SPA News Weblog

SPA annual awards

2008-03-07T11:50:16.109375+00:00

The Social Policy Association Annual Awards

The Social Policy Assocation is pleased to announce the call for nominations for this year’s awards, sponsored by The Guardian, Cambridge University Press and Policy Press. This year the judges are all past winners of our prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award, Jonathan Bradshaw (York), Hilary Land (Bristol), Adrian Sinfield (Edinburgh), and Alan Walker (Sheffield) and judging will be chaired by Kirstein Rummery (Stirling). Winners will receive their awards at the special Gala Dinner held during the annual Social Policy Association conference at the University of Edinburgh 23rd-25th June 2008.

All nominators must be members of the Social Policy Association. Please read the rules and criteria for each award carefully before making your nominations. Nominations are invited for the following awards:

Awards

Lifetime Achievement

This award is limited to SPA members and must be nominated by five members of the Social Policy Association. It will be awarded annually to a person the judges feel:

Has made persistent contributions to research and organisation (of major conferences, influential reports, SPA Exec posts, etc.) that has raised the external profile of the subject; and

Has achieved recognition by non-academics with interest in social policy: journalists, campaigners and lobbyists, activists, user communities; and
Has an acknowledged international reputation, as measured in terms of translations, citations, projects, academic posts; and
Has made contributions to professional bodies and associations; and
Has had an impact on political process/discourse (advisor to government, consultant to voluntary bodies/local government etc.); and
Has achieved esteem measured in terms of journal editing/establishing, promotion of social policy within other social sciences, membership of research councils or similar bodies.

Nominations for this award must be accompanied by the candidate’s full CV.

Best Newcomer

This award will be granted to a lecturer/researcher who is within five years of their first post-graduation post, and who is judged to have made a significant early contribution to the field of social policy. They must be nominated by two members of the Social Policy Association and must themselves be members. The judges may use (but are not limited to) the following criteria in making their decision:

Evidence of a significant publications record: eg books and book chapters published; articles in key Social Policy journals; cited works; presentations at key national and international conferences, and/or

Evidence of a significant contribution made to the teaching of social policy: eg contribution to authored or edited textbooks; development of new degree courses; innovations in teaching methods, and/or
Evidence of an outstanding record in research for someone early in their career: eg securing of research grants; developing and leading research networks; a significant contribution to the development of research methodologies, and/or
Evidence of esteem outside the academic community: eg in developing links with user communities; providing advice to voluntary, private and government agencies on policy issues.

Nominations for this award must be accompanied by the candidate’s full CV.

Outstanding Contribution from a Non-academic

This award will be granted to an individual or organization who in the opinion of the judges has made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of social policy, either through campaigning, lobbying, service provision, fundraising, journalism, funding of research, dissemination of research (particularly to practitioners and other non-academic audiences) or through other non-academic means. They must be nominated by two members of the Social Policy Association and the candidates do not need to be members of the SPA (but will be strongly encouraged to join).

Best New Publication

This award is made to the author/s of any book, book chapter or article in an academic or other general periodical published between July 2006 and July 2007. It should make a significant contribution to the discipline of Social Policy as judged by the award panel. This can be in terms of advancement of theoretical or empirical understanding, or as a contribution to teaching and learning. Thus, the definitive general textbook is not excluded. Nominations can be made by any two members of the SPA and the candidate/s need not be a member(s) of the SPA (but will be strongly encouraged to join). Publishers cannot nominate publications for this award. A full copy of the publication must be included with the nomination form – this will be returned to the nominator when judging is complete.

Best Postgraduate Paper

This award is made to the author/s of any conference paper presented at a national or international social policy conference between July 2006 and July 2007 (including the Social Policy Association’s annual conference, and national postgraduate conferences) The author/s of the paper must have been studying for a recognised postgraduate qualification at the time of the presenation. The subject matter of the paper must be directly related to and promote a greater understanding of the discipline of Social Policy. The paper must be fully written up (abstracts and/or overheads are not acceptable) and be of publishable quality. The winner of this award will have their paper published in Social Policy Review.

Nominations can be made by any two members of the SPA and the candidate/s need not be a member(s) of the SPA (but will be strongly encouraged to join). A full copy of the publication must be included with the nomination form – this will be returned to the nominator when judging is complete.

