The concept of social infrastructure has experienced a rapid rise to prominence in recent years, ... more The concept of social infrastructure has experienced a rapid rise to prominence in recent years, both in academia and in policy. In this article, we explore a case study of cages (also known as Multi-Use Games Areas) in Hackney, NorthEast London. We argue that cages are forms of urban infrastructure which can facilitate multiple forms of sociality-especially for young people-and can thus be deemed valuable social infrastructure. However, this value can only be understood in context-in relation to the joys and harms of growing up in Hackney-and as in contest-the status and meaning of the cage is different for different groups, and there are considerable tensions over their use, ownership, and management. In our examination of the cage, we aim to explore and build upon existing conceptions of social infrastructure.
In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores d... more In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores dominant media representations of sports cages in the UK. To date, media interest in these cages, often found on social housing estates, has revolved around the role they have played in the childhoods of a small number of young, almost exclusively Black, footballers, primarily from London. In the first academic article to engage with these issues, we adopt a critical approach, examining white spatial imaginaries which promulgate the naturalisation of poverty, and which produce and reproduce social pathologies associated with Black communities, and young Black men in particular. The enduring racialised tropes of lone parent families, gang affiliation and violence, and Black footballers being skilful and athletic but 'difficult' or 'lacking' in tactical acumen are discussed. We highlight examples of commodification, exploitation and glamourisation of these spaces. In addition, the reasons for the centrality of cages in the lives of large numbers of young Black men in London, rarely examined in media representations, are explicated. We end by proposing potential areas of research that are worthy of exploration.
In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores d... more In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores dominant media representations of sports cages in the UK. To date, media interest in these cages, often found on social housing estates, has revolved around the role they have played in the childhoods of a small number of young, almost exclusively Black, footballers, primarily from London. In the first academic article to engage with these issues, we adopt a critical approach, examining white spatial imaginaries which promulgate the naturalisation of poverty, and which produce and reproduce social pathologies associated with Black communities, and young Black men in particular. The enduring racialised tropes of lone parent families, gang affiliation and violence, and Black footballers being skilful and athletic but 'difficult' or 'lacking' in tactical acumen are discussed. We highlight examples of commodification, exploitation and glamourisation of these spaces. In addition, the reasons for the centrality of cages in the lives of large numbers of young Black men in London, rarely examined in media representations, are explicated. We end by proposing potential areas of research that are worthy of exploration.
In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores d... more In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores dominant media representations of sports cages in the UK. To date, media interest in these cages, often found on social housing estates, has revolved around the role they have played in the childhoods of a small number of young, almost exclusively Black, footballers, primarily from London. In the first academic article to engage with these issues, we adopt a critical approach, examining white spatial imaginaries which promulgate the naturalisation of poverty, and which produce and reproduce social pathologies associated with Black communities, and young Black men in particular. The enduring racialised tropes of lone parent families, gang affiliation and violence, and Black footballers being skilful and athletic but 'difficult' or 'lacking' in tactical acumen are discussed. We highlight examples of commodification, exploitation and glamourisation of these spaces. In addition, the reasons for the centrality of cages in the lives of large numbers of young Black men in London, rarely examined in media representations, are explicated. We end by proposing potential areas of research that are worthy of exploration.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Child removals are increasing in England and Wales. Family court involvement is particularly comm... more Child removals are increasing in England and Wales. Family court involvement is particularly common among women with multiple disadvantages, and the rates are higher in economically marginalised areas. This article aims to explore women’s narratives of child removal within life stories of homelessness and examines how stigma, power and State surveillance manifest in their experiences. Data drawn from qualitative interviews with 14 mothers in the north-east of England who had experienced the removal of their children through the family courts are explored within the wider context of a neoliberal political agenda of “troubled families”, and in particular, “deviant mothers”. The participants describe how stigma structured their interactions with social services. Despite the known poor outcomes associated with child removal for both mothers and children, professional involvement often tapers off afterwards, with little support for mothers. Drawing on women’s accounts, we seek to illumin...
