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This paper considers the origins and traces the history of the Social Fund, an ideologically-motivated social policy departure of the Thatcher era. It identifies the controversy, in research communities amongst others, which surrounded the establishment of the Fund, and considers the evidence of recurring difficulties in its practical operation over a thirty-year period. It then turns to the Coalition administration in Westminster’s decision to divest itself of responsibility for key parts of the Fund, devolving such obligations to local authorities in England, the Parliament in Scotland and the Assembly in Wales. The paper sets out a comparison of the approaches being developed to discharge the Fund’s prior responsibilities in the three nations. It concludes that the essential policy thrust lies in a determination to roll back central state obligations in poverty relief and income maintenance which had hitherto been accepted by all post-war administrations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper reports the number of sex workers in Scotland and England who are in contact with specialist services for sex workers. Then, using methods and multipliers derived from the frequently quoted Kinnell study (1999) the paper provides various updated estimates of the wider population of sex workers. We point out the limits of our estimates and the methodological difficulties of estimating the size of this hidden population. The paper argues that many claims about sex work made by politicians and the media are misleading especially where they conflate sex work with trafficking and abuse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and objectives: This paper explores children's experiences and perceptions of their own bilingualism in two contexts in Scotland, UK: a primary school with a high proportion of children using a language other than English at home; and a primary school where the language of instruction is an indigenous, minority language, Gaelic. Methodology: The paper draws upon data gathered from multiple qualitative methods, including interviews, group activities and discussion, with both children and their parents. The data in this paper draw upon a broader interdisciplinary project exploring children's experiences of bilingualism. Ethics were duly considered. Data and analysis: Data were gathered from 27 children and 11 parents. Data were coded and analysed using thematic analysis. Comparison between contexts was of particular interest for this article. Findings: This paper highlights the importance of research with children in order to gain an insight into their experiences and perceptions of their own bilingualism. In particular, our findings illustrate how children's language learning is encouraged and supported by children's connections with others and the fundamental role of family (particularly parents/carers) and diverse community-based support systems (which encompass a wide range of individuals and community groups) in order to develop active bilingualism. Originality: This paper addresses a research gap in a largely quantitative field, by adopting a qualitative approach to explore children's experiences and perceptions of their own bilingualism. A qualitative approach facilitates attention to complexity and the participants' own meanings and understandings. Significance: The paper highlights the value of research with children in order to explore their views and perspectives. In particular, qualitative research methodologies, where children's experiences are central to understanding the research phenomenon, and to facilitating the exploration of the range of complex issues that interact with a child's bilingualism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines whether receipt of a Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) grant has a causal impact on plant total factor productivity (TFP). To tackle the problem of self-selection into the treatment group, propensity score matching is employed. In order to control for the endogeneity of other variables in the model, estimations are performed using the system GMM estimator. The results show that for low technology manufacturing, receipt of an RSA grant leads to a fall in TFP. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The growing policy focus since the 1970s in Scotland, the UK and internationally on ‘community’, community development and community ownership and enterprise has facilitated a certain growth of the community sector and therefore of concern for related discussions of theory and practice. This paper positions this turn to community within the shifting global political economic context, in particular the rolling out of the neoliberal state internationally from the 1980s and a related urban crisis management of structural inequality (Brenner and Theodore, 2002). By focusing on the emergence of community anchor organisations – understood in the UK context as multi-purpose, local community-led organisations – within Scottish and UK policy-making since the 2000s, the central dilemma for critical community sector theory and practice of sustaining a local egalitarian vision and practice (Pearce, 2003) given this neoliberal context is explored. A Scottish urban community anchor provides an illustration of this challenge for theory and practice and of how it can be re-considered through discussions of ‘progressive mutualism’ (Pearce, 2009) and ‘resilience, re-working and resistance’ (Cumbers, 2010; Katz, 2004). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers how a future outbreak of foot- and-mouth disease (FMD) would be treated and considers the potential reaction by government agencies with particular reference to communication and the management of crises within the tourism sectors. Lessons and experience are drawn from the outbreak of FMD in Scotland in 2001 and reoccurrences in other parts of the world. Two potential scenarios are considered, namely a 'suspected case' and a 'confirmed case', and the likely consequences of both for the tourism industry of Scotland and the UK are considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From 2001, the construction of flats and high-density developments increased in England and the building of houses declined. Does this indicate a change in taste or is it a result of government planning policies? In this paper, an analysis is made of the long-term effects of the policy of constraint which has existed for the past 50 years but the increase in density is identified as occurring primarily after new, revised, planning guidance was issued in England in 2000 which discouraged low-density development. To substantiate this, it is pointed out that the change which occurred in England did not occur in Scotland where guidance was not changed to encourage high-density residential development. The conclusion that the change is the result of planning policies and not of a change in taste is confirmed by surveys of the occupants of new high-rise developments in Leeds. The new flat-dwellers were predominantly young and childless and expressed the intention, in the near future, when they could, of moving out of the city centre and into houses. From recent changes in guidance by the new coalition government, it is expected that the construction of flats in England will fall back to earlier levels over the next few years. