Social and Public Policy - Policy and Practice

This report provides a summary of the results from a major international research project, funded by UNICEF, on child rights and child poverty in the developing world.

Any attempt by governments to stem the tide of early retirement will need to focus as much on employers' management of human resources as on the impacts of social policy. This report focuses on this previously neglected area: employers' policies and practice as a dynamic force in retirement decisions.

In the UK there is increasing acceptance that credit unions have an important role to play in providing affordable credit to all sections of society. This study identifies current patterns of credit union development, quantifies their performance and isolates factors which make some more successful than others. Free PDF available at www.jrf.org.uk

This study examines the relationship between poverty and informal work. Exploring the experiences of people in low-paid informal work, it contends that unless government seeks to include the informal economy in its strategies, it will never be able to reach its employment or anti-poverty targets.

Free pdf version available at www.jrf.org.uk

This report explores the possibilities of more flexible forms of work that bridge the gap between a steady career job and retirement. It examines such jobs in the wider context of the types of transition that are being made by people leaving work early.

This report looks at the role of finances in decisions about early moves out of work. Drawing on in-depth interviews with people who make an early retirement, it makes a distinctive contribution to understanding their experiences, looking at the importance of money alongside other influences, including health and domestic circumstances.

Against a background of population ageing, policy makers in the majority of industrialised countries are developing policies aimed at extending working life and promoting the benefits of employing older workers. This report reviews developments in several countries and offers recommendations for public policy.

The welfare of ethnic minority individuals in Britain depends critically on how they fare in the labour market. This report provides a detailed empirical analysis of labour market outcomes and explores how ethnically diverse these outcomes are and how they have changed over time.

A free pdf version is available at www.jrf.org.uk

With the increase in mothers' employment both the government and many employers are promoting flexible working policies to improve work-life 'balance'. This report considers the effects of these changes on the lives of both women and men. It examines three employment sectors in detail - banking, grocery retail and local authorities.

Rising concerns about a 'problematic street culture' associated with rough sleeping, especially begging and street drinking, have seen a major shift towards enforcement interventions aimed at the 'street users'. This report examines the impact of these interventions on the welfare of street users.

A free pdf version is available at www.jrf.org.uk

Although South Asian women are one of the most socially excluded groups in the UK, their numbers at university have increased rapidly in recent years. This report seeks to understand why they are entering university in larger numbers and the impact this has on their lives.

EPDF and EPUB available Open Access under CC-BY-NC-ND licence. Written by a leading expert in the field, this practical and accessible book is an essential guide to knowledge exchange, impact and research dissemination in health and social care.