Sole guardianship for permanent caregivers

<p>This dissertation analyses whether permanent caregivers should be given sole guardianship responsibilities. It shows that the current legal regulations are not sufficient to secure the placement of a child with foster parents on a permanent basis. Therefore, it examines not only the Care of Children Act 2004 and the Children, Young Persons, and Their Children Act 1989, but also the Green Paper for Vulnerable Children as well as the White Paper for Vulnerable Children, launched in October 2012 by the Ministry of Social Development. The White Paper contains a suggestion to limit parental rights in order to secure the “Home for Life” policy, but fails to discuss the proposed amendments in depth and does not set out detailed provisions. In order to fill the gap in the present debate, this dissertation contains recommendations to amend the current legal provisions.</p>

Sole guardianship for permanent caregivers

<p>This dissertation analyses whether permanent caregivers should be given sole guardianship responsibilities. It shows that the current legal regulations are not sufficient to secure the placement of a child with foster parents on a permanent basis. Therefore, it examines not only the Care of Children Act 2004 and the Children, Young Persons, and Their Children Act 1989, but also the Green Paper for Vulnerable Children as well as the White Paper for Vulnerable Children, launched in October 2012 by the Ministry of Social Development. The White Paper contains a suggestion to limit parental rights in order to secure the “Home for Life” policy, but fails to discuss the proposed amendments in depth and does not set out detailed provisions. In order to fill the gap in the present debate, this dissertation contains recommendations to amend the current legal provisions.</p>

A self-assessment tool for social responsibility in higher education. Reporting on a national policy development process in Portugal

Purpose Providing higher education institutions (HEIs) with a tool for self-assessing their social responsibility (SR) that generates the information and knowledge necessary to a strategic approach to adopting the Green Paper recommendations about the SR of HEIs. Setting out the collaborative policy development process to construct the tool “Indicators of SR of HEIs” (ISRHEI).[AQ1] Design/methodology/approach After a literature review, including self-assessment (SA) tools and leading guidelines, a working group of 24 Portuguese HEIs was created to co-construct the ISRHEI tool, which was then subject to validation in a pilot study. Findings There are 34 indicators in the ISRHEI tool, structured by sequential levels according to the HEI alignment with SR (policies, procedures, practices and monitoring along a strategic continuum) hoping to achieve impacts on the organisational, educational, cognitive and social level. Originality/value This is an innovative and national policy development process for SR in Portugal. It gives insights into guiding documents, SA indicators for SR and the process of developing consensus on this topic amongst 24 HEIs in Portugal. The ISRHEI tool is tailored to the specific characteristics and level of development of HEIs.

Origin, Objectives, and Content of the Directive

This chapter provides an overview of the overall EU copyright harmonization project and explains the history of the 2019 EU Directive on copyright in the Digital Single Market (Directive 2019/790) and the place that it has within the broader EU copyright architecture. It recounts the copyright reform in Europe, which has been based on the harmonization at the EU level and modernization at the EU national level. It also stresses that EU harmonization has been prompted by internal market concerns and concerns regarding the overall competitiveness and appropriateness of the EU copyright regime. The chapter describes the field of copyright, wherein the process of Europeanization of national laws has resulted in their settlement to and convergence with EU law. It mentions the 1988 Green Paper by the Commission of the European Communities, which signaled the start of a more concrete discourse around copyright harmonization.

MECANISMOS CONSTITUCIONALES DE MANEJO DE LAS DIFERENCIAS CONSTITUCIONALES Y DESCENTRALIZACIÓN POLÍTICA: ASIMILACIONISMO Y PLURALISMO

Este trabajo busca acercarse a algunos puntos teóricos centrales para la comprensión del debate sobre las sociedades multiculturales y la multiculturalidad, en específico respecto a los mecanismos de diferencia étnicas-nacionales, de políticas de acomodación en los diseños con constitución de Estados multinacionales. Asimismo, propone que es necesaria una teoría crítica para desplegar un estudio serio de la constitución política de las sociedades multiculturales, que tome en cuenta que la Constitución puede convertirse en un mecanismo de opresión o liberación de los grupos culturales dominantes y subalternos, respectivamente. Abstract This paper seeks to approach some central theoretical points for the understanding of the debate on multicultural societies and multiculturalism, specifically regarding the mechanisms of ethnic difference-The European Parliament has also expressed its support for the European Parliament’s Green Paper. It also proposes that a critical theory is necessary to carry out a serious study of the political constitution of multicultural societies, take into account that the Constitution can become a mechanism of oppression or liberation of the dominant and subordinate cultural groups, respectively.

