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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.

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September 2008

30 September 2008

New report from the Equality and Human Rights Commission

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has published a new report entitled Sex and Power 2008. The report includes details of a survey of women in positions of power and influence. Among other things the survey finds that on 11% of FTSE 100 directorships are help by women and that women make up only 19.3% of parliamentary positions.

30 September 2008

New research brief from Fragile Families

The Fragile Families research programme has published a new briefing entitled Predictors of homelessness and doubling-up among at risk families.

26 September 2008

Courts do not treat non-resident parents unfairly

An independent study published today by the Oxford University Centre for Family Law and Policy, shows that family courts are making great efforts with considerable success to secure child contact, following divorce or separation. The study found no evidence that courts are biased against non-resident parents as a group. In most cases the courts were successful in securing contact for the non-resident parent.

26 September 2008

Improving outcomes for children

Michael Sieff conference delegates have agreed that a wider recognition of the complexity and difficulty of the task of improving outcomes for children is needed. One suggestion was to appoint a 'chief scientist for children' to raise the quality of research. Support was also shown for a 'public health' style approach to parenting which would involve sophisticated liaison with the media and a drive to raise overall public awareness.

25 September 2008

Parents speak out on child poverty in new Citizens Advice report

A report from the national charity Citizens Advice gives a new insight into the financial, emotional and physical impact of poverty on children in modern Britain. The report is entitled, 'This is child poverty' and gives a voice to some of the families struggling to make ends meet. This report also outlines the steps that are needed if the government is to meet its target of halving child poverty by 2010 and ending it by 2020.

25 September 2008

The British Household Panel Survey at its 18th birthday

The British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) celebrates its 18th birthday this autumn and has tracked the lives of 10,000 individuals since 1991. The institute for Social and Economic Research is publishing a new report this week explaining the achievements of the BHPS. Poverty and social exclusion, births outside marriage and mental distress are among the notable research findings about UK society.

25 September 2008

Learning to say no to the preschool oversell

Professor Jay Belsky has suggested to the Sieff Foundation conference delegates that advocates of early years services have exaggerated the stability of pre-school impairments. Belsky claims that it is misleading to talk of a 'critical period' and he gave warnings about unhelpful claims as to the effectiveness of early years programs. Belsky said,' There is no single way to do intervention well. Some people advocate center-based programs, others high quality childcare and others claim that family involvement is crucial.'

25 September 2008

Sex roles in society: Sexism pays

Timothy Judge and Beth Livingston, from the University of Florida, have conducted a new study looking at peoples views of gender roles in the work force and at home. They found that men who believe in traditional roles for women earn more money than men who don't and women with more egalitarian views don't make much more than women with a more traditional outlook. These results show that changes in gender role attitudes have substantial effects on pay equity.

19 September 2008

fpa launches new comic for 6-7 year olds

National sexual health charity, fpa, is launching a new booklet on growing up for 6-7 year old boys and girls today. 'Let's Grow with Nisha and Joe', introduces the idea of identity, physical and emotional development. The colourful 12 page comic is designed to help teachers and parents talk with children about growing up and help them understand the differences between girls and boys bodies in a relaxed and fun way.

19 September 2008

Child development could be a case of health maintenance

Tom Dishion, Director of the Child and Family Center at the University of Oregon, spoke in London last night at the Dartington-i annual lecture and suggested that child and adolescent development in the context of family life is a case of health maintenance rather than a medical model. Specifically, check ups and self-help were emphasised as key ingredients of interventions. Interventions target the ecology of children's lives - family, community and school - and Tom Dishion suggests that these are the motivation for change.

18 September 2008

Millions allocated to fight youth crime

The Youth Crime Action Plan was launched in July and tackles youth crime through a comprehensive strategy involving early prevention, non-negotiable support and tough enforcement. Targeted programmes within the plan, including after-school patrols and crime prevention teams, will receive a cash injection of almost £60 million. This funding will help support all areas of the country, including those outside targeted communities.

18 September 2008

Two-parent households could reduce poverty among children

Two American researchers, Paul Amato and Rebecca Maynard, suggest there is a need for more government funded efforts to reduce the number of children in single parent households. Specifically, they would like to see a doubling of the number of couples who participate in premarital education and increase sexual education in schools. The researchers suggest that factors such as these could significantly increase the number of two-parent households and as a result, reduce poverty among children.

18 September 2008

Netmums health visitor campaign

Netmums has completed a health visitor research survey which over 6,000 mums took part in. The survey revealed that only 46% of mothers saw their health visitor once or twice in the 8 weeks following birth. 59% of the mothers said they would have liked to have seen their health visitor more in the early days. There has been a sharp decline in the number of health visitors in many areas and Netmums are taking their survey results to the government so they can see what mothers need.

12 September 2008

It's good to talk

The European Health Psychology Society and British Psychological Society's Division of Health Psychology Conference 2008 have reported the findings of a study which reveal telling your partner everything is good for your psychological health. The researchers found that those people who disclosed a lot to their partner had better mental health and relationship satisfaction.

11 September 2008

Breakthrough Britain: The Next Generation

The Centre for Social Justice has published a policy report from the Early Years Commission entitled, 'Breakthrough Britain: The Next Generation'. Relationships in the early years remain on the sideline in current policy with no recognition of the fundamental role they play in bringing about children's wellbeing and reducing the likelihood of psychological problems. However, this 'Next Generation' report emphasises that what happens in the early years profoundly shapes a person's ability to enter into all future relationships.

