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This paper aims to report the findings of a study that explores the contribution volunteers make to social care for older adults, identifying lessons for the social care sector and policymakers.

An exploratory multiple case study design was used to capture the perspectives and experiences of managers of services, volunteer co-ordinators, volunteers, paid care staff and older people. Seven diverse social care organisations took part in the study drawn from three locations in the South West of England.

This study identified three distinct models of volunteer contribution to social care services for older people. Although the contributions made by volunteers to services are valued, the study drew attention to some of the challenges related to their involvement.

The organisations taking part in this small-scale study were all based in the South West of England, and the findings are therefore not generalisable but contribute to the growing evidence base related to this important field.

This study demonstrates the importance of the volunteer co-ordinator role and suggests that it is properly funded and resourced. It also confirms the importance of volunteers receiving appropriate training and support.

Given the increasing involvement of volunteers in the provision of social care, this paper provides lessons to ensure the role of volunteers in social care enhances rather than diminishes the quality of care provided.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the potential of housing with care schemes to act as community hubs. The analysis highlights a range of benefits, barriers and facilitators.

Data are presented from the Adult Social Services Environments and Settings project which used a mixed methods approach including a review of the literature, surveys and in-depth case study interviews.

Most housing with care schemes have a restaurant or café, communal lounge, garden, hairdresser, activity room and laundrette, while many also have a library, gym, computer access and a shop. Many of these facilities are open not just to residents but also to the wider community, reflecting a more integrated approach to community health and adult social care, by sharing access to primary health care and social services between people living in the scheme and those living nearby. Potential benefits of this approach include the integration of older people’s housing, reduced isolation and increased cost effectiveness of local services through economies of scale and by maximising preventative approaches to health and wellbeing. Successful implementation of the model depends on a range of criteria including being located within or close to a residential area and having on-site facilities that are accessible to the public.

This paper is part of a very new literature on community hub models of housing with care in the UK. In the light of new requirements under the Care Act to better coordinate community services, it provides insights into how this approach can work and offers an analysis of the benefits and challenges that will be of interest to commissioners and providers as well as planners. This was a small scale research project based on four case studies. Caution should be taken when considering the findings in different settings.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the process of commissioning adult social care services in England. It reflects the literature on commissioning at the strategic level followed by a section on operational or micro-commissioning. The rest of the paper focusses on the emergence of ideas about outcomes-based commissioning (OBC) in the field of adult social care and ends with critical consideration of the effectiveness of OBC in adult social care as applied to support and care provided in extra care housing.

The review of strategic and operational commissioning in adult social care in England (and Scotland in brief) is based on both policy documents and a review of the literature, as are the sources addressing OBC in adult social care particularly in extra care housing settings.

The core of this paper focusses on the challenges to the implementation of OBC in adult social care in the context of provision for residents in extra care housing. Of central importance are the impact of the squeeze on funding, increasing costs as a result of demographic change and the introduction of a national living wage plus the focus on the needs of service users through the idea of person-centred care and resistance to change on the part of adult social care staff and workers in other relevant settings.

Addressing the implementation of OBC in adult social care in England in the context of extra care housing.

Management training and development is currently in vogue. There appears to be a growing belief in the benefits of investment in training and development. When a market is buoyant is the time to consider and anticipate the consequences of a future downturn in demand. Such a downturn in demand may demonstrate increasing pressure to “justify” investment in training and development. There is a long established academic body of knowledge on the subject of evaluating training and development. From research evidence and the authors′ experience, the sponsors and the providers of training and development pay scant attention to systematic evaluation of these activities and investments. It is the authors′ contention that when the market′s critical assessment of the value of training and development increases there will be an increasing interest in evaluation. An overview of the history of evaluation traditions is provided and the state of play is commented upon. It is noted that there is a shortfall between theory and practice. It is argued that evaluation is a worthwhile and important activity and ways through the evaluation literature maze and the underpinnings of the activity are demonstrated, especially to management. Similarly the literature on evaluation techniques is reviewed. Tables are provided which demonstrate areas of major activity and identify relatively uncharted waters. This monograph provides a resource whereby practitioners can choose techniques which are appropriate to the activity on which they are engaged. It highlights the process which should be undertaken to make that choice in order that needs of the major stakeholders in the exercise are fully met.

This paper examines the relationship between personality characteristics - as indexed by the ICES Personality Inventory (Bartram, 1994; 1998) and the IBS Clinical Inventory (Mauger, Adkinson, Zoss, Firestone & Hook, 1980) - and bullying behavior. Although it proved to be difficult to obtain a large enough sample of bullies, the findings indicated that bullies are aggressive, hostile, and extraverted and independent. Furthermore, bullies are egocentric, selfish, and show little concern for the opinions of others. High levels of aggressiveness, assertiveness, competitiveness and independence are traits that are also associated with leadership.

The authors explore the nature of commitment, job satisfaction and job characteristics, and the nature of the interrelationships among these variables concerning expatriate employees in Saudi Arabia. An examination of a sample of 504 expatriate employees reveals that these employees are, by and large, indifferent with respect to their perceptions of commitment, job satisfaction, and job characteristics. In addition, the results provide strong support for (1) the influence of job satisfaction on commitment, (2) the influence of job variety on commitment, and (3) the influence of job autonomy, identity, and feedback on job satisfaction.