Women experiencing three or more co-occurring issues (homelessness, substance misuse, mental heal... more Women experiencing three or more co-occurring issues (homelessness, substance misuse, mental health) are a highly vulnerable population associated with multimorbidity. Taking women’s life stories of trajectories into social exclusion in the north of England as its focus, this paper aims to explore the complexity of social contexts in which women navigate extreme health inequalities. Of the few studies that have examined women’s experiences of homelessness through the lens of social capital, most have focused on network size, rather than the quality and influence of the relationships which precipitate or contextualise experiences of social exclusion. We utilise case studies to offer a theoretically-grounded analysis which illustrates the relationship between social capital and homelessness within this population. Our results illustrate how structural contexts, and specifically social capital accrual and social bonding processes particularly pertinent to women can act to both ameliora...
In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores d... more In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores dominant media representations of sports cages in the UK. To date, media interest in these cages, often found on social housing estates, has revolved around the role they have played in the childhoods of a small number of young, almost exclusively Black, footballers, primarily from London. In the first academic article to engage with these issues, we adopt a critical approach, examining white spatial imaginaries which promulgate the naturalisation of poverty, and which produce and reproduce social pathologies associated with Black communities, and young Black men in particular. The enduring racialised tropes of lone parent families, gang affiliation and violence, and Black footballers being skilful and athletic but 'difficult' or 'lacking' in tactical acumen are discussed. We highlight examples of commodification, exploitation and glamourisation of these spaces. In addition, the reasons for the centrality of cages in the lives of large numbers of young Black men in London, rarely examined in media representations, are explicated. We end by proposing potential areas of research that are worthy of exploration.
Background Around one in three young people report regular consumption of energy drinks, which ty... more Background Around one in three young people report regular consumption of energy drinks, which typically contain high levels of caffeine and sugar in combination with other ingredients known to have stimulant properties. Survey evidence suggests that, on average, young people in the UK consume more energy drinks than those in other European countries. Energy drink consumption in primary and secondary schools in County Durham was identified as a concern by parents, teachers and other stakeholders. Our study was designed to find out more about this issue in order to inform plans to develop tailored interventions and resources. It is the first UK-based study on this topic and the first indepth qualitative study on energy drinks to involve primary school-age children.
This introductory chapter provides a background for the establishment of the Troubled Families Pr... more This introductory chapter provides a background for the establishment of the Troubled Families Programme (TFP), a single central government programme that aims to ‘turn around’ the lives of trouble families. The government used existing research carried out on families experiencing multiple structural disadvantages such as poverty, material deprivation, low skills, and poor-quality housing to prove that the troubled families were characterised by crime, antisocial behaviour, truancy, and worklessness. The chapter shows that troubled families were also associated with a much wider range of problems including drug and alcohol addiction, domestic violence, child abuse and poor physical and mental health, gang membership, radical extremism, and organised crime.
Paving the way for a government to fulfil its responsibility to families, this authoritative and ... more Paving the way for a government to fulfil its responsibility to families, this authoritative and critical account of the Troubled Families Programme reveals the inconsistencies and contradictions within it, and issues of deceit and malpractice in its operation.
The reciprocal nature of the relationship between the concepts of responsibilisation and resilien... more The reciprocal nature of the relationship between the concepts of responsibilisation and resilience appears, in policy and political circles at least, almost natural. Whilst both concepts have been subjected to sustained academic critique for their presentation as largely individual or familial qualities, and their negation of social and structural pressures, there has been more limited attention paid to the potential of the concepts if they were put to work in a different way. This article attempts to sketch out ways in which the fundamentally relational aspects of the concepts of responsibility and resilience can be brought to the fore. In doing so, it builds on Rose and Lentzos’s argument that we should perhaps ‘argue not against responsibility and resilience but on the territory of responsibilities and resiliencies’ and sets out the case for engaging with, rather than withdrawing from or resisting discussions of the meanings and uses of these concepts, in tandem. Extending the w...
