Real action needed on Aboriginal deaths in custody

Despite being 30 years since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody, families continue to lose loved ones. More than 455 Indigenous Australians have lost their lives in police or prison custody since the Royal Commission reported and according to families, the loss of life is higher than what has been reported. In today’s post, Eddie Cubillo, a proud Larrakia, Wadjigan, Central Arrernte man from the Northern Territory and Senior Indigenous Fellow at Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne, highlights successive government’s failure to act on the Royal Commission’s recommendations and calls for taking real and effective action into Aboriginal deaths in custody.

Poverty and its effects on school-aged children: Understanding the consequences of policy choices

While the news has been full of the increasing financial stress many Australians are facing with the withdrawal of JobKeeper and the Coronavirus Supplement, there has been little focus on what these changes mean for children. Australia has signed on to the Sustainable Development Goals, but have been criticised for the high levels of poverty, and child poverty in particular, with little progress in evidence across the years. In today’s post, Sharon Bessell (@BessellSharon) of ANU’s Crawford School of Public Policy (@ANU Crawford) shares her important research conducted with children, who explain in their own words the stressors and constraints that poverty places on their everyday decisions, plans for the future, and family relationships. This provides fresh insight into how the less generous support settings will exacerbate wellbeing and opportunities for children and families in low-income households.

Cashless Debit Card extended despite limited evidence of effectiveness

Today’s post from Janet Hunt questions the extension of the Cashless Debit Card to more people receiving income support in Australia in light of its problematic evaluation. Associate Professor Hunt is a former president of ANTaR, a member of ANTaR ACT, and researcher at the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research. Her research has focussed on Indigenous governance, government engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, and community development over many years. This post was originally published on the ANTaR website.

Creating using evidencePower to Persuade19 April 2021welfare reform

Taking a Longer and Deeper View: Social Security Policy and In-Depth Research Over Time

Qualitative longitudinal research can make a distinctive contribution to social policy discussions and to the assessment of outcomes. In today’s post, Jane Millar, Professor of Social Policy at the University of Bath, draws on longitudinal research with lone-parent families to illustrate how change and continuity can look different over shorter and longer time periods, and to explore some of the challenges of engaging in policy debates with qualitative data. The post was originally published on The Social Policy Blog, the companion blog to the Journal of Social Policy, Social Policy and Society and the Journal of International and Comparative Social Policy.

Creating using evidencePower to Persuade15 April 2021social services, welfare reform

We are Warriors: An Aboriginal Woman's Life

Today's post is from Tina Haywood, an author and proud Aboriginal woman. In her new book, We are Warriors: An Aboriginal Woman's Life, Tina documents lessons from her own life to encourage other women to make brave decisions, and to build broader understanding of the experiences of Aboriginal women and families navigating individual and intergenerational trauma.

AdvocacyPower to Persuade7 April 2021Indigenous issues

Gender disparities in STEM research: A case study of cardiovascular researchers in Australia

The Federal government wants to see more women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) careers; a strategy for encouraging women to remain in STEM careers was a key component of the 2020 budget. While there is plenty of interest from girls and women, the well-known ‘leaky pipeline’ means women drop out of a promising STEM career trajectory at critical junctures, and those who remain are often less satisfied than their male counterparts. In today’s important analysis, Rachel Climie (@RachelClimie), Anna Calkin (@Anna_Calkin) and Niamh Chapman (@Dr_NChapman) share their research into the gender disparities in cardiovascular disease (CVD), along with important insights into what would make it easier for women to thrive.

Womens Policy Action TankWomen's Policy Action Tank30 March 2021Gender Inequity, research

Food for Thought

In this post, a team from the University of Melbourne consider food insecurity among Australian university students in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, including ways forward. Post authors are Associate Professor Jane Dyson, Professor Craig Jeffrey, Associate Professor Gyorgy Scrinis, Charlene Edwards, Rafaela Anja, Louisa Ellis, Aasha Sriram, Mia Zentari and Eugenia Zoubtchenko.

This post was originally published at the University of Melbourne’s website, Pursuit, and the original version can be found here.

IssuesPower to Persuade25 March 2021

If we don’t count, they don’t count – Numbers and stories about COVID, vaccines, and developmental disabilities in Canada and the UK

This post, written by Dr Yona Lunsky (@yonalunsky), considers the role and intersection of “numbers” and “stories” in advocacy for people with disability in the roll out of the COVID-19 vaccine in Canada and the UK. While centred on the experience of these two countries, the piece also has important implications for the use of evidence within disability advocacy in Australia as well.

This post first appeared on the Portico website (Health Care Access and Developmental Disabilities research program), held by Canada’s Mental Health and Addiction Network, with the original version available here.

