The Latest Bulletin

Applied Sociology Presents a clear and helpful picture of how we need to include sociological insights to get an adequate picture of people’s lives and their challenges. Click here to order from Amazon UK Social Work Theory and Methods: The Essentials (with Paul Stepney) A fresh look at social work theory and methods, with contributions from a wide range of international experts. Click here to order from Amazon UK

For many years there was an assumption that learning is what children do – libraries had plenty of material about child development and education, but relatively little on adult education. Then along came the ‘lifelong learning movement’ which argued that we need to stop associating learning with children and recognise that everyone has the potential to keep learning and to keep benefiting from that learning throughout our lives. However, it is unfortunately the case that the ageist assumptions that are so firmly embedded in our society often mean that it can so easily be forgotten that this applies to older people just the same as it does to anyone else. The idea that ‘you can’t teach an old dog new…

An elderly woman reported receiving poor quality of care from a medical professional who, on learning of her caste, considered her to be unclean and refused to touch her. This is just one of the experiences of caste discrimination taking place today in the UK, which has been reported to us at Castewatch. Caste is associated primarily with cultures of the Indian sub-continent. According to those who practise and promote it, Caste is determined by birth and cannot be changed. Each Caste continues in a state of social paralysis, antagonistic and hostile towards the others’ interests, with inter-marriage discouraged if not prohibited. Whereas, in a class-based system there is the possibility of vertical mobility, this is denied in a Caste-based…

Experts from the University of Warwick have contributed to new guidance on promoting positive mental health at work. Erika Kispeter and Sally Wright from the University of Warwick Institute for Employment Research (IER) examined how Suffolk County Council has responded to the challenge of managing mental health at work. The case study is published ... alongside new Acas guidance to mark World Mental Health Day. The new Acas guidance aims to help employers promote positive mental health in their workplaces. Employers are encouraged to read the materials and develop practices and policies for their own workplaces. Click here to read more

The Government’s forthcoming industrial strategy offers a real opportunity to tackle the high working age poverty rate that many Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groups experience in the UK today. To achieve this, it should focus on delivering three genuine place-based solutions to some of the significant barriers to progression out of low pay. The Government has set a target of reducing the ethnicity employment gap by 2020 and will publish its industrial strategy white paper later this year. JRF’s new review outlines how issues facing ethnic minorities in the labour market can be tackled. In the UK today, BME groups face particular barriers both in accessing and progressing at work. In fact, a recent review by Baroness McGregor-Smith found that supporting BME workers…

Try these simple relaxation and mindfulness activities together and help your child learn to calm down when they feel stressed or anxious. Even very young children can feel stressed and anxious, especially during times of change or upheaval. Luckily, there are lots of simple activities you can do together to help your little one learn to calm themselves. Being able to recognise and cope with anxiety is a skill that will benefit children for life - try these simple, calming activities together and see which ones work for you. Click here to read more

E-books by Neil Thompson Neil’s books are well known, of course, but did you know that he now also has several low-priced e-books to his name? You will find more information at https://neilthompson.info/index.php/ebooks/ Neil’s latest book now published Learn how important sociological thinking is in underpinning practice https://www.amazon.co.uk/Applied-Sociology-Neil-Thompson/dp/1138629707

The demands of everyday living mean that we need to spend a fair amount of time doing fairly mundane things like earning a living and managing a household. These can be quite enjoyable, of course, and offer us some degree of fulfilment, but we have to be wary of the danger of allowing all the mundane stuff to squeeze out opportunities for those things that go beyond the day-to-day basics. The literature relating to spirituality (whether religious spirituality or not) uses fairly obscure terms like transcendence, exaltation and the numinous, often without offering any explanation of what they mean. It’s worth considering each of these in turn because, despite their obscurity, they are important ideas. Click here to read more

Report explores the rapid increase in evictions over the last 12 years, and the impact these have had on the lives of tenants who lose their homes. The report was updated on 3 August 2017 to use updated and backdated data from the Ministry of Justice Statistics bulletin ‘Mortgage and Landlords Possession Statistics in England and Wales’. The report shows: the rented sector has grown in the past 12 years by nearly a half, and the number of tenants being evicted from their homes has grown by a third: 10,000 more tenants lost their homes in 2015 than in 2003 the number of tenants evicted by private landlords exceeded the number evicted by social landlords for the first time in 2014…

Eldercare – a provider of elderly care support ... releases new research revealing the mental, physical and professional strain that juggling a job with caring for an elderly relative is having on the UK’s workforce. The ‘Invisible Carers’ research of over 2,000 working carers shows that less than a quarter (24%) of those caring for an elderly relative outside of work receive ongoing support from their employer – with a majority finding that support is only given during an emergency situation (47%) or none at all (29%). As a result, many are now balancing caring duties alongside their careers – 50% have checked-in with an elderly relative over the phone, 46% have received distressing calls from their relative and 40%…