The need for support: Young people living through a family health crisis

Young people living with a family health crisis are found to experience high levels of distress, anxiety, low mood and depressive symptoms and are at risk of becoming disengaged with education, socially isolated and uncertain regarding what the future will hold for them. A body of research indicates that practical intervention, including youth work, engagement with other young people and targeted support can have a significant impact upon a young person’s capacity to cope with a complex family health crisis and develop self-reliant behaviours. Despite the plethora of evidence to indicate the need for systems of support for children and young people experiencing a family health crisis, current provision across the UK is inconsistent, inequitable and not clearly underpinned by policy intervention. This study sets out to indicate the extent and nature of need of children and young people who are living with a family health crisis in Britain, the type of support they require and the ways in which Hope Support meets those needs

Get Young People Working - The Youth Offer, Final Evaluation Report

Get Young People Working – The Youth Offer is a £3.28m two-year programme funded by City Bridge Trust (CBT). Grants have been made to London's 32 Local Authorities (LAs) with the aim of helping 1,000 young people across the capital not in Employment Education and Training (NEET) gain employment, an apprenticeship or vocational training. The intention of the programme has been to increase their employability, adding value to existing programmes and contributing to an evidence base of what works for this group. Every London LA was awarded a grant of up to £100,000, with the freedom to decide on the most appropriate spend in the light of local circumstances. The only condition was that the LAs worked in partnership with one or more Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) organisation(s) to deliver the projects. The outcomes achieved exceeded the target, set for itself by City Bridge Trust, with 2,522 participants moving into full-time employment education or training and 214 into part-time education or employment. The individual projects were valued by participants, with a high level of satisfaction among those interviewed or surveyed

Cultivating the Next Generation of Pasture Scientists in Australia

Current students coming through agricultural faculties in Australian universities have grown up in an era of low wool and meat prices, the introduction and acceptance of no-till farming as the norm and a general decrease in mixed farming landscapes in favour of continuous cropping. Since the collapse of the wool reserve price scheme in 1991, wool prices declined and income on wool producing farms followed suit. R & D during this period has also declined from 5-4% agricultural GDP in 1986 to only 3% in 2005 and has favoured research related to cropping rather than that related to pastures and livestock. How then do we convince students that mixed-farming enterprises provide the sustainable future of farming? This paper provides a background to farming practises over the last 20 years, along with the economic, environmental and social basis for the decisions that have been made. In view of a changing climate, peak oil, food security issues and changing trends for global food consumption, it will then set the scene and discuss why pastures and livestock should be an integral component of future farming systems. Finally, it will discuss how we can change a whole generation of future farmers and researchers to see the value of livestock and pastures in their farming landscapes. Current price increases for wool and meat, and the value of spreading risk on-farm in an increasingly variable climate will provide a basis for this decision

The Development of Vocational Interests and Abilities in Secondary School Aged Children

This body of work has focussed on the measurement, structure and stability of vocational interests and abilities in mainstream, mixed-ability secondary school aged children. This set of studies investigated how a large group of children’s vocational interests developed over a two year period, and how their interests for activities/occupations were related to selected abilities (Mechanical, Spatial Rotation and Logical Reasoning). Published research has consistently demonstrated that for adults, vocational interests are stable over time, and that interests typically fall into six main categories; Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising and Conventional (Holland, 1959). Furthermore, there is a wealth of evidence to suggest that the relationships between these six categories broadly approximate a hexagonal framework once individuals reach adulthood (e.g. Holland et al., 1969). Data analysis revealed that similar to adults, children’s interests overall were remarkably stable over time, and that this was particularly the case for Realistic and Social interests. The findings were also suggestive of a pathway of interest development in children aged 11-17. The youngest children who participated in this research had interests that were often gender stereotyped, though the structure of their interests was not consistent with the hexagonal structure commonly seen in adults. However, as children got older, their interests became more aligned to a hexagonal format, particularly for the female group. Furthermore, there were clear gender differences with females typically having more distinctive and more consistent interest profiles over time. There were a few weak associations between ability and interest, with the clearest link suggesting that early Realistic interests are predictive (in part) of later Mechanical ability. These findings consequently have practical implications for the timing and delivery of careers counselling in school. Theoretical implications and future directions have also been identified and discussed.E.S.R.C. & Learning and Skill Counci

Geochemical abundance of iodine

The research reported herein includes unpublished iodine and uranium data on a group of United States Geological Survey standards and on a group of ultrabasic rocks. Data are also included for the major rock types, deep sea sediments, and for graphite and troilite inclusions in iron meteorites. Tellurium data for the troilite are also reported. Appendix I is a literature article (Bennett and Manuel, 1967a) on Canyon Diablo Graphite. Appendix II is a literature article (Bennett and Manuel, 1967b) on deep sea sediments. The results of this study show that most of the earlier estimates of the crustal abundance of iodine are uniformly too high, except for deep sea sediments. The results also indicate that the apparent atomic dispersion theory of iodine was in fact due to rather uniform iodine contamination. The iodine and uranium abundances from this study are used together with terrestrial xenon abundance data recently redetermined by Mr. R. A. Canalas in this laboratory to show that the I¹²⁹-Xe¹²⁹ formation interval of the earth is similar to that of stony meteorites --Abstract, page ii

Giving back control? A contradiction at the heart of Universal Credit

As Damian Green arrives as Secretary of State in the Department for Work and Pensions, Universal Credit must be at the top of the long list of issues he faces – and the decisions he takes will have a major impact on many of the ‘ordinary working class’ families that Theresa May has promised will be the focus of her government. Jane Millar and Fran Bennett explain that, although the new system is supposed to make things simpler, for many it will actually make things more complicated

Sexuality as taboo: using IPA and a Foucauldian lens to explore fathers' practices in talking to their children about puberty, relationships and reproduction

Background: Fathers can play an important role in their children’s learning about relationships and sexuality but we know very little about the father’s lived experience in this regard. Aim: To explore eight fathers’ perceptions and experiences of discussing puberty, relationships and reproduction with their 10-year-old children. Methods: The paper commences with a genealogical analysis of the history of sex education in England from the Public Health Act of 1848 to the present day. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used as both a methodology and a method. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with each father and results were analysed ideographically, followed by analysis across the group. Interpretations were developed using a Foucauldian lens of governmentality and biopower. Findings: The paper explores how synthesis of IPA with a Foucauldian lens revealed significant tensions between the fathers’ cognitions, accounts and behaviours, which were underpinned by an enduring perception of sexuality as taboo. Conclusion: By providing a contextualised understanding of the fathers’ practices, this study demonstrates that a more informed approach to health promotion strategy can be achieved and the implications for nursing are explored