Integrated working in children's centres: a user pathway analysis

The growth of Children’s Centres has seen the development of new ways of working with families by a variety of different workers. In this paper the authors report on a research project which examined how integrated working operates in practice within the different Children’s Centres in one local authority in England. The authors explore strengths and difficulties of integrated working, and demonstrate how the opportunities and challenges presented are negotiated by Children’s Centre workers and by more traditional service providers and professional groupings. The research project developed the user pathway model as a methodological tool to interrogate practice. Workshops were undertaken in 11 Children’s Centres where internal and external partners, comprised of different professional groupings, worked together to map the pathway taken through their services by a virtual user. Findings indicate that whilst examples of integrated ways of working did exist, difficulties were also experienced. These difficulties and successes impact both on the way in which the service user experiences the work of Children’s Centres and the outcomes that integrated working achieves. This paper shows how Children’s Centres can present new opportunities and integrated ways of working, but may be restrained by more traditional professional working practices and managerial arrangements

Still seldom heard and hard to reach. Still drinking? NEET young people and alcohol consumption in a Northern town.

In 2008 the researchers undertook a study exploring the drinking careers of young people who are not in education, employment and training (NEET) in a small post-industrial town in England (Nelson and Tabberer 2015). This report presents research which repeated the study with the same cohort of young people described as NEET, in the same geographical location. Recent trends both in the UK and also more widely in an international context suggest adolescent drinking is declining amongst young people, with some groups seemingly bucking this trend including those from deprived areas, or those who are NEET. Aims This project aimed to look at the transitions of young people described as NEET, in terms of starting, stopping, moderating or increasing their alcohol usage. To see if the characteristics of this group have stayed the same over the last 10 years and if this is reflected in their drinking, or if this group has, like their peers been affected by wider changes and are now decreasing their drinking