This chapter focuses on the implementation of the Troubled Families Programme (TFP) and explores ... more This chapter focuses on the implementation of the Troubled Families Programme (TFP) and explores the changes that have been made to the programme at local levels. It highlights deviations from the national rhetoric and the way in which much of the aggressive, muscular rhetoric has been softened to reflect a more supportive approach towards families at both a local authority level and from individual workers. Local authorities have adapted the programme to make it work for them in a number of different ways and success has often been achieved in spite of the programme rather than because of it. The chapter explores how local authorities have subverted, negotiated, and resisted the national rhetoric in order to make the programme work and to achieve the targets set by the government.
The Troubled Families Programme, launched by the coalition in the aftermath of the 2011 riots, wa... more The Troubled Families Programme, launched by the coalition in the aftermath of the 2011 riots, was tasked with 'turning around' the lives of the 120,000 most 'troubled families' in England through intensive family intervention work. Despite the consensus being that it failed to do so, a recent policy brief suggested otherwise. Stephen Crossley and Roger Smith critique the research behind the brief.
The launch of the Troubled Families Programme in the wake of the 2011 riots conflated poor and di... more The launch of the Troubled Families Programme in the wake of the 2011 riots conflated poor and disadvantaged families with anti-social and criminal families. The programme aimed to ‘turn around’ the lives of the country's most ‘troubled families’, at a time of austerity and wide-ranging welfare reforms which hit the poorest families hardest. This detailed, authoritative and critical account reveals the inconsistencies and contradictions within the programme, and issues of deceit and malpractice in its operation. It shows how this core government policy has stigmatised the families it claimed to support. Paving the way for a government to fulfil its responsibility to families, rather than condemning them, this book will empower local authority workers, policymakers and researchers, and anyone interested in social justice, to challenge damaging, aggressive neoliberal statecraft.
In the wake of riots in towns and cities across England in 2011, the UK coalition government laun... more In the wake of riots in towns and cities across England in 2011, the UK coalition government launched the Troubled Families Programme, which aimed to ‘turn around’ the lives of the most troublesome and anti-social families in England by the end of their term of office. In a new iteration of the ‘underclass’ thesis, ‘troubled families’ were held responsible for a wide range of societal ills, with intensive work with families identified as the solution to the problems they allegedly caused. This thesis examines the construction of ‘troubled families’ as an official social problem, drawing on the work of Pierre Bourdieu and scholars who have extended and developed his work. Despite being arguably the most influential sociologist of the last fifty years, and with a critical interest in issues of power and the reproduction of inequalities, Bourdieu’s extensive body of work has not been well utilised by social work and social policy academics outside of France. This study, then, represent...
This article examines and reviews the evidence surrounding the UK Government’s Troubled Families ... more This article examines and reviews the evidence surrounding the UK Government’s Troubled Families Programme (TFP), a flagship social policy launched in 2011, following riots in towns and cities across England. The programme aims to work with over 500,000 ‘troubled families’ by 2020, using a ‘whole family’ intervention. It has been beset by controversy and criticism since its inception, but it has been described by the government as ‘promoting social justice’. Drawing on Nancy Fraser’s work around recognition and redistribution, this article assesses the subjective aims and achievements of the TFP and locates this analysis in the wider objective conditions experienced by disadvantaged families in the UK at the current time.
Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2015
Background Energy drinks are non-alcoholic beverages that typically contain high levels of caffei... more Background Energy drinks are non-alcoholic beverages that typically contain high levels of caffeine and sugar in combination with other stimulants. Growing numbers of young people report regular consumption of these drinks, which may lead to caffeine intoxication, sleep disruption, and hyperactivity. There are also likely health implications associated with excessive sugar intake, such as dental erosion and type 2 diabetes. This review set out to examine patterns of energy drink consumption by children and adolescents and any evidence of adverse effects. Methods A systematic review was conducted, employing an inclusive approach to identify quantitative and qualitative studies investigating the use of energy drinks by children and adolescents. Data sources included nine bibliographic databases, reference lists of relevant studies, and searches of the internet via Google. Two independent reviewers assessed the methodological quality of the studies and abstracted data. Due to the heterogeneity of study designs, contexts and outcomes, the data have been descriptively summarised in a narrative synthesis. Results A total of 262 studies were located, with 37 meeting the inclusion criteria – 31 quantitative studies, four qualitative studies, and two literature reviews. The majority (n = 29) involved subjects aged 11–18 years, although analyses of poison centre data tended to include broader populations. Studies were largely conducted in North America (n = 18) or Europe (n = 10), yet all of the qualitative studies were from Australia or New Zealand. None of the included studies were from the UK. Two-thirds (n = 24) were cross-sectional surveys exploring i) consumption patterns, attitudes and reasons for energy drink use, or ii) associations with health-related behaviours or effects, including susceptibility to smoking and drug use, sleep problems, and diminished executive functions. A number of key themes emerged from the qualitative studies: the role of branding and advertising; taste as a motivating factor; peer influence; and perceived physiological effects, both negative and positive. Conclusion Energy drinks have no known therapeutic benefit and the evidence suggests that they may put some children at risk of adverse health effects. However, taste and youth-aimed marketing combine to ensure their popularity with young consumers. More research is needed to explore the short- and long-term effects of energy drink consumption by children and adolescents.
The concept of social infrastructure has experienced a rapid rise to prominence in recent years, ... more The concept of social infrastructure has experienced a rapid rise to prominence in recent years, both in academia and in policy. In this article, we explore a case study of cages (also known as Multi-Use Games Areas) in Hackney, NorthEast London. We argue that cages are forms of urban infrastructure which can facilitate multiple forms of sociality-especially for young people-and can thus be deemed valuable social infrastructure. However, this value can only be understood in context-in relation to the joys and harms of growing up in Hackney-and as in contest-the status and meaning of the cage is different for different groups, and there are considerable tensions over their use, ownership, and management. In our examination of the cage, we aim to explore and build upon existing conceptions of social infrastructure.
In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores d... more In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores dominant media representations of sports cages in the UK. To date, media interest in these cages, often found on social housing estates, has revolved around the role they have played in the childhoods of a small number of young, almost exclusively Black, footballers, primarily from London. In the first academic article to engage with these issues, we adopt a critical approach, examining white spatial imaginaries which promulgate the naturalisation of poverty, and which produce and reproduce social pathologies associated with Black communities, and young Black men in particular. The enduring racialised tropes of lone parent families, gang affiliation and violence, and Black footballers being skilful and athletic but 'difficult' or 'lacking' in tactical acumen are discussed. We highlight examples of commodification, exploitation and glamourisation of these spaces. In addition, the reasons for the centrality of cages in the lives of large numbers of young Black men in London, rarely examined in media representations, are explicated. We end by proposing potential areas of research that are worthy of exploration.
In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores d... more In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores dominant media representations of sports cages in the UK. To date, media interest in these cages, often found on social housing estates, has revolved around the role they have played in the childhoods of a small number of young, almost exclusively Black, footballers, primarily from London. In the first academic article to engage with these issues, we adopt a critical approach, examining white spatial imaginaries which promulgate the naturalisation of poverty, and which produce and reproduce social pathologies associated with Black communities, and young Black men in particular. The enduring racialised tropes of lone parent families, gang affiliation and violence, and Black footballers being skilful and athletic but 'difficult' or 'lacking' in tactical acumen are discussed. We highlight examples of commodification, exploitation and glamourisation of these spaces. In addition, the reasons for the centrality of cages in the lives of large numbers of young Black men in London, rarely examined in media representations, are explicated. We end by proposing potential areas of research that are worthy of exploration.