11 September 2008

Affection from parents could help children's health

Research from the University of Warwick suggests that aspects of parent-child relationships can affect children's physical health. For example, hostility and abuse could put a child at risk for not only emotional but also physical problems. The researchers found that the more resentment and hostility parents showed their children early on, the more likely it was that they would have health problems later.

11 September 2008

Fast Track scheme tackles aspects of children's lives

The Fast Track scheme, by a coalition of US universities, has already proved itself capable of changing the trajectories of seriously troubled young people and it continues to report successes with high-risk children. Fast Track's long term success is a result of tackling all aspects of children's lives throughout a critical decade of their development, delivering services during the junior years and again during adolescence.

11 September 2008

Psychologists support counselling for women considering abortion in Northern Ireland

A consultation on guidance for pregnancy terminations by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety for Northern Ireland (DHSSPSNI) has been welcomed by the British Psychological Society. The society supports the guidance as being a positive step forward by helping to formally document some of the sensitive and challenging issues that surround terminations.

11 September 2008

YoungMinds calls for young people to share their feelings

YoungMinds, the children's mental health charity urges young people to share their problems to stop them from escalating to a point where they can not cope. Young people approaching adulthood are at a pivotal stage and they may need more support than they realise to cope with low moods or feelings of insecurity. Feelings of suicide are very dangerous for young people and talking about their feelings really can help.

11 September 2008

YoungMinds welcomes new children's mental health website

YoungMinds, the children's mental health charity, is supporting the Great Ormond Street Hospital's (GOSH) new interactive mental health site for 12-18 year olds. The website will include fact-sheets on mental health conditions, treatments and medications and first hand accounts of life on a psychiatric ward.

11 September 2008

Free childcare for 50,000 families

Low income families across the country are to receive free childcare so they can access training and return to work, thanks to a new £75million programme announced by the government. The 'Free Childcare for Training and Learning for Work' programme will support 50,000 low income families where one parent is working and the second parent wants to improve their skills so that they can return to work.

11 September 2008

Relate at 70: Relationship charity reveals the ten issues that drive couples apart

Relate, the relationship counselling charity was founded 70 years ago and today helps 150,000 people. The charity has commissioned a survey to highlight the real-life issues that bring couples to Relate. The survey found the ten most common issues Relate clients face, including: affairs, lack of work-life balance and financial difficulties.

05 September 2008

Unemployment and divorce findings from the Institute for Social and Economic Research

According to research by Morten Blekesaune, losing your job in Britain, whether you are a man or a woman, increases the chances that you will lose your partner. The study also reveals that male unemployment tends to lower the financial satisfaction of their partners, and it is this that accounts for a large part of the stress on a relationship.

05 September 2008

What influences childhood achievement at school?

A group of UK researchers, led by Edward Melhuish of the University of London and Executive Director of the National Evaluation of Sure Start, tracked over 2,000 children and their progress between the ages of three and seven. It was found that children of parents who encouraged learning at home were more likely to surpass expectations based on their family backgrounds. Which preschool a child attended also appeared to matter, emphasising the importance of programs such as Sure Start.

04 September 2008

Children blame themselves for their parents' unhappiness

New research by Gordon Harold and his Cardiff University colleagues questions why children whose parents fight run a high risk of underachieving at school. The findings suggest that children living in households characterised by high levels of inter-parental conflict are indeed at risk of lower attainment at school, and, importantly, that children's own appraisal of their parents' conflict and their tendency to blame themselves for what they see happening is the mechanism through which any damage is done.

04 September 2008

Kids behave better if they are self-aware

Josephine Ross from the University of Stirling conducted a study which looked at whether young children's behaviour is influenced by self-awareness. Children took part in a guessing game and differing levels of obedience were found, suggesting that self-awareness does influence young children's behaviour. Like adults, young children regulate their own behaviour, aiming to act in a more socially acceptable way when self-aware.

04 September 2008

Give children a say in their mental health treatment, urges YoungMinds

A YoungMinds poll reveals that 97% of professionals, parents and young people think that children should have a say in their mental health treatment. Actively involving children will make it more likely for the treatment to succeed by ensuring that it meets the child's needs. However, feedback from the charity's children's advisory panel shows that very few children actually do have a say in their mental health treatment.

04 September 2008

Depression disorder is linked to older fathers

A new study by researchers at Sweden's Karolinska Institute suggests that children born to older fathers face a greater chance of developing bipolar disorder. The leading theory to explain this is that older men's sperm may be more likely to develop mutations. The findings show that the risks start increasing around age 40 but are strongest among those 55 and older.

04 September 2008

Advice for parents about gangs

The Home Office has published a new booklet with information for parents to help them protect their children from gangs. 'Gangs: You and Your Child' offers practical steps that parents and carers can take if they suspect their child may be involved with gangs, and tells them who to contact for help and support. 30,000 copies are being distributed in cities involved in the Tackling Gangs action programme.

04 September 2008

New approach to improve standards in reading, writing and maths

The Children's Secretary Ed Balls has said that he will extend nationally groundbreaking schemes to help children in danger of falling behind in reading, writing and maths. The Government is investing £169 million on these innovative programmes over the next three years. The three schemes are Every Child A Writer (ECAW), Every Child Counts (ECC) and Every Child A Reader (ECAR). Emphasis within these programmes will be on one to one tuition.

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