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The paper reports the results of a study on benchmarking activities undertaken by the procurement organization within the National Health Service (NHS) in Scotland, namely National Procurement (previously Scottish Healthcare Supplies Contracts Branch). NHS performance is of course politically important, and benchmarking is increasingly seen as a means to improve performance, so the study was carried out to determine if the current benchmarking approaches could be enhanced. A review of the benchmarking activities used by the private sector, local government and NHS organizations was carried out to establish a framework of the motivations, benefits, problems and costs associated with benchmarking. This framework was used to carry out the research through case studies and a questionnaire survey of NHS procurement organizations both in Scotland and other parts of the UK. Nine of the 16 Scottish Health Boards surveyed reported carrying out benchmarking during the last three years. The findings of the research were that there were similarities in approaches between local government and NHS Scotland Health, but differences between NHS Scotland and other UK NHS procurement organizations. Benefits were seen as significant and it was recommended that National Procurement should pursue the formation of a benchmarking group with members drawn from NHS Scotland and external benchmarking bodies to establish measures to be used in benchmarking across the whole of NHS Scotland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Describes and analyses the experience of applying the IFLA Checklist, Access to libraries for persons with disabilities to an academic library: the Fife Campus Library at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Dundee, Scotland. An introduction to disability legislation in the United Kingdom provides the legal framework for this paper. In the United Kingdom, this legislation has been recognized as an important incentive for libraries to improve their services to disabled people. This paper considers a number of physical and attitudinal barriers to good practice and the value of using the IFLA Checklist in overcoming some of these barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the role of location formulation in the expression of nationhood in six Scottish newspapers' coverage of a domestic political event The article thaws upon a corpus analysis comparing the incidence of `location lexical tokens' in the Scottish papers with a selection from the UK and England. It finds that the Scottish papers stress the national character of the political process, occasionally doing so alongside an inclusive rhetoric. The article also finds that the Scottish papers mobilize an internal political vocabulary around the expression of location, manifest in the widespread adoption of the political metonym `Holyrood' for the Scottish parliaments and in the use of localized political discourses. The article therefore suggests that explicit reference to the home nation is an important component of news discourse, and that the systematic study of location formulation also offers an insight into the generation of an internal and nation-specific political vocabulary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social care provision across high-income countries has been transformed over the last ten years by personalisation – a policy agenda to give people with eligible support needs more choice and control over their support. Yet the ideological underpinnings of this transformation remain highly mutable, particularly in the context of reduced welfare provision that has unfolded in many nations advancing personalisation. How the policy has manifested itself has led to an expectation for people to self-build a life as individual consumers within a care market. This article draws on a study exploring how people with learning disabilities in England and Scotland are responding to the everyday realities of personalisation as it is enacted where they live and show the relationality inherent in their practices. We propose that the personalisation agenda as it currently stands (as an individualising movement involving an increasing responsibilisation of individuals and their families) ignores the inherently relational nature of care and support. We propose that social care policy needs to recognise the relational ways in which people build their lives and to advocate a redistribution of responsibility to reduce inequalities in the allocation of care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The findings of the Barker review, which examined the reasons for the undersupply of UK housing, have important implications for the devolved constituents of the UK, including Scotland. This paper traces the emergence of the brownfield regeneration policy agenda across the UK and examines how the Barker review connects with this brownfield policy focus. The paper compares housing and brownfield policies and practices in England and Scotland, places them in an international context and elicits wider lessons for devolved governance in relation to housing policy, in terms of 'centrist-local' tensions. Estimates based on published data suggest that Barker's emphasis on increased housing supply cannot easily be reconciled with the current emphasis on brownfield development and is likely to require a return to greenfield development in both countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports on developments concerning the law of evidence and proof as of March 2003. Psychology and Law Conference in Edinburgh, Scotland; Ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in 'Cuscani v United Kingdom' and the right to a fair trial; Issue paper published by the New South Wales Reform Commission titled "Questioning of Complainants by Unrepresented Accused in Sexual Assault Trials"; South African Law Commission's completion of a report on aspects of criminal procedure.

