Health & Society Blog Archive
Here you will find an archive of Health & Society Blog articles published before 1 January 2020, divided into their relevant categories.
Children & Families
Breastfeeding welcome here?
Reading Time: 6 minutes Breastfeeding in public is often a topic for debate. Although a very personal decision for parents, breastfeeding in public spaces is viewed as a social issue with divided opinions. This article looks at the benefits
What are ‘Family, Drug and Alcohol Courts’ and are they effective?
Reading Time: 6 minutes The draft Programme for Government contains a commitment to running a pilot family drug and alcohol court in Northern Ireland. Such courts have been used in England for some time, but what are they and
Community Relations
Culture & Sport
What could the draft BBC Charter mean for Northern Ireland?
Reading Time: 4 minutes A draft BBC Charter and Framework Agreement has been published, but what’s in it for Northern Ireland and will proposed changes to governance arrangements be sufficient to address concerns expressed during the consultation process?
What lies in store for the objects from our past?
Reading Time: 3 minutes During the last mandate, it was estimated that almost 1.5 million objects from archaeological sites in Northern Ireland lie in temporary storage, uncurated and inaccessible to the public. What lies in store for these objects,
Where has the culture and arts strategy got to?
Reading Time: 4 minutes Back in November 2015, prior to the re-structuring of departments, the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure published a consultation document, seeking views on the development of a ‘Strategy for Culture & Arts 2016-2026’. This article
Equality
Women’s economic transition to retirement
Reading Time: 6 minutes While women are increasingly better educated than men, they earn less, feel less financially secure, provide the bulk of unpaid care, have smaller pensions, face greater hardship in later life and struggle to pay for
How big is the gender pay gap in NI’s public and private sectors?
Reading Time: 3 minutes By Aidan Stennett & Eóin Murphy Please note: we have posted a new version of this blog article using the most recent data, see here. This article examines the gender pay gap in Northern Ireland: what
Modernising equality legislation
Reading Time: 3 minutes Following decades of piecemeal development, governments are increasingly seeking to address the common problem of fragmented, uneven and incoherent equality legislation.
Health & Social Care
Who regulates health and social care services in Northern Ireland?
Reading Time: 7 minutes This article provides a broad introduction to the complex landscape of formal regulation of health care in Northern Ireland (NI). It also includes reference to some related and supporting bodies. It highlights a range of
Carers in Northern Ireland: Some key statistics
Reading Time: 7 minutes This article is a revised and updated version of a post originally published in June 2017. The perceived underfunding of social care was a significant political issue in the 2017 general election. It is easy
Supporting carers in Northern Ireland: Where are we with legislation and policy?
Reading Time: 7 minutes This article is a revised and updated version of a post originally published in June 2017. This article outlines the contribution made by carers to supporting the formal care system and the issues they face
Housing
A snapshot of some of the key housing issues for the new mandate: Housing supply and demand
Reading Time: 3 minutes Good quality, affordable housing plays a significant role in maintaining physical, mental and social wellbeing. Additionally, the housing market is an important driver of economic growth and regeneration. Therefore, it may be a concern that housing supply
