Archive of 2019

Cordis Pulse: March 2019

March 2019

With increasing public, political and media attention directed at knife crime and serious violence, we have produced a blog-post which discusses the promise of taking a public health approach to addressing the issue. The full blog can be seen here.

Linked to this are the new Standards for children in the Youth Justice System 2019 which the Ministry of Justice and the Youth Justice Board have launched to replace the 2013 standards. The Government says that it is committed to maintaining a distinct Youth Justice System which delivers justice for those who are victims whilst also rehabilitating offenders. The principle of “child first” and “offender second” is a key feature of these new standards.

The five standards cover practice: (1) out of court disposals; (2) at court; (3) in the community (court disposals), (4) in secure settings, and (5) on transition and resettlement. They are intended to guide strategic and operational services’ understanding of what is expected, but do not prescribe the services that should be designed and delivered. This provides Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) with an opportunity to shape how the standards will be delivered and will give them scope to adhere to the minimum standards or go above and beyond (where needed) depending on local priorities.

Cordis Bright has advised Youth Offending Team Boards in scoping these new standards in conjunction with their strategic National Probation Service (NPS) representative; their expertise will be invaluable in ensuring that YOTs deliver in the best way to meet the needs of children and young people in their area.

The YJB have a duty to have oversight of the standards to determine whether services are demonstrating accountability, improvements and showing evidence of impact and influence. This is where we can help, by assisting in developing/ revising local protocols for all five standards, or by way of case file audit. We are currently able to offer a service of auditing two cases over the course of a day against the new standards at no cost, in order to give you a flavour of the power of case file auditing. If you would you like to discuss this further or take up this option please contact Kam Kaur on 07919 483968 or via email: kamkaur@cordisbright.co.uk.

Read more by downloading the Pulse below.

Knife crime and violence

March 2019

We’ve been hearing a lot about violence, especially knife violence, over the last few weeks and months. Reports of deaths from knife crime are multiplying in the news, with reports that the number of teenagers killed with a knife has almost doubled in the last five years, and that at least ten have died so far in 2019 alone (4 March 2019).

Unsurprisingly, the immediate public response has been urgent and upset. Commentators are focussed on the need for more effective police enforcement to stop knife crime, even going as far as saying it should be treated as a national security crisis. Perhaps more unexpected is the reaction of ministers: Chancellor Philip Hammond announced in the Spring Statement last week (13 March) that an extra £100 million would be released for police enforcement against knife crime in England and Wales. There is no denying that this cash injection will be welcome after years of budget cuts for police. However, the £100 million falls short of the amount requested by police chiefs and is unlikely to be enough to address the root causes of knife crime and youth violence – especially given rising evidence that criminal justice interventions are ‘both damaging and disproportionate’.

For a realistic long-term strategy, we look to a different approach, which has been gaining traction in the world of prevention. As reported in a review of the evidence published last year by the LGA, with support from Cordis Bright, the public health approach to reducing violence offers a realistic alternative to tackling the violence problem, with a growing body of evidence to support interventions that look at violence from the public health perspective.

Download the blog below for further information.

Cyber Essentials Plus

March 2019

Cordis Bright’s digital security has been given a clean bill of health as our hardware, systems and online security networks received accreditation at the level of Cyber Essentials Plus. This scheme was instigated by the Government’s call for a benchmarked organisational standard in cyber security. Our systems were rigorously scrutinised by a third party and our successful certification demonstrates to clients that their data is always protected at the highest level of security.

For further information please click here.

Cordis Podcast: substance misuse treatment

March 2019

The Cordis Podcast provides a concise and accessible insight into key issues across a broad range of social sectors, including children and young people's services, adult social care, criminal justice, community healthcare and the independent sector. Each episode addresses a different topic through interviews with our own research and consultancy team as well as insight from relevant experts within the field.

In this episode, Hannah Marshall interviews Cordis Bright Consultant Emma Van Oss on the topic of integration in services for substance misuse treatment. It looks to understand what more services can do to effectively transition those affected by substance misuse from prison to community services.

You can listen on SoundCloud here.