In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores d... more In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores dominant media representations of sports cages in the UK. To date, media interest in these cages, often found on social housing estates, has revolved around the role they have played in the childhoods of a small number of young, almost exclusively Black, footballers, primarily from London. In the first academic article to engage with these issues, we adopt a critical approach, examining white spatial imaginaries which promulgate the naturalisation of poverty, and which produce and reproduce social pathologies associated with Black communities, and young Black men in particular. The enduring racialised tropes of lone parent families, gang affiliation and violence, and Black footballers being skilful and athletic but 'difficult' or 'lacking' in tactical acumen are discussed. We highlight examples of commodification, exploitation and glamourisation of these spaces. In addition, the reasons for the centrality of cages in the lives of large numbers of young Black men in London, rarely examined in media representations, are explicated. We end by proposing potential areas of research that are worthy of exploration.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Child removals are increasing in England and Wales. Family court involvement is particularly comm... more Child removals are increasing in England and Wales. Family court involvement is particularly common among women with multiple disadvantages, and the rates are higher in economically marginalised areas. This article aims to explore women’s narratives of child removal within life stories of homelessness and examines how stigma, power and State surveillance manifest in their experiences. Data drawn from qualitative interviews with 14 mothers in the north-east of England who had experienced the removal of their children through the family courts are explored within the wider context of a neoliberal political agenda of “troubled families”, and in particular, “deviant mothers”. The participants describe how stigma structured their interactions with social services. Despite the known poor outcomes associated with child removal for both mothers and children, professional involvement often tapers off afterwards, with little support for mothers. Drawing on women’s accounts, we seek to illumin...
Women experiencing three or more co-occurring issues (homelessness, substance misuse, mental heal... more Women experiencing three or more co-occurring issues (homelessness, substance misuse, mental health) are a highly vulnerable population associated with multimorbidity. Taking women’s life stories of trajectories into social exclusion in the north of England as its focus, this paper aims to explore the complexity of social contexts in which women navigate extreme health inequalities. Of the few studies that have examined women’s experiences of homelessness through the lens of social capital, most have focused on network size, rather than the quality and influence of the relationships which precipitate or contextualise experiences of social exclusion. We utilise case studies to offer a theoretically-grounded analysis which illustrates the relationship between social capital and homelessness within this population. Our results illustrate how structural contexts, and specifically social capital accrual and social bonding processes particularly pertinent to women can act to both ameliora...
In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores d... more In considering the spatialization of race and the racialization of space, this article explores dominant media representations of sports cages in the UK. To date, media interest in these cages, often found on social housing estates, has revolved around the role they have played in the childhoods of a small number of young, almost exclusively Black, footballers, primarily from London. In the first academic article to engage with these issues, we adopt a critical approach, examining white spatial imaginaries which promulgate the naturalisation of poverty, and which produce and reproduce social pathologies associated with Black communities, and young Black men in particular. The enduring racialised tropes of lone parent families, gang affiliation and violence, and Black footballers being skilful and athletic but 'difficult' or 'lacking' in tactical acumen are discussed. We highlight examples of commodification, exploitation and glamourisation of these spaces. In addition, the reasons for the centrality of cages in the lives of large numbers of young Black men in London, rarely examined in media representations, are explicated. We end by proposing potential areas of research that are worthy of exploration.
Background Around one in three young people report regular consumption of energy drinks, which ty... more Background Around one in three young people report regular consumption of energy drinks, which typically contain high levels of caffeine and sugar in combination with other ingredients known to have stimulant properties. Survey evidence suggests that, on average, young people in the UK consume more energy drinks than those in other European countries. Energy drink consumption in primary and secondary schools in County Durham was identified as a concern by parents, teachers and other stakeholders. Our study was designed to find out more about this issue in order to inform plans to develop tailored interventions and resources. It is the first UK-based study on this topic and the first indepth qualitative study on energy drinks to involve primary school-age children.
