities undertaking reinstatements on behalf of undertakers, thus helping to reduce fragmentation and discharge undertakers of onerous guarantees which contribute to silo working