Background: Diabetes and eating disorders are frequently comorbid. This particular comorbidity is not only often poorly recognised, but is difficult to treat and has a high mortality. Method: In this article, we will briefly review the relationship between diabetes and eating disorders. We will review the current NICE and other guidance and reports concerning both diabetes and eating disorders in the United Kingdom. We will then describe the recommendations of the 2018 Welsh Government Eating Disorder Service Review and the 2021 the Scottish Government Eating Disorder Service Review regarding diabetes and eating disorders, which will lead to service change. Conclusions: We conclude that this is a relatively underdeveloped but important area where there needs to be further service development and more collaboration between diabetes and eating disorder services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Morbid obesity (body mass index ⩾40 kg/m2) carries a higher risk of non-communicable disease and is associated with more complex health issues and challenges than obesity body mass index ≥30kg/m2 and <40kg/m2, resulting in much higher financial implications for health systems. Although obesity trends have previously been projected to 2035, these projections do not separate morbid obesity from obesity. This study therefore complements these projections and looks at the prevalence and development of morbid obesity in the UK. Methods : Individual level body mass index data for people aged >15 years in England, Wales (2004–2014) and Scotland (2008–2014) were collated from national surveys and stratified by sex and five-year age groups (e.g. 15–19 years), then aggregated to calculate the annual distribution of healthy weight, overweight, obesity and morbid obesity for each age and sex group. A categorical multi-variate non-linear regression model was fitted to these distributions to project trends to 2035. Results : The prevalence of morbid obesity was predicted to increase to 5, 8 and 11% in Scotland, England and Wales, respectively, by 2035. Welsh women aged 55–64 years had the highest projected prevalence of 20%. In total, almost five million people are forecast to be classified as morbidly obese across the three countries in 2035. Conclusions : The prevalence of morbid obesity is predicted to increase by 2035 across the three UK countries, with Wales projected to have the highest rates. This is likely to have serious health and financial implications for society and the UK health system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

UK policy has increasingly promoted early intervention and permanence planning for children who experience, or are at risk of experiencing, abuse or neglect, raising the question of whether these practices have actually increased ‘on the ground.’ There is already evidence of growing early intervention in the form of out of home care, in England as well as Australia and Canada. However, we do not yet know whether this trend also exists in Scotland. Furthermore, there is no research investigating whether rates of permanence planning have changed anywhere in the UK or globally. The current study addressed these gaps through a comparison of two samples of children in Scotland: 110 children born in 2003 and 117 born in 2013, all of whom were placed under compulsory measures of supervision prior to three years of age. The 2013 cohort was significantly more likely than the 2003 cohort to be removed from their parents at birth, to reside away from parents throughout the first three years of life and to live apart from parents at three years of age. Significantly more of the 2013 cohort than the 2003 cohort had a plan for permanence by three years. These findings are consistent with the view that policy changes in the UK are affecting practice (although practice changes may have resulted from other sources as well/instead). The fall in parental care was largely compensated by an increase in the use of foster care, which has resource implications. Children removed from their parents at birth were usually not returned in the first three years of life, not raised by extended family members, and were separated from one or more siblings. This typically reduced instability for young children, but also entailed substantial birth family fragmentation. The impact on children and families of early removal into foster care must therefore be carefully assessed in light of the increasing prevalence of this practice in Scotland and elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on two Afghan boys arrived in North East of England and placed in long-term foster placement, and mentions about decision taken by court regarding them. Topics include properly accommodating unaccompanied asylum-seeking children under section 20 of the Children Act 1989; supporting the leaving care provisions, and implementing decisions about education, care and medical treatment.