This introductory chapter provides a background for the establishment of the Troubled Families Pr... more This introductory chapter provides a background for the establishment of the Troubled Families Programme (TFP), a single central government programme that aims to ‘turn around’ the lives of trouble families. The government used existing research carried out on families experiencing multiple structural disadvantages such as poverty, material deprivation, low skills, and poor-quality housing to prove that the troubled families were characterised by crime, antisocial behaviour, truancy, and worklessness. The chapter shows that troubled families were also associated with a much wider range of problems including drug and alcohol addiction, domestic violence, child abuse and poor physical and mental health, gang membership, radical extremism, and organised crime.
Paving the way for a government to fulfil its responsibility to families, this authoritative and ... more Paving the way for a government to fulfil its responsibility to families, this authoritative and critical account of the Troubled Families Programme reveals the inconsistencies and contradictions within it, and issues of deceit and malpractice in its operation.
The reciprocal nature of the relationship between the concepts of responsibilisation and resilien... more The reciprocal nature of the relationship between the concepts of responsibilisation and resilience appears, in policy and political circles at least, almost natural. Whilst both concepts have been subjected to sustained academic critique for their presentation as largely individual or familial qualities, and their negation of social and structural pressures, there has been more limited attention paid to the potential of the concepts if they were put to work in a different way. This article attempts to sketch out ways in which the fundamentally relational aspects of the concepts of responsibility and resilience can be brought to the fore. In doing so, it builds on Rose and Lentzos’s argument that we should perhaps ‘argue not against responsibility and resilience but on the territory of responsibilities and resiliencies’ and sets out the case for engaging with, rather than withdrawing from or resisting discussions of the meanings and uses of these concepts, in tandem. Extending the w...
This chapter focuses on the implementation of the Troubled Families Programme (TFP) and explores ... more This chapter focuses on the implementation of the Troubled Families Programme (TFP) and explores the changes that have been made to the programme at local levels. It highlights deviations from the national rhetoric and the way in which much of the aggressive, muscular rhetoric has been softened to reflect a more supportive approach towards families at both a local authority level and from individual workers. Local authorities have adapted the programme to make it work for them in a number of different ways and success has often been achieved in spite of the programme rather than because of it. The chapter explores how local authorities have subverted, negotiated, and resisted the national rhetoric in order to make the programme work and to achieve the targets set by the government.
The Troubled Families Programme, launched by the coalition in the aftermath of the 2011 riots, wa... more The Troubled Families Programme, launched by the coalition in the aftermath of the 2011 riots, was tasked with 'turning around' the lives of the 120,000 most 'troubled families' in England through intensive family intervention work. Despite the consensus being that it failed to do so, a recent policy brief suggested otherwise. Stephen Crossley and Roger Smith critique the research behind the brief.
The launch of the Troubled Families Programme in the wake of the 2011 riots conflated poor and di... more The launch of the Troubled Families Programme in the wake of the 2011 riots conflated poor and disadvantaged families with anti-social and criminal families. The programme aimed to ‘turn around’ the lives of the country's most ‘troubled families’, at a time of austerity and wide-ranging welfare reforms which hit the poorest families hardest. This detailed, authoritative and critical account reveals the inconsistencies and contradictions within the programme, and issues of deceit and malpractice in its operation. It shows how this core government policy has stigmatised the families it claimed to support. Paving the way for a government to fulfil its responsibility to families, rather than condemning them, this book will empower local authority workers, policymakers and researchers, and anyone interested in social justice, to challenge damaging, aggressive neoliberal statecraft.
In the wake of riots in towns and cities across England in 2011, the UK coalition government laun... more In the wake of riots in towns and cities across England in 2011, the UK coalition government launched the Troubled Families Programme, which aimed to ‘turn around’ the lives of the most troublesome and anti-social families in England by the end of their term of office. In a new iteration of the ‘underclass’ thesis, ‘troubled families’ were held responsible for a wide range of societal ills, with intensive work with families identified as the solution to the problems they allegedly caused. This thesis examines the construction of ‘troubled families’ as an official social problem, drawing on the work of Pierre Bourdieu and scholars who have extended and developed his work. Despite being arguably the most influential sociologist of the last fifty years, and with a critical interest in issues of power and the reproduction of inequalities, Bourdieu’s extensive body of work has not been well utilised by social work and social policy academics outside of France. This study, then, represent...