Cordis Pulse: February 2019

February 2019

The human and financial cost of domestic abuse is explored in a Home Office report published this month. We regularly undertake research and evaluations on domestic abuse, sexual violence and violence against women and girls: for central government, local authorities, police and crime commissioners, and independent sector organisations. For instance, we are undertaking research with victims, users of violence, and children about the impact of domestic abuse and whether and how new Department for Education Social Care Innovation Programme projects are helping to improve outcomes. We are also conducting evaluations of a regional whole-system response to domestic abuse, a regional perpetrator programme as well as victims needs assessments which focus on domestic abuse, sexual violence and violence against women and girls.

As the Home Office report makes clear, the financial cost of domestic abuse, sexual violence and violence against women and girls – to individuals, to services and to communities as a whole – is huge (and for an interesting perspective on these numbers listen to More or Less on BBC Radio 4). We are helping to identify how new programmes and approaches can offer taxpayers value for money. That said, what is clear from our research is that the human cost of domestic violence is massive. That alone should be sufficient motivation to invest significant resources in evidence-based programmes and approaches that tackle domestic abuse when it occurs and also work to prevent it from arising in the first place.

Cordis Pulse: January 2019

January 2019

This month we were pleased to see the Children’s Society’s briefing on the potential of taking a public health approach to reducing serious youth violence. The Children’s Society briefing outlines a concern that the emphasis on criminal justice responses in the Serious Violence Strategy may be narrowly punitive and does not take into consideration the safeguarding of children and young people, and some of the wider drivers of serious youth violence.

Our report on public health approaches to reducing serious violence for the Local Government Association shows the possible benefits of the public health approach. There is a growing recognition that addressing violence is not a single agency issue, as it is the culmination of many different causes. It is only by pursuing a strategic, coordinated approach involving a range of agencies, including partnerships between statutory and voluntary organisations, that violent crime can be effectively addressed.

Although there are different ways to reduce violent behaviour, a public health approach is being increasingly discussed, using an evidence-led methodology to reduce and prevent violence in communities. Our report for the LGA which can be accessed here provides an overview of: (1) what the public health approach is to reducing violence, (2) what public health approaches tell us about reducing violence, and (3) provides examples of interventions and models that may reduce violence.

MEAM: year 2 interim report

January 2019

MEAM has commissioned Cordis Bright to conduct a longitudinal evaluation of the MEAM Approach work.

The evaluation will take place over five years between 2017 and 2022 and involves five core elements. These are:

• Building research capacity in local areas developing work using the MEAM Approach.
• An outcomes evaluation.
• An economic evaluation.
• A process evaluation.
• Comparison to the outcomes and process of the Big Lottery’s Fulfilling Lives areas.

The Year 2 interim report has been published and can be downloaded below and from the MEAM website. This report focuses primarily on reviewing return rates and the quality of data submitted by local areas in the MEAM Approach network under the Common Data Framework devised for the evaluation. It also summarises evaluation activity in the first six months of 2018-19 and considers quarterly reports about each local area which are produced by the national MEAM team.

Social Prescribing

January 2019

Social prescribing is becoming increasingly prominent in health and social care policy and practice as it supports a range of strategic agendas including improving population health and independence, illness prevention and demand management, patient-centred care, integration of health and social care, and loneliness prevention. Here we share insights into the key ingredients necessary for successful social prescribing services based on our review of the literature. The review also explores potential barriers to the widespread adoption of social prescribing services. Please get in touch with our Head of Research, Dr Stephen Boxford, for more detail or to continue the conversation.

Cordis Briefing January 2019

January 2019

January's Cordis Briefing covered:

• Some more detail and analysis from CQC's State of Health and Social Care Report Population projections using healthy life years; what difference does this make to future plans and investments?
• Update concerning the Local Government Ombudsman
• A review of the Adult Social Care Service User Survey and CQC Mental Health Patient Satisfaction Survey
• Analysis of local authority financial performance

Extracts from the Briefing can be downloaded below. For further information about attending (via subscription) please contact Lucy Asquith on lucyasquith@cordisbright.co.uk.