Power to Persuade24 March 2021

It’s Time for a Cross-Disciplinary Conversation About the Effectiveness of Job Seeker Sanctions

This post by Simone Casey (@simonecasey) and David O’Halloran considers a cross-disciplinary perspective on the effectiveness of JobSeeker sanctions, applying power relations and psycho-social lenses. This post originally appeared on Austaxpolicy: Tax and Transfer Policy Blog, with original version available here.

Finance and economicsPower to Persuade23 March 2021

Time to reform Australia's unfair family support system

Power to Persuade17 March 2021

‘Dehumanising’ and ‘a nightmare’: why disability groups want NDIS independent assessments scrapped

In today’s post, originally published in The Conversation, Professor Helen Dickinson (@drhdickinson) outlines concerns about the introduction of independent assessments into Australia’s National Disability Insurance Scheme, and explains why an independent evaluation of the proposed changes, designed in consultation with people with disability and their families, is needed before they are introduced.

Issues, Policy and governance, Service DeliveryPower to Persuade16 March 2021NDIS

Women’s March4Justice through a feminist policy lens

Advocacy, Policy and governancePower to Persuade15 March 2021policy problem, gender, violence against women

Primary Care Networks in a time of pandemic

PRIMARY CARE NETWORKS (PCNs) were introduced across England in July 2019, bringing together groups of general practices, along with community providers, to develop new services for patients. These networks respond to a need for better integration of health and social care services and issues of sustainability in primary care.

He said, she said: Investigating the Christian Porter Case

On the eve of International Women’s Day, allegations of rape by a senior Cabinet Minister, and what many considered a poor response from the Morrison Government, left many feeling drained and depleted. Is this another case of ‘he said, she said’ - which have been portrayed as unresolvable? In today’s important analysis, Louise Richardson-Self (@LVRSelf) of University of Tasmania (@UTAS) provides important insights into testimony and credibility, and what they mean in the Christian Porter case. This article was first published by The Ethics Centre (@ethics_centre), and is republished here with permission. You can view it in its original format here.

12 lessons for children’s social work from practising under Covid in England

The Covid-19 pandemic is presenting governments, social work leaders, managers and frontline practitioners with unique challenges. In this blog, Harry Ferguson, Sarah Pink and Laura Kelly discuss their Economic and Social Research Council-funded research, which explores its impact on children, families and child protection social work.

Issues, Policy and governance, Service DeliveryPower to Persuade10 March 2021social services, social care, COVID-19

Women are (rightly) angry. Now they need a plan

This has been a fraught and exhausting week for women all over Australia, many of whom have watched with grief and anger as more stories and details of sexual assault and rape have emerged, to be met with inadequate and even insulting responses from senior government figures. In today’s piece, re-posted from the Conversation, Macquarie University Professor of History Michelle Arrow (@MichelleArrow1) describes how Australian women have harnessed their anger to make social change in the past, and urges us to channel our rage now towards political action.

Power to Persuade4 March 2021

Women’s financial security will be further eroded by weakening consumer credit protections

The Federal government has proposed changes to the National Consumer Credit Protection Act which will, it says, make credit more accessible to individuals and small businesses during the recovery period from COVID-19. However, these changes have been critiqued as a way to circumvent some of the recommendations from the Banking Royal Commission. In today’s analysis, Lily Gardener and Madeleine Ulbrick (@MaddyUlbrick), both of Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand (@GoodAdvocacy) summarise their submission commenting on the Amendment, detailing how such changes are likely to further disadvantage women who are still struggling from the pink recession.

What can ABC’s 'Bluey' tell us about Australian family dynamics and work life balance?

Kids’ TV shows can play a number of roles – to entertain, to educate, to challenge and to reassure. Today’s post, written by Dr Briony Lipton (@briony_lipton), examines how the beloved ABC Kids series Bluey, about irrepressible Blue Heeler puppy Bluey and her family, portrays gender and work. Using a scene from the show as its springboard, this piece sheds light on the complex negotiations around work and family roles that are central to contemporary Australian family life.

The best policy decisions need the best data, which means we need to work together

Power to Persuade25 February 2021

The gender-based data gap in Australian medical research is a problem for everybody

There is a long-standing assumption that medicine, and the research underpinning medical interventions, is gender neutral. However, a growing body of evidence is demonstrating that this is not the case, with harmful consequences. Today’s analysis, from Dr Amy Vassallo (@amyjvassallo), Dr Cheryl Carcel (@cheryl_carcel), Prof Louise Chappell (@chappell_louise), Prof Robyn Norton (@RobynNorton8), Dr Janani Shanthosh (@janshanthosh), Prof Mark Woodward and Dr Zoe Wainer (@dr_zoe_wainer) of The George Institute for Global health (@GeorgeInstitute) provide an overview of current research, policy and practice gaps in Australian medical research. This analysis is drawn from their article, recently published in The Medical Journal of Australia.

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