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Some argue that national identity is constructed from the shared myths and 'collective memories' of a nation, where heroes from a 'golden age' and legendary figures embody national identity. However, when a national sample of British adults were asked to name the most important Britons, living or dead, they did not hark back to legendary figures, military leaders or sporting heroes, but identified their monarch, political leaders, and to a lesser extent, 'household heroes' within their own family. 'Banal', quotidian political leaders and Queen Elizabeth II symbolise national identity in Britain, although they sit alongside 'hot' signifiers of nationalism personified, such as football hero David Beckham. This research suggests that studies of national identity should not be limited to examining essentialist claims of ethnonationalism, or civic attachments to laws and institutions, but also explore those whom the citizens of a given country identify as embodying their national identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the challenges faced by The Big Issue street vendors in the United Kingdom (UK) in an increasingly cashless society. It reviews the future sustainability options for street vendors in the UK and Australia, particularly in light of the UK's departure from the EU which will impact on the numbers of vendors and employees available to The Big Issue. Strategic workforce development planning will need to be undertaken with an eye to long term sustainable business practices. The Big Issue will also need to develop a sustainable distribution system including the location of centralized distribution points across the UK and Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Australian way of life is claimed to be a celebration of sporting rather than intellectual achievement. The influence of sport for contemporary Australians is examined by asking a nationally representative sample of Australian adults to identify their most 'influential' sporting heroes. Men are far more likely than women to view male sporting heroes as influential with a similar pattern apparent for Liberal/National Party identifiers over other party supporters, although younger people are less likely than their older counterparts to nominate male sports stars. Cricket legend Donald Bradman's iconic status transcends sport, signifying conservative, white, masculine elements of national identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A national survey of Australian adults shows higher levels of obesity among public housing tenants and home owners with a mortgage compared to outright home owners. These results are to an extent due to higher instances of illness and disability among public housing tenants, and are also associated with known health risk factors. Yet differences in body mass index between tenures persist after controlling for a range of risk factors and socio-demographic indicators, suggesting the presence of cultural differences and different consumption patterns. Public tenants are by far the most likely to smoke on a daily basis, with private renters and home owners with a mortgage also more likely to be smokers than are outright home owners. Further investigation is required to establish the nature and extent that patterned health inequalities and associated risk factors are linked to housing tenure. If Australian mortgagees are more likely than outright homeowners to be obese, as our findings indicate, pursuing the ‘Australian dream’ of home-ownership may contain a hidden cost to one's health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Greenway is a self-contained estate for social housing tenants in the North Sydney local government area of Sydney, Australia. When Greenway opened in 1954 local newspapers reported on the modern, all electric units providing living opportunities for working people. By 2007 social isolation and antisocial behaviour at Greenway were regularly reported by the local press. The revitalisation of the Greenway estate occurred with the arrival of new residents who were keen to be actively involved in community development and stand for election to the Greenway Tenants Group (GTG). North Sydney Council supports the GTG with grants and expertise when required and also conducts elections on behalf of the tenants group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The traditions associated with the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps soldiers – the Anzacs – comprise an important element of the Australian narrative. Although Australian and New Zealand soldiers did not officially become ‘Anzacs’ until they joined forces on the Western Front, the Anzacs are associated with the trauma of the Gallipoli campaign. Anzacs ‘live on’ in contemporary Australian culture, celebrated as national heroes by artists, politicians and writers. The Anzacs’ place in Australian history is enshrined through annual Anzac Day commemorations that legitimize idealized, heroic aspects of Australian identity. Drawing upon national survey data we show that Anzacs still have a strong influence on how Australians see themselves. Attitudes toward Anzacs vary only marginally according to social and political background, although they are most salient for middle-aged, less educated, Australian-born citizens, who are proud of their defence forces and exhibit a close attachment to Australia as a nation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aspects of the national narrative of an advanced industrialised nation are examined in this research. Nationally representative survey data suggest the most important collective figures for Australian identity are the Anzacs, colonial free settlers and post-Second World War immigrants, while sporting heroes have a negligible influence upon what it means to be Australian. Although many Australians have ancestors who were transported, the convict ‘stain’ persists, while indigenous people are also under-represented in Australian identity myths. The most important individual Australians are not the heroes, saints or sages of an earlier ‘golden era’ nor contemporary sporting heroes, but political leaders, medical doctors and scientists who have (had) actual rather than mythical influence upon the everyday lives of Australians. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper considers the social policy discourses that senior public housing and Non-Government Organisation (NGO) housing managers employ to articulate and explain changes in social housing provision in Tasmania. We suggest that the Tasmanian social housing reform agenda is reflective of reforms in other Australian states. The period 2003-10 marked a time of policy change affecting social housing supply and policy discourse, which were influenced by neo-liberal practices favouring multi-actor governance models and financing. Interviews reveal that contradictory values and discourses were commonplace. Divergent views centred on the social goals and the efficiency elements of the new social policy focus, the Affordable Housing Strategy (AHS) and its eventual key delivery organisation, Tasmanian Affordable Housing Limited (TAHL). Despite constrained application, neo-liberal processes remained strong within accounts of new social housing governance practices. We suggest that neo-liberal practices have extended economic considerations into areas of social housing provision that were previously sheltered from market concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the social inclusion in the local government area (LGA) in North Sydney, New South Wales. It presents various perspectives of social inclusion and considers why people become isolated in the area. It provides a brief analysis of existing programs which aims at reducing social isolation and where they fit in the service system using case studies of those who are at risk of becoming isolated. It also offers several policy recommendations after evaluating the case studies.

