One Plus One

Comments

Research And Policy News

Current research and policy news from Government departments, research centres, publishers, and relationships and family organisations, along with links to further information.

Subscribe to our RSS news feed

July 2006

28 July 2006

Large families at higher risk of poverty

According to a new study, The Economic Position of Large Families, families with four or more dependent children make up less than 5% of all families but more than 20% of poor children. The study, undertaken by the Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), shows that these families are more than three times as likely to be poor as those with only one or two children.

28 July 2006

Marriage and births stats in Scotland

A new publication, Scotlands People 2005 -The Registrar General for Scotland’s Annual Review of Demographic Trends, offers an overview of Scotland’s population and current demographic trends, including marriages and births. The report shows that the 30,881 marriages in Scotland in 2005 were 4 per cent fewer than in 2004 but around the same number as in 2003. It also highlights that Gretna continued to be the most popular location, accounting for about one in six of all marriages, and nearly half of ‘tourist weddings’.

28 July 2006

Work and worklessness amongst households

Labour Force Survey estimates for spring 2006 show that the rate of worklessness for lone parent households with dependent children was 39.4 per cent, and for couple households with dependent children it was 4.9 per cent.

27 July 2006

Prison-based relationship counselling needed

A new DVD highlights the need for prisoners and their families to receive jail-based relationship counselling in order to reduce the risk of re-offending and prevent family breakdown. Homeward Bound, released by Action for Prisoners' Families, highlights the complex issues faced by families when prisoners return home.

27 July 2006

Ethnic minorities in the transition to adulthood

A new study, Young people's experience of transitions to adulthood: A study of minority ethnic and white young people, examined how young people from different minority ethnic groups experience growing up in Scotland. It compared the experiences of ethnic minority people with those of young white people to consider similarities and differences in the transition to adulthood. The study found that all participants reported good family relationships, but those from minority ethnic groups may need to negotiate their family relationships not only in generational terms but also in terms of a dual cultural position.

25 July 2006

Parents' views on child maintenance payments

New research published by the Deaprtment for Work and Pensions shows parental support for the idea of independently negotiating child maintenance payments. The report, Future Policy Options for Child Support: The Views of Parents, examined the views and reactions of parents on the future reform of child support policy.

24 July 2006

Child Support Agency to be replaced

Following the recommendations of an independent report on child support in the UK by Sir David Henshaw, Work and Pensions Secretary John Hutton today announced the government will replace the Child Support Agency with a more streamlined and tougher new body.

24 July 2006

Gender abuse at home

According to a new study of calls to ChildLine, girls are more likely to be hit by their mothers and boys by their fathers. More than one in three girls (37%) who called ChildLine about physical abuse said they had been harmed by their mother, compared to 25 per cent of boys. Conversely, 38 per cent of boys and 27 per cent of girls reported being assaulted by their father.

24 July 2006

National inquiry into childhood

Lord Layard, Emeritus Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics, is to chair the UK's first independent national inquiry into childhood. The Good Childhood Inquiry, managed by The Children's Society, aims to renew society's understanding of childhood for the twenty-first century, with the charity believing that too many children in the UK are experiencing poor childhoods

24 July 2006

GMTV Wedding Survey

8582 people took part in the GMTV Wedding Survey. According to the survey, when it comes to proposing, the UK remains traditional as only 3.4% of wedding proposals came from the woman to the man. Nearly two-thirds of engagements began with the man proposing to the woman while just under 32% of couples decided together.

21 July 2006

Children of ex-partners and new relationships

Having children from a previous partner does not affect the stability of future relationships, according to new research from the Institute of Education. Using data collected from over 5,000 British women born in 1958, researchers looked at the effect of children on separation and marriage. The women were asked about all marriages and cohabitations lasting longer than one month between the ages of 16 and 42.

20 July 2006

Parenting courses to tackle anti-social behaviour

Children's Minister Beverley Hughes has outlined new measures to step-up action on the root causes of problem behaviour. She announced a shortlist of 20 local authorities who will be asked to work up detailed proposals to pilot new targeted support and courses for parents with children and young people at risk of poor behaviour between the ages of 8 to 13. The new parenting classes will mean experts working with targeted groups of parents - not only those whose children misbehave but also those with their own serious issues. They will provide structured, evidence based support and advice on issues such as managing children's behaviour, building positive relationships and dealing with difficult issues such as drug and alcohol abuse.

