In the 25 years since devolution passed to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, key differences have emerged in the way that the UK's four systems are grappling with how to meet the growing need for care within the context of stretched budgets and a shrinking workforce.

In a seminar on 31 January, Professor Catherine Needham (University of Birmingham, School of Social Policy) will present findings from a new book Social Care in the UK's Four Nations - between two paradigms to explore differences between jurisdictions, and what impact the differences are having. Drawing on extensive interviews with national and local policy makers across the UK, the research raises vital questions about the role of 'standardisation' and 'differentiation' as approaches to solving the social care crisis.

The event will take place on Wednesday 31 January 2024, 3pm to 4.30pm, in The Lab (6th Floor) Mac Theatre,10 Exchange Street West, Belfast, BT1 2NJ. Refreshments will be served from 2.30. The event is free, but places must be booked in advance - please click here.

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The Northern Ireland Peace Monitoring report is a process of regular monitoring to measure the distance travelled, either closer to, or further away from the shared goal of a peaceful and inclusive society.

The Sixth Peace Monitoring Report was published in December 2023, written by a team led by ARK. As in previous years, the Report focuses on the themes of security, equality, political progress, and cohesion and sharing.

The team comprised Ann Marie Gray, Jennifer Hamilton, Grainne Kelly, Brendan Lynn and Richard Johnson from Ulster University; Paula Devine and John Topping from Queen's University; and Richard Martin from London School of Economics. The project is run by the Community Relations Council and financially supported by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust.

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24 January is the International Day of Education, and education has been a consistent theme throughout ARK's work, including:

• The Methods for Assessing Demand for Integrated Education project evaluated measures to ascertain demand for integrated education within the context of the Integrated Education Act (Northern Ireland) 2022. Outputs include a report, a Policy Brief, and journal article.
• Young Life and Times has regularly asked 16 year olds about their experiences and attitudes relating to school, integrated and shared education, bullying, and the curriculum.
• Every year, Kids' Life and Times asks 10-11 year olds about a range of topics related to school, bullying and shared education.

 

We are very pleased to be hosting Dr Nimali Goswami, Sociology, Tezpur University, India in March 2024. She will be working with Dr Gemma Carney on the Changing Generations in India project, which investigates the potential of indigenous research on gender and state support in India. This project also involves Professor Dina Belluigi and Dr Ulrike Vieten from the Centre for Inclusion, Transformation and Equality (CITE) at Queen's, and Professor Dirk Schubotz, Young Life and Times. Dr Goswami co-supervises ARK Ageing programme PhD student, Murchana Kaushik.  

ARK is Northern Ireland's social policy hub. Established in 2000 by researchers at Queen's University Belfast and Ulster University, its primary goal is to increase the accessibility and use of academic data and research. Most of our dissemination is via our website at www.ark.ac.uk, which is divided into five main areas:

• Surveys
• Projects
• Resources
• Publications
• Events

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