Social impact measurement in social housing: a theory-based investigation into the context, mechanisms and outcomes of implementation

Purpose English social housing providers are increasingly turning to social impact measurement to assess their social value. This paper aims to understand the contextual factors causing this rise in the practice, specifically within this sector; the mechanisms that enable it to be effectively implemented within an individual organisation and the outcomes of successful implementation for individual organisations and more widely across the sector and beyond. Design/methodology/approach A realist theory-based approach is applied to the study of a small number of social housing organisations and leaders within the sector to explore the use of social impact measurement. The paper addresses three questions: Why is social impact measurement being adopted in this sector? How is it successfully implemented? And what happens (outcomes) when it is successfully implemented? Addressing these questions necessitates deeper insight into the contextual pressures that have brought to the fore social impact measurement within the sector and the beneficial outcomes the practice provides (or is anticipated to provide) to social housing providers. The methodological approach of Realist Evaluation (Pawson and Tilley, 1997, 2004) is used to structure and analyse the empirical data and findings into a programme theory for social impact measurement. Realist Evaluation provides a programme theory perspective, seeking to answer the question “what works, for whom and in what circumstances?”. In this research, the “whom” refers to English social housing providers and the circumstances are the contextual conditions experienced by the sector over the past decade. The programme theory aims to set out the links between the contextual drivers for social impact measurement, the mechanisms that bring about its implementation and the outcomes that occur as a result. Within this, greater detail on the implementation perspective is provided by developing an implementation theory using a Theory of Change approach (Connell et al., 1995; Fulbright-Anderson et al., 1998). The implementation theory is then embedded within the wider programme theory so as to bring the two elements together, thereby creating a refinement of the overall theory for social impact measurement. In turn, this paper demonstrates its importance (the outcomes that it can achieve for organisations and the sector) and how it can effectively be implemented to bring about those outcomes. Findings Social housing providers use social impact measurement both internally, to determine their organisational priorities and externally, to demonstrate their value to local and national governments and cross-sector partners then to shape and influence resource allocation. The practice itself is shown to be an open and active programme, rather than a fixed calculative practice. Research limitations/implications The intensive nature of the research means that only a limited number of cases were explored. Further research could test theories developed here against evidence collected from a wider range of cases, e.g. other types of providers or non-adopters. Practical implications The research makes a strong contribution to practice in the form of a re-conceptualisation of how social impact measurement can be shown to be effective, based on a deeper understanding of causal mechanisms, how they interact and the outcomes that result. This is of value to the sector as such information could help other organisations both to understand the value of social impact measurement and to provide practical guidance on how to implement it effectively. Social implications As the practice of impact measurement continues to develop, practitioners will need to be aware of any changes to these contextual factors and consider questions such as: is the context still supportive of impact measurement? Does the practice need to be adjusted to meet the needs of the current context? For instance, the recent tragedy at Grenfell Tower has led to a reconsideration of the role of social housing; a new Green Paper is currently being drafted (Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, 2018). This may have a number of implications for social impact measurement, such as a rebalancing of emphasis on outcomes relating to environmental improvements, towards outcomes relating to the well-being of tenants. Originality/value Existing literature is largely limited to technical guides. This paper links theory-based evaluation to practice contributing to social housing practice.

Cognitive therapy compared with CBT for social anxiety disorder in adolescents: a feasibility study

