Skip to main content

The Latest Bulletin

Overcoming deprivation and disconnection in UK cities

Overcoming deprivation and disconnection in UK cities

The poorest areas of towns and cities do not always benefit from economic growth. They can remain disconnected from the prosperity experienced by residents of wealthier neighbourhoods in the same region. This research looks at these issues from the perspective of housing and labour markets in the 20 per cent most deprived neighbourhoods across the UK. It finds that there is a need to reconnect economic growth strategies with poverty alleviation initiatives. The research includes an interactive map which reveals how disconnected regions are spread across the UK, and also shows the areas affected by ‘double disconnection’, across both housing and labour markets. Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
February 23, 2017
Photographer combats gender stereotypes with the idea that ‘boys can, too’

Photographer combats gender stereotypes with the idea that ‘boys can, too’

It started when my son was only a few months old. I had taken him downtown with me, for my weekly therapy session with the social worker I was seeing for postpartum depression counseling. There was a chill in the air, and I worried that his little cotton pants would ride up and expose his legs while I wore him, so I decided to put on his sister’s old baby leg warmers. They were mostly white, but had small pink and purple hearts scattered across them, Who would care, though? He was a baby, after all. I stopped by a friend’s house before my appointment, and she immediately commented on it, laughingly telling me she would buy him boys’ leg…
Dr Neil Thompson
February 23, 2017
Stress in public services: How do you unwind?

Stress in public services: How do you unwind?

So answered a staff nurse, one of the 3,700 public and voluntary sector workers who responded to a Guardian survey on wellbeing in the workplace, when answering the question: when you feel stressed, what do you do to relax? From playing heavy metal music on full blast to crocheting furiously in front of the TV, respondents had developed a wide range of ways to unwind. With 93% saying they suffer from stress at work, and more than half saying they are more stressed than this time last year, learning to clock off and manage stress has never been more important. Alongside the positive and charming “I use adult colouring books”, we received frank responses that detailed the daily struggles some…
Dr Neil Thompson
February 23, 2017
These amazing animations show what being LGBT in the workplace is like

These amazing animations show what being LGBT in the workplace is like

A series of animations has been created to illustrate what it is like to be LGBT in the workplace today in the UK. Until legislation was changed in 2003, it was legal in the UK to be fire an employee for being LGBT. Later, The Equality Act 2010 consolidated many protections in law for LGBT employees. Author of Straight Jacket, Matthew Todd, told totaljobs: “Although it has never been easier to be Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender, a significant number of LGBT employees are still afraid to ‘come out’ at work because they fear this will lead to harassment and damage their career opportunities. “People who are not LGBT might dismiss the need ‘to be open about your sexuality’ as…
Dr Neil Thompson
February 23, 2017
Avenue Professional Development Programme

Avenue Professional Development Programme

The Avenue Professional Development Programme has been developed to allow busy practitioners and managers across the people professions to maximise their learning. There are two pathways within the Programme, Silver and Gold. The Silver pathway allows members access to a secure website where they can join in professional discussions under the tutorship of Dr Neil Thompson; have access to a constantly growing library of multimedia learning resources; develop an e-portfolio to record and demonstrate their learning and make use of an online reflective journal. It is not a course in the conventional sense, but, rather, an online learning community to support and facilitate continuous professional development and lifelong learning. The Gold pathway includes all the benefits of the Silver pathway…
Dr Neil Thompson
February 9, 2017
Neil Thompson’s Lessons for Living – Security is the ability to cope with insecurity

Neil Thompson’s Lessons for Living – Security is the ability to cope with insecurity

It is quite common for people to be rated according to how secure they are, especially people who are perceived to be low on any such rating scale – that is, people who are viewed as ‘insecure’. But what does it mean to refer to someone as ‘insecure’? Or as ‘secure’, for that matter? The world is a very insecure place, in the sense that, as the old saying goes, the only certainties are death and taxes. No one knows what is going to happen next. Our lives could potentially be turned upside down at any moment, with horrendous consequences. Disaster could be just round the corner. But it probably isn’t ... Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
February 9, 2017
Defeating rumination – How to reduce stress and build resilience

Defeating rumination – How to reduce stress and build resilience

While recognizing stress as a major problem in the workplace, many people assume that there is no escape from such stress. The demands of most jobs are going to create stress — such is the nature of work. This assumption is wrong, however, and the core reason is the failure to distinguish between ‘pressure’ and ‘stress’. Pressure results from external events, such as, for example, a failed project or a looming deadline. Pressure is, indeed, inevitable, and there is little we can do about it. Stress, in contrast, emerges not from an event — past or future — but from our reaction to the event. University of York professor Derek Roger has been researching stress for 30 years — 15 of…
Dr Neil Thompson
February 9, 2017
Equality matters to human rights: We need a socio-economic duty.

Equality matters to human rights: We need a socio-economic duty.

The UK is one of the most unequal societies in Europe. Even though decreasing unemployment and low inflation have reduced income inequality for now, unfair taxes, stagnant incomes and unaffordable housing risk enlarging the wealth gap. It is not only about raw data. Inequality is widely perceived as a growing problem in society. According to the 2016 British Social Survey, more than 76% of the people believe there is a wide divide between social classes. Abundant empirical research shows how bad inequality can be for general economic stability, criminality, individual self-esteem, mental health, sense of trust and civic participation. Many of these issues are closely connected to human rights. Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
February 9, 2017
Seth Godin’s blog – Missed it by that much

Seth Godin’s blog – Missed it by that much

I got to the gate just as they closed the door and the plane began to back away. It was thirty years ago, but I still remember how it felt. I think we’re hard-wired to fear these painful moments of missing out. Deadlines don’t cause death if missed, but sometimes we persuade ourselves that it’s almost as bad. As a result, marketers and others that want us to take action invent cliffs, slamming doors and loud buzzers. We put a rope at door, a timer on the clock and focus on scarcity and the fear of missing out. And as a result, consumers and students and co-workers wait for the signals, prioritizing their lives around the next urgency. When everything is…
Dr Neil Thompson
February 9, 2017
Who are Learning Disability Voices?

Who are Learning Disability Voices?

Learning Disability Voices comprises charities, not-for-profit and independent sector companies who provide learning disability services in the UK, including the likes of Voyage Care, United Response, Lifeways, The Wilf Ward Family Trust, Hft and Mencap - together representing 20% of the total sector provision. The learning disability sector cares for the UK’s most vulnerable people, who often require 24-hour support delivered by one or more carers to ensure that their needs are met. For too long now our sector has had to cope with increasingly damaging local government cuts and has been forced to drive operational efficiencies to keep fees static. However, as we are paid for the hours of care we deliver, we cannot reduce frontline staffing to cut…
Dr Neil Thompson
February 9, 2017