Addressing the relationship between housing tenure and social disadvantage, this research examines social capital among public tenants in Australia, concentrating on their level of interpersonal trust and confidence in a range of public institutions. Through multivariate analyses of national survey data it also profiles the social and political background of public housing tenants. As expected, public tenants tend to have lower incomes, lower levels of education, and working-class backgrounds, or do not identify with any class location at all. They are less likely to be married or in de facto relationships than people in other housing tenures, but are more likely to identify with the Australian Labor Party than with the Coalition parties. Although public housing tenants have access to secure and affordable housing, they appear to be generally less trusting than private renters or homeowners and exhibit less confidence in government institutions such as the Australian parliament. Public housing tenants express lower levels of interpersonal trust even controlling for a range of social background factors, suggesting that as a form of tenure, public housing in some ways exacerbates the disadvantage of tenants. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper we examine the relationship between citizenship, civic engagement and property ownership in Australia. We draw upon nationally representative survey data to examine this relationship by focusing upon empirically accessible issues. We examine the civic implications of different housing tenures, or what Troy (2000) refers to as the level of 'citizen competence', and the tension between (private) ownership and (public) engagement in terms of membership and participation in a range of clubs and organisations. Lower levels of participation in charitable organisations among mortgage holders compared to people in other housing tenures questions the link between home buying (that is equated with private ownership), and a strengthening of community life. However, low participation rates in a clubs and organisations by public tenants, indicates that levels of social exclusion are higher in 'residual' public housing communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Myths associated with outlaws or 'social bandits' are important elements of national identity in many countries. Long after his death the outlaw Ned Kelly lives on in Australian culture through various media, ensuring his enduring symbolic importance for national identity. National survey data indicates Kelly's salience for a majority of Australians, although attitudes regarding his status as hero or villain vary considerably. Younger, left-leaning, working-class Australians and consumers of popular culture view Kelly as important, while tertiary-educated, political conservatives tend to downplay his significance. Perceptions of Kelly's character also influence attitudes regarding his national significance. The lack of foundation heroes in a nation built not only by free settlers but also by English convicts and Irish rebels goes some way to explaining why a 19th-century outlaw is one of the few historical figures recognized by a majority of Australians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of direct payments on social isolation. We define what social isolation means, and then evaluate the role of direct payments in the provision of social services in the United Kingdom. Social isolation is a particular problem for older people. In Australia there are an increasing number of older residents who are isolated, but would benefit from having greater choice in terms of how they access and receive social services. Increased access to direct payments could help to reduce waiting lists for traditional social services and address gaps in service provision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of direct payments on social isolation. We define what social isolation means, and then evaluate the role of direct payments in the provision of social services in the United Kingdom. Social isolation is a particular problem for older people. In Australia there are an increasing number of older residents who are isolated, but would benefit from having greater choice in terms of how they access and receive social services. Increased access to direct payments could help to reduce waiting lists for traditional social services and address gaps in service provision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Be they highwaymen, bandits or bushrangers, outlaws are mythical figures celebrated across a variety of cultures. Australians' knowledge of colonial outlaws is examined by asking a national sample of adults if they could name four 'bushrangers'. A large majority identified Ned Kelly and a substantial proportion Ben Hall, although less than a quarter could name four bushrangers and one in five were unable to name any bushrangers at all. Australian-born, middle-class, middle-aged, politically informed people who live in Queensland or NSW were the most knowledgeable, with the educational achievement findings suggesting that bushrangers occupy the realm of 'middle-brow' taste. Ned Kelly is confirmed as Australia's best-known colonial figure and folk hero. Immortalized in Sidney Nolan's paintings and mythologized in various cultural milieux, Kelly has transcended bushranging to symbolize a romantic and rebellious aspect of Australian identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1988 Bicentennial and the 2001 centenary of federation celebrations colonial images have flourished in Australia, highlighting the roles of convicts and free settlers during early colonization. Old sites, such as Port Arthur have been re-invigorated, and in 2004 Tasmanians celebrated the bicentenary of ‘white’ settlement. However, social scientists have given little attention to the role of colonial and post-colonial figures and myths as aspects of Australian national identity. We seek to address this issue by examining how convicts, free settlers, bushrangers and ANZACs are associated with contemporary identity in Australia. 