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1 – 5 of 5Julie Stubbs, Sophie Russell, Eileen Baldry, David Brown, Chris Cunneen and Melanie Schwartz
Alex G. Gillett and Kevin D. Tennent
This chapter focusses on entrepreneurship and policies of public services in England, specifically leisure centre provision in the UK during the late twentieth century. The…
Abstract
This chapter focusses on entrepreneurship and policies of public services in England, specifically leisure centre provision in the UK during the late twentieth century. The central role played by local authorities in sport provision was complimented by an increasing cadre of leisure sector professionals and with increasing architectural interest in the provision of leisure. The institutional context was framed by the Sports Development Council (SDC) after 1965 together with the broader action of local authorities who aimed to provide their ratepayers with access to improved sport and leisure services. The resulting leisure centres were perhaps a way to signal the prestige of local authorities but were expensive investments. The capability of local authorities was boosted by the local government reforms of the 1970s, which merged districts, pooling their resources. The possibility of support from private capital and after 1973 from the European Economic Community (EEC) also provided new opportunities for the organizational form. Eventually, there was a shift in emphasis from the provision of organized sport to that of more individualized and commercialized “leisure” as a product. Whether or not this achieved the long-term aims of central government, to improve access to sport and to tackle urban challenges, remains questionable. However, the story of leisure provision in the UK remains one of remarkable public sector entrepreneurship within an institutional context.
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It has been argued that providing girls equal access to schools will remedy many social and economic problems, but much of the research regarding girls and schools fails to…
Abstract
It has been argued that providing girls equal access to schools will remedy many social and economic problems, but much of the research regarding girls and schools fails to consider participation in schools within the context of gendered institutions. Failing to recognize gender as an institutionalization of power perpetuates inequalities, particularly in the context of schools. This article examines the complexities of gender inequality within schools in a Nepalese village. I discuss how gendered socialization patterns within the gendered institutions of family and school constrain students, especially girls. Gender, however, is socially constructed and fluid; it can be negotiated and changed.