New SPA conference link

2008-01-24T13:53:42.390625+00:00

You can now find out more about the annual SPA conference to be held in Edinburgh this year and next. This is the new website.

Developing a code of research ethics in social policy

2007-11-26T12:27:56+00:00

SPA Seminar: Developing a code of research ethics in social policy: exploring key issues

Friday January 18th 2008, 10.30-4.00

University of Manchester, The Boardroom, 2nd Floor, Arthur Lewis Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL

The Social Policy Association is in the process of developing its own code of research ethics. To contribute to this, we are organising a seminar to discuss the ethical issues that social policy researchers face and how these should be incorporated into a code of research ethics for the Association.

There will be a small charge (£12 for SPA members; £15 for non-members) for the seminar to cover lunch and refreshments. To book & pay on-line go to: http://www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/disciplines/politics/events/spa/

Social scientists sought to help FSA meet strategic goal

2007-11-08T16:31:18.53125+00:00

The Food Standards Agency is looking to appoint a Chair and up to ten members of a new, independent Social Science Research Committee (SSRC).

The SSRC will play an important role in helping the Agency achieve its strategic goal of strengthening its capacity for social science research. It will advise and critically assess how the Agency gathers and uses social science evidence and advice. The Agency will rely on the SSRC to keep it in touch with relevant social science activity both in the UK and internationally, and to draw on wider expertise as appropriate to advise the Agency. Both Chair and members will therefore come from a variety of social science disciplines, be experts in their subjects, with proven academic or professional records, and have good links with a wide range of academics and research organisations.

An opportunity also exists for one lay member to be part of the Committee. The lay member will have experience of working on consumer issues and of working with others in a committee context. They will need to be able to work with the social science members to ensure that the Committee’s advice takes account of consumer concerns.

The deadline for applications is 7 December 2007. For more information or an application pack, please visit www.food.gov.uk/socialscience or call Jane Barrett on 020 7276 8263.

Edinburgh 2008, update

2007-11-07T11:09:33.03125+00:00

Further details of the SPA conference, to be held in Edinburgh, have now been posted on the Conferences section of this website.

Edinburgh 2008, 2009

2007-09-03T15:23:04.15625+01:00

Further details of the 2008 and 2009 SPA conferences, which are to be held in Edinburgh, have been posted on this website. Look under Conferences.

SPA summer

2007-08-15T17:42:04+01:00

Welcome back from the SPA conference. Many thanks to Birmingham, and let's all look forward to the new conference next year in Edinburgh.

Many thanks for all those who helped out this year.

The Social Policy Association Annual Awards

2007-03-19T10:30:36.984375+00:00

Following the successful launch of the Social Policy Association Annual Awards last year, the SPA is pleased to announce the call for nominations for this year’s awards, sponsored by The Guardian, Cambridge University Press and Policy Press. This year the judges will be Polly Toynbee (President of the SPA), Ruth Lister (Loughborough), Adrian Sinfield (Edinburgh) and Fiona Williams (Leeds). Winners will receive their awards at the special Gala Dinner held during the annual Social Policy Association conference, held this year at the University of Birmingham, 23rd 25th July 2007, along with the award for the SPA/SWAP undergraduate essay prize (administered separately by SWAP).

We are seeking nominations for the following awards:

Lifetime Achievement
Best Newcomer
Outstanding Contribution from a nonacademic
Best New Publication
Best Postgraduate Publication/Presentation

Full details of the awards - and an electronic nomination form - can be downloaded from our website at:http://www.social-policy.com/documents/SPAAwardsletter.pdf

1st Annual SPA Awards Winners Announced

2006-07-26T14:16:58.21875+01:00

The winners of the first annual Social Policy Association Awards were announced last week at the conference dinner of the association’s annual conference in Birmingham. This year’s winners were:

Best Newcomer
This award was for a lecturer or researcher who was within five years of their first post-graduation post, and who was judged to have made a significant early contribution to the field of social policy. In the face of very strong competition for this award the judges took the decision to make two awards in this category.

The first, nominated by Robert Page and Caroline Glendinning, went to Dr Jon Glasby, senior lecturer at the Health Services Management Centre, University of Birmingham. Jon worked as a social worker in an NHS setting prior to completing his PhD in 2002. He was responsible for creating and leading HSMC’s partnerships programme, which is now one of the leading UK centres for teaching, research and development with regard to inter-agency collaboration. He has an emerging international reputation as a scholar in his field, having published to date 9 books and 26 peer-reviewed articles, as well as contributed to a number of ESRC seminar series and Department of Health funded studies. He has been appointed to the board of the national Social Care Institute for Excellence, sits on the editorial board of three journals and frequently provides policy advice to government on health and social care.

