The effects of the tax and social security system on labour supply and social welfare. This research will provide independent assessment of the work-incentive effects of government policies in the area of income tax, social security and childcare costs. Capacity constraints may threaten sustained economic growth in Australia. Understanding and supporting the drivers of work force participation is stated in the National Research Priorities as being vital. In addition to the empirical results, the ....The effects of the tax and social security system on labour supply and social welfare. This research will provide independent assessment of the work-incentive effects of government policies in the area of income tax, social security and childcare costs. Capacity constraints may threaten sustained economic growth in Australia. Understanding and supporting the drivers of work force participation is stated in the National Research Priorities as being vital. In addition to the empirical results, the project provides a set of tools that can be used to evaluate new policies with respect to the effects on labour supply, income distribution and social welfare. This will provide timely and independent evidence on which to evaluate new policies and therefore increase the quality of the debate on tax and social security policy.Read moreRead less
Priority Setting in Child Protection: developing an evidence-based strategy to reduce child abuse and neglect and associated harms. Persons who are potential, current or previous victims of child abuse and neglect are the primary beneficiaries of this research. The study will facilitate evidence-based funding decisions by government (and nongovernment organizations) integrating data on quality of life impacts (physical/mental health, educational, social etc), and the costs to society of dealing ....Priority Setting in Child Protection: developing an evidence-based strategy to reduce child abuse and neglect and associated harms. Persons who are potential, current or previous victims of child abuse and neglect are the primary beneficiaries of this research. The study will facilitate evidence-based funding decisions by government (and nongovernment organizations) integrating data on quality of life impacts (physical/mental health, educational, social etc), and the costs to society of dealing with the consequences of child abuse. The research has the potential to profoundly enhance the well-being of Australia's most vulnerable children, simultaneously addressing the large costs on agencies of dealing with child abuse. The methodology will be highly applicable to other complex social problems requiring whole of government strategies.Read moreRead less
Towards an enhanced understanding of child and youth social exclusion risk at a small area level in Australia. This project will produce major national benefits, improving our understanding of child and youth social exclusion risk at a small area level, and putting Australia at the forefront of research into child well-being. Communities will benefit from the availability of high quality, rigorously developed measures of child and youth disadvantage at a local area level. Results from this proje ....Towards an enhanced understanding of child and youth social exclusion risk at a small area level in Australia. This project will produce major national benefits, improving our understanding of child and youth social exclusion risk at a small area level, and putting Australia at the forefront of research into child well-being. Communities will benefit from the availability of high quality, rigorously developed measures of child and youth disadvantage at a local area level. Results from this project will provided policy makers with tools to develop measures for overcoming disadvantage and narrowing gaps in outcomes for Australia's young people. The international team will ensure that methodological developments will be widely available in other countries interested in developing small area measures of child and youth disadvantage.Read moreRead less
What women want: unravelling the factors underlying women's financial decision-making behaviour. By the time women retire, they are generally worse off financially than men. This national study will be the first to measure the impact of underlying factors that explain rather than describe the financial decision-making behaviour of women, and how financial decision-making and economic outcomes for women might be improved.
