Government Social Research
22 December 2005 - Home Office RDS have posted the following research summaries
15 December 2005 - Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) publish Extending working life: a review of the research literature
Aims to assess the current state of knowledge about factors influencing work and retirement with particular reference to the 50 to 69 year old age group, identify any gaps in the literature and suggest possible data sources to fill them. It analyses a range of quantitative and qualitative social research studies on work and retirement, published in the UK over the period 1999-2005.
15 December 2005 - Mathematica semi-monthly update
Contents include:
Telemedicine and Diabetes: new Congressional Report Details IDEATel Demonstration; A look at children born in 2001: demographics, physical, and mental skills; Collaborations and incentives to improve children's health care.
14 December 2005 - The Central Analytical Directorate within Defra has established a cross-cutting research programme that aims to demonstrate that social research can be a key contributor to evidence-based policy making within the Department .
The two key research themes addressed by this programme are:
A Defra-commissioned a study entitled 'Future of Services in Rural England- a Scenario for 2015' has recently reported. The full report and a brief research note are available on the Defra website.
13 December 2005 - National Centre for Social Research publish British Social Attitudes 2005
Examines public attitudes towards the key issues that have dominated the political arena since New Labour arrived in office in 1997. In particular, it asks how far the government's policies on health, education, pensions, transport, work-life balance, redistribution, housing, and Europe, are in tune with public opinion. Among the findings are that:
9 December 2005 - Department of Health (DH) published the results of a consultation (Best research for best health: a new National Health research strategy: the NHS contribution to health research in England: a consultation)
Sets out a range of proposals to create a new health research system, in which the NHS supports those engaged in leading-edge research, to focus on the needs of patients and the public. Over 500 responses were received to the consultation, which included 15 questions, as well as offering the opportunity to comment on the proposals more widely. The Department also received a number of responses after the consultation closing date and letters which they were unable to include in the analysis and report. These responses will however be taken into account in finalising the R&D strategy which DH aim to publish in early 2006.
8 December 2005 - National studies programme 2006-07 consultation
The Audit Commission is asking local public bodies and national stakeholders for their views on the national studies programme 2006/07. The consultation paper contains a long list of possible ideas for studies that the Commission could address. Health studies will be the subject of a separate consultation with healthcare partners in the new year. Views on which topics are a priority are welcome as it is anticipated that fewer than half of the topics listed will finally go forward into the 2006/07 programme.
Chaired by Professor David Adamson (University of Glamorgan), speakers included Steve Marshall from the Statistical Directorate, who discussed work on the Index of Multiple Deprivation; Ed Swires-Hennessey from Data Unit Wales on the Living in Wales Survey; and finally, Peter Kenway from the New Policy Institute, who presented findings from a recent JRF report, Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion in Wales.
6 December 2005 - Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) publish The Consistency and Reliability of the Activity History Data in the Families and Children Study
This report examines the consistency and reliability of the activity history data collected in the Families and Children Study, which collects dynamic information on labour market characteristics for a sizable sample of families, allowing work behaviour over time to be studied more closely both for couple families and for lone parents.