This article examines and reviews the evidence surrounding the UK Government’s Troubled Families ... more This article examines and reviews the evidence surrounding the UK Government’s Troubled Families Programme (TFP), a flagship social policy launched in 2011, following riots in towns and cities across England. The programme aims to work with over 500,000 ‘troubled families’ by 2020, using a ‘whole family’ intervention. It has been beset by controversy and criticism since its inception, but it has been described by the government as ‘promoting social justice’. Drawing on Nancy Fraser’s work around recognition and redistribution, this article assesses the subjective aims and achievements of the TFP and locates this analysis in the wider objective conditions experienced by disadvantaged families in the UK at the current time.
Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2015
Background Energy drinks are non-alcoholic beverages that typically contain high levels of caffei... more Background Energy drinks are non-alcoholic beverages that typically contain high levels of caffeine and sugar in combination with other stimulants. Growing numbers of young people report regular consumption of these drinks, which may lead to caffeine intoxication, sleep disruption, and hyperactivity. There are also likely health implications associated with excessive sugar intake, such as dental erosion and type 2 diabetes. This review set out to examine patterns of energy drink consumption by children and adolescents and any evidence of adverse effects. Methods A systematic review was conducted, employing an inclusive approach to identify quantitative and qualitative studies investigating the use of energy drinks by children and adolescents. Data sources included nine bibliographic databases, reference lists of relevant studies, and searches of the internet via Google. Two independent reviewers assessed the methodological quality of the studies and abstracted data. Due to the heterogeneity of study designs, contexts and outcomes, the data have been descriptively summarised in a narrative synthesis. Results A total of 262 studies were located, with 37 meeting the inclusion criteria – 31 quantitative studies, four qualitative studies, and two literature reviews. The majority (n = 29) involved subjects aged 11–18 years, although analyses of poison centre data tended to include broader populations. Studies were largely conducted in North America (n = 18) or Europe (n = 10), yet all of the qualitative studies were from Australia or New Zealand. None of the included studies were from the UK. Two-thirds (n = 24) were cross-sectional surveys exploring i) consumption patterns, attitudes and reasons for energy drink use, or ii) associations with health-related behaviours or effects, including susceptibility to smoking and drug use, sleep problems, and diminished executive functions. A number of key themes emerged from the qualitative studies: the role of branding and advertising; taste as a motivating factor; peer influence; and perceived physiological effects, both negative and positive. Conclusion Energy drinks have no known therapeutic benefit and the evidence suggests that they may put some children at risk of adverse health effects. However, taste and youth-aimed marketing combine to ensure their popularity with young consumers. More research is needed to explore the short- and long-term effects of energy drink consumption by children and adolescents.
The Troubled Families Programme (TFP), established by the Coalition Government in the aftermath o... more The Troubled Families Programme (TFP), established by the Coalition Government in the aftermath of the 2011 riots, set out to 'turn around' the lives of the 120,000 most 'troubled families' in England. When the rhetoric surrounding 'troubled families' is closely examined, a number of competing, and often contradictory, messages begin to emerge. This chapter examines the ways in which the Troubled Families Programme is positioned firstly by central government and secondly by local authorities and practitioners. Adopting a 'street-level lens' (Brodkin 2011a), interviews with managers and workers in one local authority area are analysed to examine 'the complexity of interactions concealed beneath the apparent monotony of bureaucratic routine' (Bourdieu, 2005: 140). The chapter concludes with reflections on the Janus-faced nature of the Troubled Families Programme and a discussion of its role in the crafting of a new 'smart' state.
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Papers by Steve Crossley