The retail food market has been wracked by traumatic changes for more than a decade. In the 1970s A & P, the largest chain at that time, was well on the way to oblivion until rescued in a foreign takeover by the West German firm of Tengleman. Safeway, the 1986 market share leader nationally, chose a leveraged buyout rather than a takeover and currently has many divisions in the U.S. up for sale. Within a year or two, Safeway will be a pale shadow of its former self, because it failed to adapt to intense competition. Kroger, the current industry leader, has already begun closing stores in many major markets. In the meantime, the strong regionals such as Food Lion, Shaw's, Hannaford Bros., Randall's, Smith's, Bruno's, Weiss, Albertsons, Publix, Giant Food, Pueblo International, H. E. Butt, and Hughes, are challenging the largest national chains for market share in carefully chosen fields of battle. Overall, the supermarket industry experienced an after tax return on net worth of 14 percent in 1986.

The purpose of this paper is to trace the history of official policy on the regulation of care homes in respect of end of life care and to contrast this with the results of research on this important theme, not least in terms of what is required to support care home staff in relation to dying residents and their relatives. A central concern is to argue for the open recognition that care homes now cater primarily for frail people towards the end of their lives. Good end of life care and a good death could become a positive “selling point”. The author concludes that the system of regulation has broadly failed to address a good death or good end of life care in a residential home. Death talk should no longer need to be avoided in care homes. The research suggests that appropriate support for care home staff in relation to dying residents needs careful identification and investment. A cultural shift is required.

Following a review of policy documents on regulation and standards of care in residential homes and a subsequent review of the research literature on death and dying in care homes, the paper illuminates the contrast between the ambitious aims in policy documents with very varied practice in everyday care of frail residents.

The recent systems of regulation have broadly failed to address a good death or good end of life care in residential homes. Open acknowledgement of death and dying should not be avoided in care homes. Appropriate support for care home staff in relation to dying residents needs careful identification and investment.

The focus of this paper is to contrast official policy with everyday practice. Whilst policy documents suggest recognition of the importance of dignity and respect from dying residents, the research literature indicates great variation in the practice of everyday care.

The purpose of this paper is to review the recent literature on housing with care in England where a longitudinal approach has been adopted and to identify possible new research projects that focus on gaps in the existing literature.

The review of the relevant research literature draws in part on an earlier overview of the broader literature on housing with care, part of an NIHR School for Social Care Research project, Adult Social Services Environments and Settings (ASSET).

The literature review suggests that the findings from longitudinal studies on housing with care in England have usually been based on administrative sources (such as assessments) rather than the primary focus being on the voice of residents and frontline staff. It is therefore suggested that further studies are required to reflect the views of everyday life in housing with care settings.

This literature review and the longitudinal qualitative framework for undertaking further inquiry forms the basis for a major bid for funds from the NIHR School for Social Care Research. This is a collaborative endeavour between the University of Bristol’s School for Policy Studies, the Association for Dementia Studies at the University of Worcester, the Personal Social Services Research Unit at the University of Kent and the Housing and Learning Improvement Network. The limitations of this paper reflect the paucity of past investigations on the contribution of social care to the quality of life of elderly residents in extra care housing.

As noted above, the reviews of this draft paper have helped to determine the form of the bid for research funds. Informal discussions with commissioners and providers of extra care housing for older people indicate that access for fieldwork along the lines proposed should not prove to be a major barrier. One of the important implications is to add to the weight of evidence about the working conditions of care staff in extra care housing. The research is likely to highlight both good and poor practices, not least with consequences for the quality of life of elderly residents.

As indicated above, the paper draws attention to the need for a longitudinal qualitative study on the contribution of social care to the quality of life of older residents in extra care housing. Such a study would focus both on the details of everyday lives experienced by residents and the interaction in this setting between frontline staff and residents. In the context of major demographic change in the UK and planned further substantial cuts in public expenditure, this research is of high relevance for both policy and practice in this field of social care.

The review indicated a reliance on administratively derived information about residents rather than focusing on the voice of residents and frontline staff. Future longitudinal research should pay attention to the latter.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the history of pet ownership and its relationship to wellbeing in later life. In particular, the paper addresses the issue of pet ownership in communal residential settings for older people both now and in the past, comparing attitudes, policies, and practices in regard to pets in the late 1950s with the early years of the twenty‐first century.

Following a review of the research literature on older people and companion animals, the paper draws on new data derived from recent research conducted by the authors. It compares archived material on the residential homes for older people that Peter Townsend visited in the late 1950s as part of his classic study, The Last Refuge (1962), with findings from revisiting a sample of these homes 50 years later. The authors employed the same methods as Townsend (observation together with interviews with managers and residents).

The historical dimension of the research reveals ambivalence both in the past and in present times in respect of residents' pets in care homes. Top‐down controlling regimes in the past have been replaced by concerns about health and safety and the need to strike a balance between rights, risks, and responsibilities. The variations in current policy and practice in England and Wales seem to reflect the subjective views and experiences of care home managers and proprietors. The lesson seems to be that care home owners should be expected to have an explicit policy in regard to the keeping of companion animals, but one that is not dictated by law.

The longitudinal data drawn on in this paper add a new perspective to research on older people and pets in care homes.