20 July 2006

Reducing depressive symptoms in at-risk youth

Researchers from Vanderbilt University in the U.S. conducted a meta-analysis of the last 20 years of research on interventions aimed at preventing depressive symptoms in youth. The results of the study appearing in the June issue of the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, published by the American Psychological Association (APA), showed that targeted interventions for those at risk for depression have greater effect sizes than universal interventions. To design better prevention programs for children and adolescents, the researchers recommend future studies should focus on targeted populations that include female adolescents, offspring of depressed parents, youth with elevated depression and/or anxiety symptoms themselves, and youth who have been exposed to stressors, such as parental psychopathology, divorce, or death. Studies also should have longer follow up evaluations to measure whether a preventive effect occurred.

17 July 2006

Planned teenage pregnancy

According to new Joseph Rowntree Foundation research undertaken at the Trust for the Study of Adolescence, some teenagers feel that their conscious decision to become a parent is a reasonably rational life choice given their past and the options available to them. The report, 'Planned’ teenage pregnancy: Perspectives of young parents from disadvantaged backgrounds, used in-depth interviews to examine how poverty and disadvantage impact on teenage decisions to ‘plan’ a pregnancy.

17 July 2006

Britain's unmet needs

The Young Foundation launched a report into Britain’s social needs, highlighting the victims of globalisation, the rising importance of psychological needs and the continuing problems of young people making the transition to adulthood. The report, Britain’s Unmet Needs: a rough map for the Commission on Unclaimed Assets, looks at who is most in need in Britain today; what are the emerging needs and which groups are falling through the cracks.

12 July 2006

Childcare Bill receives Royal Assent

The Government's flagship Childcare Bill has now received Royal Assent fulfilling commitments to give every child the best start in life and parents greater choice about how to balance work and family.

11 July 2006

Family Court hearings to be accountable and open

The family court system will be made more accountable to the public under proposals for consultation announced by Constitutional Affairs Minister Rt. Hon. Harriet Harman QC MP. The plans will see the family court system opened to the media so that they can report on their work to the public. This will affect a range of cases including those where a local authority acts to take a child into care, or where parents dispute child contact or residence. The proposals also include new safeguards to ensure the anonymity and privacy of individuals

11 July 2006

Female academics struggle with work-life conflict

A study has revealed that female academics are often working from home during evenings and weekends in an attempt to cope with the volume of work demands while simultaneously trying to maintain an acceptable work-life balance. The study, conducted by Dr Gail Kinman of the University of Luton and Dr Fiona Jones of the University of Leeds surveyed 343 female lecturers and researchers about the demands of an academic career, such as working hours and patterns, work-life boundaries and flexibility of timetables.

11 July 2006

Women experiencing domestic violence need to be heard

Women trying to escape from abusive and violent relationships face barriers because there are too few ‘specialists’ in public sector agencies. This is the conclusion of Jo Neale of the University of Luton who spoke to residents and staff in refuges for women experiencing domestic violence. The researcher found that, although there were several examples of extremely good practice, there were many more examples of women being frustrated in their attempts to leave their abusers because of institutional barriers.

11 July 2006

Second-time mums choose baby bond over toddler tantrums

Women who have a second baby want to dedicate their time to the newborn even if it means temporarily sacrificing the relationship with their oldest child. This is the conclusion of Nollaig Frost of Birkbeck College, University of London, who questioned women from when they were at least six months pregnant through to when their second child was nine-months-old for her study.

11 July 2006

Turning point for fatherhood

According to a new policy briefing, 21st Century Dad, by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), fatherhood is at a turning point. Fifty years ago the common image of paternity was of a distant, disciplinarian father. Today, dads want a closer relationship with their children and are willing to re-order their priorities to achieve it.

11 July 2006

Turning point for fatherhood

11 July 2006

Dads and their babies

A new working paper, Dads and their babies:a household analysis, has been publised by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC).The study brings together the findings from two surveys commissioned by the EOC investigating the use of leave by fathers from the perspectives of both mothers and fathers. The report places the conduct of fathers in the context of their families by merging the datasets to provide data on 920 households.

