Social groups

This book is the first of its kind to focus on listening to young children, both from an international perspective and through combining theory, practice and reflection. With contributions and examples from researchers and practitioners it examines how listening to young children in early childhood services is understood and practiced.

Thirty years after the Race Relations Act, racism remains endemic in British society. How successful have policy measures been in addressing the causes of racism? What lessons can we learn from countries outside Britain? This important and timely book reviews the evidence and asks 'what really works?'.

All over Europe post-Second World War large-scale housing estates face physical, economic, social and cultural problems. This book presents the key findings of a major EU-funded research programme into the restructuring of twenty-nine large-scale housing estates in Northern, Western, Southern and Eastern Europe.

What is it like to be a child growing up in Britain these days? Is it a happy or anxious time? What are the best and worst aspects of being a child today? This book draws on accounts of over two thousand children and five hundred adults, to examine the present day meaning of childhood and its implications for policy and practice.

This book explores issues of ethnicity, identity and racialised exclusion in rural Britain, in depth and for the first time. It questions what the countryside 'is', problematises who is seen as belonging to rural spaces, and argues for the recognition of a rural multiculture.

To understand contemporary ageing it is necessary to recognise its diversity. Drawing on an extraordinary range of theory, original research and empirical sources, this book assesses the stereotyped conceptions of ageing, and offers a critical and updated perspective.

How to respond to the needs of working parents has become a pressing social policy issue in contemporary Western Europe. This book highlights the politicising of parenthood in the Scandinavian welfare states - focusing on the relationship between parents and the state, and the ongoing renegotiations between the public and the private. 

The UK child poverty rate for large families is among the highest in the OECD. This study investigates the prevalence and characteristics of poor children in large families in the UK and how we compare with other countries.

FREE pdf version available online at www.jrf.org.uk

This in-depth study explores the motivations for 'planned' teenage pregnancy in England. The findings have important implications for the Teenage Pregnancy Strategy and the increasing political agenda on young people and health.

A free pdf version of this report is available online at www.jrf.org.uk

This book presents a novel interpretation of the nature, causes and consequences of sex inequality in the modern labour market. Employing a sophisticated new theoretical framework, and drawing on original fieldwork, the book develops a subtle account of the phenomenon of sex segregation and offers a major challenge to existing approaches.

Social inclusion and participation have become policy mantras in the UK and Europe. As these concepts are being translated into policies and practice, it is a critical time to examine their interpretation, implementation and impacts. This book asks how far and in what way social inclusion policies are meeting the needs of children and young people.

Teenage parenthood is recognised as a significant disadvantage in western industrialised nations. It has been found to increase the likelihood of poverty and reinforce inequalities. This book explores the links between welfare state provision and teenage reproductive behaviour across a range of countries with differing welfare regimes.