Social Inclusion and Exclusion Among Australia's Children: A Spatial Perspective. Numerous studies have shown that socio-economic disadvantage experienced by children has major adverse effects on health and well-being that persist for the rest of their lives. This project will deliver major national benefits by providing quantitative evidence and analysis of the current spatial distribution of various forms of disadvantage and social exclusion among Australia's children and of any changes to the ....Social Inclusion and Exclusion Among Australia's Children: A Spatial Perspective. Numerous studies have shown that socio-economic disadvantage experienced by children has major adverse effects on health and well-being that persist for the rest of their lives. This project will deliver major national benefits by providing quantitative evidence and analysis of the current spatial distribution of various forms of disadvantage and social exclusion among Australia's children and of any changes to these spatial patterns during the past 15 years. This enhanced evidence base will assist all levels of government in decisions about needs-based planning of government services and in the development of possible policy responses. Read moreRead less
An examination of issues around the support and supervision of Kinship Carers, with a particular focus on NSW. This project will be the first in-depth exploration of issues around provisions of support for and supervision of, kinship carers. The exploration will include an analysis of paradigms influencing child welfare provisions. It will also include a study of characteristics and experiences of formal kinship carers, informal kinship carers and foster carers in NSW. The findings of this stu ....An examination of issues around the support and supervision of Kinship Carers, with a particular focus on NSW. This project will be the first in-depth exploration of issues around provisions of support for and supervision of, kinship carers. The exploration will include an analysis of paradigms influencing child welfare provisions. It will also include a study of characteristics and experiences of formal kinship carers, informal kinship carers and foster carers in NSW. The findings of this study will be examined in the context of the paradigm analysis. The findings will contribute to knowledge for policy development on kinship care generally, and in particular, enable ACWA to contribute to the development of kinship care policy in NSW.Read moreRead less
Research Utilisation in Child Protection Policy: Understanding and Conceptualising the Role of Research in Social Policy Development. The findings of this project will have significant benefits for vulnerable children and families by enhancing the capacity for research-informed policy in child protection. In this way, the project will also have significant flow-on economic benefits for Local, State and Federal Governments by decreasing the social and economic costs associated with child abuse an ....Research Utilisation in Child Protection Policy: Understanding and Conceptualising the Role of Research in Social Policy Development. The findings of this project will have significant benefits for vulnerable children and families by enhancing the capacity for research-informed policy in child protection. In this way, the project will also have significant flow-on economic benefits for Local, State and Federal Governments by decreasing the social and economic costs associated with child abuse and neglect. Research funding will have a greater impact by the increased understanding this study will provide about how research can be more effectively used in policy.Read moreRead less
Strengthening Relationships for Young People in Residential Care. Young people in residential care face major challenges in forming positive relationships, many having experienced adults as a source of threat rather than safety. This project aims to investigate practices within therapeutic residential care that enable or limit young people’s identity formation, positive social connections, safety and wellbeing. This research will generate nuanced knowledge informing interpersonal and institution ....Strengthening Relationships for Young People in Residential Care. Young people in residential care face major challenges in forming positive relationships, many having experienced adults as a source of threat rather than safety. This project aims to investigate practices within therapeutic residential care that enable or limit young people’s identity formation, positive social connections, safety and wellbeing. This research will generate nuanced knowledge informing interpersonal and institutional change. Expected outcomes include improved approaches to therapeutic care and to methods for enabling the participation of young people in care in matters that may change their life trajectory on exiting care. Expected benefits include more responsive policies and frameworks for practice.Read moreRead less
Finding the pathways to crime prevention for socially disadvantaged communities: theory, evidence and practice. Long-term scientific evaluations of interventions that 'get in early' before crime problems emerge or become entrenched have consistently shown that such approaches work. However, governments and community agencies struggle to use this evidence to mount effective programs in areas of concentrated disadvantage because the evidence comes in the form of 'program packages' rather than mode ....Finding the pathways to crime prevention for socially disadvantaged communities: theory, evidence and practice. Long-term scientific evaluations of interventions that 'get in early' before crime problems emerge or become entrenched have consistently shown that such approaches work. However, governments and community agencies struggle to use this evidence to mount effective programs in areas of concentrated disadvantage because the evidence comes in the form of 'program packages' rather than models of practice that take account of local contexts and the challenges involved in achieving effective and sustainable engagement with local people and institutions. This project will show how models of effective crime prevention practice for disadvantaged communities can be developed, tested and implemented on a large scale in an economically efficient way.Read moreRead less
A study of best practice in workplace support and development of newly qualified community services workers. Community service systems are under strain, leaving many vulnerable Australians at risk. Between 2001 and 2006, the Australian community services workforce increased by 35.6%, making it one of the fastest growing sectors of employment in the country. The combination of workforce growth, ageing and turnover in this sector hampers its capacity to respond to the growing demand for, and co ....A study of best practice in workplace support and development of newly qualified community services workers. Community service systems are under strain, leaving many vulnerable Australians at risk. Between 2001 and 2006, the Australian community services workforce increased by 35.6%, making it one of the fastest growing sectors of employment in the country. The combination of workforce growth, ageing and turnover in this sector hampers its capacity to respond to the growing demand for, and complexity of, service delivery. Our project will contribute to the sustainability of the Australian community services workforce by building a practical knowledge base for workplace support and development of newly qualified workers entering the sector.Read moreRead less