11 July 2006

Facts about men and women in Great Britain

The 2006 edition of Facts about women and men in Great Britain has been published by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC). This year’s booklet looks in particular at changes since the 1970s for women and men in terms of education, employment and public life.

06 July 2006

Parenting programmes in disadvantaged areas

Although there is increasing enthusiasm in government and the community for parenting programmes, little is known about what influences their effectiveness in poor, ethnically diverse areas. A new report, What makes parenting programmes work in disadvantaged areas? The PALS trial, published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, conducted a controlled trial of a parenting programme – PALS – in primary schools.

06 July 2006

Parenting in multi-racial Britain

Parenting has increasingly become the focus for policy and academic debate. The racial and cultural heterogeneity of British society also invites considerable attention to many aspects of the lives of minority ethnic families. Yet, there is little empirical evidence into ethnicity, parenting and family life. A new study, Parenting in multi-racial Britain, explores the views and experiences of 'ordinary' parents to increase the understanding in some key areas, including family support, education, child discipline and the process of acculturation.

06 July 2006

Ending child poverty

A new study funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundations and led by researchers in the Centre for Analysis of Social Policy at the University of Bath, looks at the major policy areas that will potentially deliver the Government's aim to end child poverty by 2020. It examines the strengths and weaknesses of how policy works in 2005/06 and - using hypothetical models - examines how far these reduce poverty by 2020 Read more http://www.jrf.org.uk/knowledge/findings/socialpolicy/0376.asp The Government aims to halve child poverty by 2010, and to end it by 2020. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation brought together experts in this field to consider the policies needed to make further progress. This new study included modelling work co-ordinated by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, which estimated the future effect of existing and new policies needed to reach government targets. Read more http://www.jrf.org.uk/knowledge/findings/socialpolicy/0366.asp

05 July 2006

Parenting support booklet for schools

The DfES has produced a new booklet for schools on the core parenting support offer, as part of the extended schools agenda. The booklet describes each aspect of the core offer and includes case studies. It also provides important context about local services for parents, and useful sources of information for schools and parents.

05 July 2006

Government launches policy review of Children and Young People

The Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Ed Balls, and Schools Minister, Andrew Adonis, launched the Government's policy review of Children and Young People, which will inform decisions in next year's Comprehensive Spending Review on what further steps can be taken to improve the life chances of children and young people.

04 July 2006

New approach to adoption in Northern Ireland

Health Minister Paul Goggins has unveiled the proposed new approach to adoption in Northern Ireland which will put children's needs at the heart of the process. Speaking as he launched the consultation document, Adopting the Future , the Minister said it set out proposals for the changes needed to improve adoption services. One of the key elements of this new approach is extending joint adoption to civil partners and unmarried couples.

04 July 2006

Overall rise in sexually transmitted infections

According to new figures released by the Health Protection Agency, the numbers of new diagnoses of sexually transmitted infections at genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinics between 2004 and 2005 has risen by 3 percent.

04 July 2006

New national stats on abortion

New statistics on the number of abortions carried out in England and Wales in 2005 have been released by the Department of Health.

03 July 2006

Support and security in old age

According to a booklet published today by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), Demographic Aspects of Population Ageing, people born in the baby boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s could be less secure after leaving work than their parents' generation. The booklet shows a changing elderly population and one that will become increasingly diverse in future years.

03 July 2006

VAT reduction on contraceptives

The Chancellor's March Budget announced that VAT on condoms and other contraceptive products will be cut from 17.5 per cent to 5 per cent, leading to immediate reductions in the prices paid by consumers. Following talks with retail chemists and sexual health charities, the Government decided to reduce the VAT on condoms as one of a range of measures to improve the nation's sexual health and prevent sexually-transmitted infections (STIs).

News for all months

2010

January	February	March	April
May	June	July	August
September

2009

January	February	March	April
May	June	July	August
September	October	November	December

2008

January	February	March	April
May	June	July	August
September	October	November	December

2007

January	February	March	April
May	June	July	August
September	October	November	December

2006

January	February	March	April
May	June	July	August
September	October	November	December

2005

July	August	September	October
November	December