2 We examine evidence from the 2003 Australian Survey of Social Attitudes and find that historical figures such as the ANZACs and post-World War II immigrants comprise important aspects of national identity. A substantial majority of Australians judged ANZACs to be important, countering recent claims of the ‘demise of the digger’. Sporting heroes are also at the core of Australian identity. Colonial figures appear to be far less important, although views on national identity vary according to social location. In particular, left-wing, university educated, younger, postmaterialist Australians view convicts and bushrangers as relatively important, indicating the salience of the larrikin in Australian identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community housing is increasingly seen as an alternative to public housing by government. However, little is known about the demand for community housing, the relationship with public housing waiting lists and the flow of people between different housing tenures, such as public housing and private rental. In this article we analyse the demand for community housing in Tasmania. We examine who applies for community housing, why they apply and how their needs may differ from or overlap with demand for public housing. This research is based on 499 applications for community housing in southern Tasmania. Applications were made to a medium sized, non-government housing association—Red Shield Housing Association (RSHA)—between December 1998 and December 2001. Our research suggests that the majority of people applying for community housing were already on public housing waiting lists. Those seeking community housing differ little from applicants for public housing. However, women and sole parents were more likely to apply for both community and public housing while men and single applicants were more likely to apply only for community housing. This could be connected to who is likely or not to get into public housing and perhaps men and singles see less chance of getting into public housing. The implication is that low income earners are primarily concerned with access to affordable housing, which is in short supply, and the majority of applicants will apply for both public and community housing if given the opportunity. We note that the transfer of public housing stock to the community sector does not increase the supply of affordable housing stock or provide a greater choice of affordable properties to low income and disadvantaged households, although it could provide greater choice for some groups who do not perceive public housing to be an option. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Claiming descent from convicts who were sent to Australia during the early period of British settlement is more than just about blood ties, it is also an aspect of national identity for many Australians. Analyses of nationally representative survey data show that younger, left-leaning, working class Australians are most likely to identify as convict descendants, while older, high income, educated, city dwellers are least likely to identify. Our findings also suggest that the 'hated stain' of convict ancestry is senescent, and will diminish with intergenerational replacement. Yet claims to convict descent remain divided along status lines. Interest in convicts and claims of convict heritage may comprise an element of 'popular taste', but as a consequence of this popularity, 'convict chic' is rejected by educated elites. Embraced by 'middle Australia', but shunned by cosmopolitan elites, convict ancestry is a neglected aspect of Australian identity. Whether claims of convict ancestry are 'real' or 'imaginary', the power of foundation myths to provide shared memories is evident in the salience of convict connections in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we address tensions in Marshall's account of the successive emergence of civil, political and social rights in citizenship. These tensions were Marshall's implicit and typically modern assumption of human nature, his privileging of the analytical rationality that follows from it, and the disjunction between the fixity of that rationality and the 'evolution' of his central metaphor. When he returned to it by emphasizing strains between democratic, welfare and capitalist moments that were co-present in the 'hyphenated society' rather than successive, he did so in a pessimistic tone at odds with the progressive modernism of his first schema. Although Marshall noted that conflicting principles in citizenship arose 'from the very roots of our social order', he did not elaborate the point in this first tripartite model. We argue that by adopting a single and typically modern form of rationality Marshall foreclosed on the contradictions that he held to be characteristic of academic disputes over citizenship. Since Mannheim had focused on the effects of such contradictions, his work allows a fruitful revisiting of Marshall's themes. To blend the two models we read Marshall through Karl Mannheim's early studies of political knowledge. Here Mannheim had anticipated the shift from stages to co-presence, and had prefigured a resolution of Marshall's sense of impasse. In his account of liberal, socialist and conservative thought-styles - the ways of seeing and knowing that are characteristic of particular ways of life - he saw political change as a dynamic interactive effect of individually calculating, dialectically collective and culturally symbolic forms of rationality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]