The second award, nominated by Louise Brown and Ruth Lister, went to Dr Tess Ridge, lecturer at the University of Bath. Tess completed her PhD in 2002 and was then awarded a 3 year ESRC Fellowship. She has secured five major research grants within the last five years, and has already made a significant contribution to her field, having secured a Visiting Fellowship to the Australian Institute for Family Studies and produced over 17 publications in under five years. She was one of the lead organizers of the 2005 Social Policy Association’s annual conference at the University of Bath, and her contribution to the field of social policy also includes her work with the Child Poverty Action Group, and her role as the incoming secretary of the Social Policy Association.

Best New Publication
This was awarded to David M Smith, for his book ‘On the Margins of Inclusion: Changing labour markets and social inclusion in London’. Nominated by Dave Byrne and John Macnicol, David’s book was published in 2005 by Policy Press to great critical acclaim. One reviewer noted that "In the plethora of books and reports dealing with social exclusion/inclusion this book stands out. The sensitive and intelligent ethnography allows the outer London working class to speak for themselves and shows how social and economic change intersects with their lives. For anyone who wants to understand how people live in a post-industrial global city, this book is a must read." An ethnographic study of the ways in which different groups of economically marginalised people living in London have responded to labour market and welfare changes, particularly the way in which they have organised themselves collectively to combat social exclusion, his book stands out from other similar studies in that it gives marginalised people a real voice, and is beautifully and accessibly written. One of the judges commented that his book was an excellent example of social policy analysis, with empirical data being used to explore key issues and provide the basis for theoretical development.

Lifetime Achievement
This award was intended for a person whom the judges felt had: made persistent contributions to research and organisation (of major conferences, influential reports, SPA Exec posts, etc.) that has raised the external profile of the subject; and achieved recognition by non-academics with interest in social policy - journalists, campaigners and lobbyists, activists, user communities; and an acknowledged international reputation, as measured in terms of translations, citations, projects, academic posts; and made contributions to professional bodies and associations; and had an impact on political process/discourse (advisor to government, consultant to voluntary bodies/local government etc.); and achieved esteem measured in terms of journal editing/establishing, promotion of social policy within other social sciences, membership of research councils or similar bodies. No easy task! However, there was overwhelming agreement with the judges’ decision to present this award to Adrian Sinfield, emeritus professor at the University of Edinburgh. Nominated by Ruth Lister, John Veit-Wilson, Fran Bennett, Paul Dornan and Jonathan Bradshaw, in an area where several noted people have made significant achievements in academic circles, in representing the social policy association and in informing policy, Adrian stands out as having made an outstanding contribution in all three areas. He is academically acknowledged as an international expert in social security, poverty and social divisions in welfare, with an honorary doctorate and several visiting professorships to his name, as well as being a member of the Academy of Learned Societies. He has also worked tirelessly to support the discipline of social policy through the Social Policy Association, both as its Chair between 1986 and 89 and Honorary President between 1996 and 2001. He has acted as an advisor to national and international policy makers through the DSS, UN, EC and ILO, and through his work with the Child Poverty Action Group he has made a significant impact on the lives of children living in poverty. Finally, Adrian is admired in the profession as a man of extreme compassion and humility. He eschews formal titles as he feels they create unnecessary divisions, and has been an inspiration to generations of social policy academics and campaigners. His achievement was recognized by a full page profile in the education pages of The Guardian this week.

A fuller report on the awards ceremony will be carried in the forthcoming issue of Policy World along with nomination forms for next year's awards. If you have any comments about the awards please email the SPA Awards Officer, Kirstein Rummery, at Kirstein.Rummery@manchester.ac.uk.

Defining ‘Quality’ in Social Policy Research Report Published

2006-07-17T14:47:13.453125+01:00

A joint SPA/JUC report examining how quality might be defined in social policy research has been published this week. The report, titled 'Defining ‘Quality’ in Social Policy Research Views, perceptions and a framework for discussion', was written by Saul Becker, Alan Bryman and Joe Sempik and is available for download from the publications section of the SPA Website.