The philosophy and the policies for dealing with both juvenile and adult offenders in England and Wales have undergone a marked change in the last decade with the introduction of both the Children and Young Persons Act, 1969, and the Criminal Justice Act, 1972. The spirit behind the policies embodied in the first of these was intended to move juvenile offenders even further towards the provisions for children and young people in general and away from identification with adult offenders and the criminal process. In spite of this, many similarities remain between the two major innovations which emerged from these two pieces of legislation, which were intermediate treatment and community service. In terms of implementing these policies, however, wide differences have emerged in the speed, ease, and uniformity with which the different provisions have been introduced. Intermediate treatment, after a long struggle, is only just beginning to establish itself as a practical provision for juveniles whilst community service, introduced some years later, has now been fully implemented. This difference raises fundamental issues related to the implementation of certain areas of social policy. Although the failure of the 1969 Act to achieve the impact envisaged by its proponents has been attributed to its being only partially implemented and to lack of finance, amongst other things, comparison with the relatively successful introduction of community service suggests that there may also be important administrative factors underlying this failure which have been hitherto ignored.

This article considers the reasons given for the creation of a no-fault compensation scheme for victims of road accidents. In particular the article examines the work of the Royal Commission on Civil Liability and Compensation for Personal Injury and evaluates its proposals by reference to its analysis of whether preferential treatment for road accidents can be justified. The policy options for the future development of welfare provision for the disabled are thereby thrown into sharp relief: each justification given is of relevance to other accident victims; the political nature of the reform is exposed when considering why one particular group is to be preferred to another; and the rationale supporting the existence of the many regimes of compensation in tort and social security is called into question. The role of Commissions in policy making and the structural limitations upon their deliberations are also discussed. In sum the article provides a case study of what has been called ‘the strain of seeking to justify the different treatment for various categories of misfortune’.2

This article is concerned with the problem of measuring the outcome of interventions of Local Authority Social Services Departments in the care of the elderly. The focus is upon the intended consequences of such interventions which are more or less explicit within the social welfare paradigm appropriate to such agencies. Seven dimensions upon which the effectiveness of care provision may be assessed are identified, and pertinent literature of measurement relating to these dimensions is examined. It is argued that outcome measurement is as yet at an early stage of development and that the development of a consensus among researchers about the methods of assessment is an important goal towards which the paper is a contribution.

The article discusses the evolution of Newfoundland's health care system from the turn of the century to the present. During this time there were considerable changes in social conditions, political arrangements and the availability of public monies, all of which influenced the structure of the health care sector. In general terms, Newfoundland's health care system shifted from one involving low expenditures and many British type institutions to one involving high expenditures and American type institutions. The evidence suggests that the changes have been particularly beneficial for Newfoundland's merchant class, including the doctors and dentists, although some benefits have also accrued to patients and fishermen.

Social security and income maintenance

Much unfinished social security business was completed or continued in August. Sir Arthur Armitage, Professor of Law and Vice Chancellor of the University of Manchester, was appointed Chairman of the Social Security Advisory Committee, which took the place of the Supplementary Benefits Commission (SBC), and the National Insurance Advisory Committee under the Social Security Act 1980.