Background Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is common, typically starts in adolescence and has a low natural recovery rate. Existing psychological treatments for adolescent SAD are only moderately effective. It is possible that recovery rates for adolescents could be substantially improved by adapting a psychological therapy that is highly effective among adults with SAD. Objectives To train child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) therapists to deliver cognitive therapy for SAD in adolescents (CT-SAD-A) and assess therapist competence. To estimate the costs to the NHS of training therapists to deliver CT-SAD-A and the mean cost per adolescent treated. To examine the feasibility of a randomised controlled trial (RCT) to compare CT-SAD-A with the general form of cognitive–behavioural therapy that is more commonly used. Design During the training phase of the study, it became clear that the RCT would not be feasible because of high staff turnover and unfilled posts within CAMHS and changes in the nature of referrals, which meant that few young people with primary SAD were accessing some of the participating services. The study design was altered to comprise the following: a training case series of CT-SAD-A delivered in routine CAMHS, an estimate of the cost to the NHS of training therapists to deliver CT-SAD-A and of the mean cost per adolescent treated, and qualitative interviews with participating young people, parents, therapists and service managers/leads. Setting Five CAMHS teams within Berkshire Healthcare and Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trusts. Participants Eight therapists received training in CT-SAD-A. Twelve young people received CT-SAD-A, delivered by six therapists. Six young people, six parents, seven therapists and three managers participated in qualitative interviews. Interventions Cognitive therapy for social anxiety disorder in adolescents (CT-SAD-A). Main outcome measures Measured outcomes included social anxiety symptoms and diagnostic status, comorbid symptoms of anxiety and depression, social and general functioning, concentration in class and treatment acceptability. Patient level utilisation of the intervention was collected using clinicians’ logs. Results Nine out of 12 participants achieved good outcomes across measures (r ≥ 0.60 across social anxiety measures). The estimated cost of delivering CT-SAD-A was £1861 (standard deviation £358) per person. Qualitative interviews indicated that the treatment was acceptable to young people, parents and therapists, but therapists and managers experienced challenges when implementing the training and treatment within the current CAMHS context. Limitations Findings were based on a small, homogeneous sample and there was no comparison arm. Conclusions CT-SAD-A is a promising treatment for young people with SAD, but the current CAMHS context presents challenges for its implementation. Future work Further work is needed to ensure that CAMHS can incorporate and test CT-SAD-A. Alternatively, CT-SAD-A should be delivered and tested in other settings that are better configured to treat young people whose lives are held back by SAD. The new schools Mental Health Support Teams envisaged in the 2017 Children’s Mental Health Green Paper may provide such an opportunity. Funding The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme. Individual funding was also provided for Cathy Creswell, David M Clark and Eleanor Leigh as follows: NIHR Research Professorship (Cathy Creswell); Wellcome Senior Investigator Award (Anke Ehlers and David M Clark); and the Wellcome Clinical Research Training Fellowship (Eleanor Leigh).

Investigation of Factors of EU Port Competitiveness

The importance of ports in the European context is proved by studying the various management characteristics and difficulties in developing a common European policy, as well as the measures taken by the EC to improve competition in this area. The main provisions of the Green Paper as a means of increasing competitiveness are considered and its main points are analyzed. The directions of the EU policy on the development of the port industry by regulating the competitive strategies of ports, in order to promote, regulate and ensure port competition at the local, regional and international levels, are considered. Transport is becoming an integral part of the production process, as globalization, ports and the maritime sector are key factors in logistics concepts. The EU's experience has shown that a cost-effective, reliable and competitive port system is of strategic importance for achieving the liberalization of competitive trade. Moreover, to ensure that the role of ports contributes to the success of these principles, the EU is trying to create a single national policy. The main purpose of this policy is to promote the means of managing port financing, competition and improving the state of the port industry. It was emphasized that the EU proposals can be reduced to four main areas: improvement and modernization of port infrastructure and their inclusion in the trans-European transport network; creation of a competitive playing field; promotion of research and development for ports; establishing a dialogue between all partners to address relevant issues. However, the first difficulty with the formation of a unified national policy in the port industry is the difference in the size of ports, capacity, geographical location, management, operation and employment. The main differences between European ports are the result of different cultures and ways of thinking. First of all, the three control theories are similar between the ports under study. Further, the size of the port can be local, national or international. There is a very important similarity between these ports, as they are all international; they serve the same great theory and are the gateway to Europe. Employment is an important factor, as in Europe you can find two part-time or basic wage or permanent jobs. On the other hand, the main differences that can be identified are the way of working and the geographical location. In other words, if the port is an estuary or coastal, it is a natural harbor or a system of closed docks. This factor is one of the main differences between ports, as it provides a comparative advantage in terms of maneuverability. others. These differences are actually one of the reasons why the EC initiated the EU Law, which should apply to ports.