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Summary (1) All building materials require correct treatment and regular maintenance. The expression ‘maintenance‐free’ is inaccurate. Where assumed, it leads to errors of design and poor building performance.

Preston Polytechnic Library and Learning Resources Service—a member of BLCMP—has developed and now uses a PRECIS‐related subject index produced locally in co‐operation with the Polytechnic Computer Services Unit. An in‐house PRECIS system has the advantages of consistency, British terminology and frequent up‐dating. It facilitates reproduction for multiple service sites. The article describes system hardware and software and outlines production routines. A Working Party has been established to review future developments, especially frequency and physical form. The possibility of a local online configuration is discussed.

This book has reviewed the sustainability of rail engineering and operations with respect to both existing assets and new build in terms of the three pillars of economic, social and environmental sustainability. It is argued that the composition of a sustainable railway is well understood, but there are practical issues with delivery. These issues may be overcome with an emphasis on infrastructure provision, finance (and funding), top-down governance and bottom-up participation.

This chapter reviews railways with respect to their organisation, regulation and ownership, with particular reference to the reforms undertaken in Great Britain in the mid-1990s. First, with respect to organisation, railways constitute a complex industry that has tended to be dominated by integrated monoliths, often organised hierarchically and reliant on governance by command and control. More recently, countries such as Great Britain have experimented with more fragmented, atomistic structures reliant on governance by contract. Second, since their inception, railways have attracted regulation in terms of varying degrees of public control of fares, service quantity and quality, safety and rates of return. More recently, there has been an emphasis on pro-competition policies with respect to open access services (on the tracks competition) and franchising/concessions (off the tracks competition). Third, in terms of ownership, although many railways originated as private companies, a series of nationalisations meant that by the mid-1990s, most were in public ownership, although there have since been a number of privatisations and experiments with public–private partnerships. The focus of these changes has been mainly on the economic performance of the railways, with relatively little emphasis on social and environmental factors. Where sustainability has been considered, it has been mainly terms of determining organisational and financial structures that can last, with the search for such sustainable structures a continuing process.

This chapter covers the range of issues which need to be considered when planning a new railway route or system. These issues are grouped under the three main aspects of sustainability: social, environmental and economic, while noting that there are inevitably some overlaps between them. This chapter therefore provides information which can help ensure that a holistic and comprehensive consideration of sustainability is embedded in the planning process. It also discusses how the various impacts associated with the construction and operation of a new railway route or system can be compared and assessed in order to determine whether or not a proposed rail scheme should go ahead.

The aim of the present study was to compare psychological functioning in male rape survivors who had been raped either by strangers or acquaintances, and to test differences between the functioning of gay versus heterosexual survivors. Thirty‐eight male rape survivors completed a range of measures relating to their perceptions about the nature of the effects of their assault, their general health, self‐esteem and world assumptions. Results revealed that survivors of stranger rapes had lower psychological functioning overall than survivors of acquaintance rapes. Gay survivors were more likely to have crises about their sexual identity than heterosexual survivors. Suggestions for future work are proposed.

Self‐determination is widely regarded as a core social work value and as central to work in adult protection. However, it is not unproblematic and raises difficult questions about how to balance empowerment and protection, or rights and risks. Inter‐agency procedures and the recent publication of policy guidance may reflect these difficult questions rather than assist practitioners and managers to resolve practice dilemmas they encounter.

This introductory chapter sets the context for the remainder of this book by setting out general concepts of sustainability and briefly discussing how they have impacted on railway system development over time. It considers the recent rise in prominence of environmental sustainability and how this is likely to increase the importance of railways in meeting society’s future needs for transportation.