Interesting consultation! A bit New Labourish for those who like bashing them -
seems some people's minds are made up. Aren't Paul suggestions about making this
more inclusive rather than less?
Tim
Quoting Peter Alcock <[log in to unmask]>:
> As the Chair of the HEFCE QAA Committee that drafted the first version
> of the Benchmark Statement, can I add my endorsement of Julia's views
> below. The original statement was written by a committee - but hopefully
> looked more 'like a horse than a camel'! Nick and the others have done
> an excellent job in updating this. To seek to revise it again through a
> mail list could lead to a complete loss of design. And our key aim
> should be to avoid too much prescription...
>
> Pete
>
> Professor Pete Alcock
> Head of School of Social Sciences
> University of Birmingham
> Edgbaston
> Birmingham
> B15 2TT
>
> Tel. (0)121 414 6630
> Fax. (0)121 414 3971
>
> email: [log in to unmask]
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Social-Policy is run by SPA for all social policy specialists
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Julia Twigg
> Sent: 07 November 2006 09:31
> To:
> Subject: Re: Social Policy and Administration
>
> I have read the benchmark and I think it is a good document that has
> been
> carefully crafted. Can I suggest that we avoid the pitfall of adding
> new
> themes and subjects to it. The suggestions make by Paul Spicker and Roy
> Greenhalgh are interesting, and we could fruitfully discuss them as part
> of
> the wider activity of reflecting on the development of our subject. But
> that
> is another enterprise. The political task of the benchmark is to prevent
>
> educational bureaucracy stifling our work and our courses. For this
> reason
> we need to avoid any more prescription.
>
> Julia Twigg
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Roy Greenhalgh" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Tuesday, November 07, 2006 8:04 AM
> Subject: Re: Social Policy and Administration
>
>
> >I would like to support Paul's proposal. I would also like to see a
> solid
> >strand that looks at not just the delivery of social services derived
> from
> >policy, but delivery from the receiver's viewpoint. For too long
> policy
> >makers have imposed a policy, frequently with little piloting and with
> even
> >less volume or stress testing (my background is in IT software
> development
> >and delivery). Whether or not the delivery form meets the demands of
> the
> >consumer, and how it matches the value placed on it by the consumer are
>
> >hardly considered. But an examination of the change in delivery of, for
>
> >example, domestic housing benefits caused by policy changes in turn
> caused
> >by adoption of front-office/back-office or the use of electronic
> document
> >management systems will illustrate well that these changes have hardly
> >benefited the customer, nor have they done much to reduce costs of
> >delivery.
> >
> > Roy Greenhalgh
> > University of Bath
> >
> > Paul Spicker wrote:
> >
> >> There is scope for rather more emphasis on the analysis of social
> >> administration. The title of the paper is "Social Policy and
> >> Administration". In relation to the detailed description of content,
>
> >> however, there is only one mention of "administration", in the line
> >> referring to the "Organisation, administration, governance and
> management
> >> of welfare institutions." There should be reference to
> >>
> >> * public sector management,
> >> * service delivery, and * Social Administration, as the study of
> the
> >> institutions,
> >> mechanisms and processes by which social services are provided.
> >> I've argued elsewhere that the benchmarks, and our current
> presentation
> >> of the subject, makes too little of the vocational aspects of Social
> >> Policy and Administration, which was initially conceived as a
> preparation
> >> for work in public service and the voluntary sector. It's in our
> >> interests to re-assert that position. Paul Spicker
> >
>
>
--
Professor Tim Blackman
School of Applied Social Sciences
Durham University
32 Old Elvet
Durham
DH1 3HN
United Kingdom
Tel. 44+(0)191 3346840
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