′An ideal text for challenging the thinking of those studying for NPQH… The conclusion by the authors suggests nine major points to consider if improvement for schools in extremely challenging circumstances is to happen and be sustained. These ′nine lesson for policy makers′ are very frank and pertinent points, let′s hope at least some of our policy makers read them!′ - ESCalate′Rarely does a book on education reform capture both the big and the small picture with such brilliant cl...

This books fills the gap in the market for an accessible, general introduction to advocacy, specifically aimed at social workers. The book looks at the value base of advocacy as well as emphasising practice and skills such as assertiveness and negotiation.

Social Work: The Basics is an insightful introduction to the often misrepresented world of social work. This accessible book presents a broad view of contemporary social work, exploring its roots and its possible future. It dispels myths surrounding social work, addresses media debates, and offers a balanced account of what social workers do. The book argues for a social work that is partisan in support of social justice. Questions covered include:How did social work...

The growing older people population and their increasing needs for care is now presenting significant difficulties to both national government and local authorities because of constriction of formal caregivers and family units. Inevitably a change of this magnitude within the complex system in which older people services operate everywhere attracts a range of responses from the very enthusiastic to the very dismissive and hostile response. Thus, family directed support care system would pr...

School leadership and management are fundamental components of school improvement. This is the first study of its kind to relate the principles of effective leadership to the broad spectrum of school life in Ireland.A key resource for school leaders in their personal and professional study, this book critically appraises issues in leading and managing schools. The editors bring together an array of renowned scholars to inform and stimulate the debate on the future of leadership dev...

At a time when education is considered crucial to a country’s economic success, recent UK governments have insisted their reforms are the only way to make England’s system world class. Yet pupils are tested rather than educated, teachers bullied rather than trusted and parents cast as winners or losers in a gamble for school places.Education under siege considers the English education system as it is and as it might be. In a highly accessible style, Peter Mortimore, an author with ...

Leading schools is becoming almost daily a more complex and demanding job. Connecting Leadership and Learning reassesses the purpose of schools, the nature of learning and the qualities of leadership that make schools authentic places of learning.Starting with a review of what we can claim to know – and not know – about learning, leadership and their inter-relationship, this book explores what it means to lead schools that place learning at the centre. Drawing on research ...

This timely book takes up the challenge of maintaining programs in the arts in the face of unrelenting pressure from two directions; the increasing focus on literacy and numeracy in schools, teamed with the cut-backs in public funding that often affect the arts most severely. Drawing on the wealth of evidence already available on the impact of the

At the heart of the debate about state-provided education in the UK lies a shocking fact: one child in five leaves school in England without basic skills in literacy and numeracy. Despite the best efforts of reformers and rapidly improving results in academies and elsewhere, even some of the best schools are struggling to help the 'tail' - the lowest-achieving twenty or thirty per cent of pupils. Throughout Britain, other schools, local authorities and even regions are trapped in a rut of ...

Family Support introduces and explores the state of the art in preventative social work with children and young people. Drawing on contemporary thinking and research, the book aims to make a contribution to current debates about how we can best support families in need.Underpinning the book is an analysis of how family support is changing, having moved from ‘prevention’ through to contemporary debates about ‘family support’, ‘early intervention’ and ‘early help’. The autho...

This valuable textbook communicates the complexities and controversies at the heart of youth work management, exploring key issues in a critical fashion. Written by a team of experienced youth work lecturers, the chapters cover topics such as planning, evaluation and supervision, whilst acknowledging the changing structures of integrated services and the impact of public service reform.Divided into three sections, it covers:Historical and theoretical context...

How much have teachers and their pupils benefitted from the top-down Westminster-led control of policy held in place by a powerful national inspection regime?A Generation of Radical Educational Change: Stories from the Field is an exploration of the revolutionary impact of the greater and continuing involvement of central government in education policy-making which began in 1976 and was accelerated by the 1988 Education Act and subsequent legislation.In the book, a dozen di...