James Lorimer Halliday (1897–1983) pioneered the development of the concept of psychosocial medicine in Britain in the 1930s and 1940s. He worked in Glasgow, first as a public health doctor, and then as part of the corporatist National Health Insurance scheme. Here he learned about links between poverty, the social environment, emotional stress and psychological and physical ill-health, and about statistical tools for making such problems scientifically visible. The intellectual development of his methodologically and epistemologically integrated medicine – a hybrid of biomedical and psychological approaches – was embedded in the context of this practice with its particular medical culture and socio-economic circumstances. Halliday’s ideas are part of the wider, heterogeneous turn towards medical modernism and holism within mainstream medicine in Britain, western Europe and the United States in the inter-war period, and their evolution underlines the varied nature of contemporary anti-reductionist thinking in medicine. It also points to the diversity of the sources of holism and the many routes by which psychological and especially psychosocial discourses about health and illness entered professional and public arenas in Britain in this period. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In 1298, in a departure from past practice, the Scots under William Wallace fought and lost at Falkirk with large units of spearmen. King Robert Bruce adopted this tactic in 1307. He was successful largely owing to the attention he paid to the selection and training of his men, to the arms and armour they employed, and to the choice and preparation of the field of battle. The Scottish armies of the period may have been larger than allowed by recent historians. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article discusses the court case wherein communications were sent to Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) for alleged non-compliance on public participation grounds in relation on plan to build a bypass around the Aberdeen, Scotland. The complainant alleged SNH's nondisclosure of report on the site's freshwater pearl mussels was a violation of Article 4 of the Convention. The compliance committee recommends Great Britain to review the regime for allocating costs in judicial review applications.

Objectives: We estimated the effects of poor mental health among older family members on the labour supply and incomes of younger family members living in the same household. Due to policy differences, effects for Scotland were compared with other parts of the UK. Methods: Effects were estimated using the British Household Panel Survey (waves 1999-2006), with data from 621 older respondents and 800 younger family members. Mental health was assessed using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), together with self-reported presence of depression, anxiety, or other mental health problems. Results: The associations between labour supply and mental ill-health were found to vary by gender and region of the UK. For men, there were larger negative effects in Scotland relative to the rest of the UK. For women, mental ill-health was associated with increased labour supply in Scotland, while in the remainder of the UK, a negative association was observed. Income losses accrued across all groups except among Scottish females, with the largest significant negative effects observed among men living in the remainder of the UK. Conclusions: Mental health problems among older family members are associated with significant labour market effects for younger family members. To reduce the economic consequences, better assessment of mental health among older people may be warranted. Further employment support for younger family members, in the form of more flexible work policies, might also serve to ameliorate economic losses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Within the United Kingdom there is a significant revival of therapeutic counselling services in schools. This study looks at three factors which may affect students' willingness to attend such a service: location of the service (school-based or external); format (individual or group); and sex of counsellor. The views of 584 students from four Scottish secondary schools were surveyed. Approximately three- quarters of students expressed a preference for seeing a counsellor in their school. Over 80 percent of students expressed a preference for seeing a counsellor on their own, and this was particularly marked in older pupils. There was also a preference within the sample for female counsellors, particularly amongst female respondents, and most markedly amongst young female respondents. Implications of these findings are discussed in the light of related qualitative research, and methodological limitations of the study are highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The UK and Scottish governments policy commitments to renewable energy, driven by recognition of the impacts of global warming and climate change, have led to increasing interest in all aspects of renewable energy. This article is concerned with how the Scottish Executive is able to reconcile new hydro-electric developments as a source of renewable energy with the local impacts of those developments. The outcome of a recent application for consent to construct a hydro-electric scheme at Shieldaig and Slattadale in Wester Ross provides an illustration of the issues involved. The local environmental impacts of hydroelectric development are considerable and the application of environmental impact assessment to the approval procedure for new schemes means that a much broader range of environmental impacts is now considered than ever before. The decision shows the importance of compliance with European Community environmental law, and is particularly interesting for its application of the precautionary principle to prevent impacts on protected species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mid-Holocene tephra layers have been located and geochemically analysed from seven ombrotrophic bogs in Scotland. The tephras found in these Scottish peats occur as stratigraphically discrete horizons, not visible to the naked eye, and originate from volcanic activity in Iceland. Identifying and geochemically typing the tephra layers can enable precise correlations between sites on regional scales, depending on the spatial extent of the airfall events. Dispersal of both the Glen Garry and Hekla-4 tephras is excellent over Scotland, enabling snapshot views of the past at the time of these tephra depositions. Palaeoecological analyses have also been undertaken on these bogs, providing detailed reconstructions of past changes in bog vegetation and surface wetness, a proxy for past climates. Correlations between the ombrotrophic bogs at the time of the Glen Garry tephra revealed significant differences between the proxy climate records in the north and the south of Scotland, suggesting asynchronous changes between northern Scotland and the rest of Great Britain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]