Anne Gray

The social capital of older people

ABSTRACT How can the ‘social capital’ inherent in social networks provide contacts through which older people access practical and emotional support? What is the relative importance of kin and non-kin, and of participation in organisations and informal ties such as contacts with neighbours? Following a brief contextualisation that draws on previous literature, this paper addresses these questions through analysis of British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) data. It examines the extent to which people feel they can count on emotional and practical support from friends and relatives. A dependent variable was created that measures the outcome of the ‘social capital’ residing in a respondents social network. Relatively poor support was found amongst elders who were childless or had been continuously without a partner; relatively rich support was found amongst those who had frequent contact with other people, who interacted frequently with neighbours, and who regarded their neighbourhood as a positive social environment. Being active in organisations had less effect on social support than informal social contacts. Amongst many different forms of organisational activity, the only ones that had a positive association with social support were being in contact with others through religious activities, and engaging in sports clubs. The social support of working-class elders, even those ‘well networked’ in formal or informal ways, was strengthened less by their social capital than was that of the professional and managerial occupational groups.

The Time Economy of Parenting

This paper explores how the UK Time Use Survey (UKTUS), together with the authors qualitative interviews and focus groups with London parents, can inform current policy debates about childcare and parental employment. It also refers to the international literature about long-term trends in parental childcare time. It addresses four key questions about time use and parenting, which have implications for theorisation of the ‘gender contract’ regarding childcare and for our understanding of the gendered distribution of time between care, work and leisure in two-parent families. How is total parenting time affected by parents’ work hours? How do the long work weeks of British fathers affect their capacity to share childcare with mothers? Would childcare time rise if work hours were more equally distributed between women and men? This invokes a discussion of how far childcare is really transferable between parents (or can be delegated to external carers); to what extent is it ‘work’ or a relational activity?

‘Making Work Pay’ – Devising the Best Strategy for Lone Parents in Britain

‘Making work pay’ is the keystone of New Labours strategy to reduce welfare dependency. This strategy is especially directed at lone parents, through increased financial support for childcare, a specific ‘New Deal’ and reduced benefits for non-working lone parents. Reducing welfare dependency for lone parents has several possible objectives; minimising welfare expenditures, maximising the employment rate, improving the socioeconomic status of women, or improving conditions for their children. This article analyses the implications of each of these objectives for policy design, using evidence from other countries as well as the United Kingdom, and examines the internal coherence of New Labours policy approach to lone parents and its coherence with other policies on the family and on lifelong learning. The potential effectiveness of ‘making work pay’ is examined through the findings of recent literature, leading to arguments for a carers allowance.

Social Capital, or Local Workfarism? Reflections on Employment Zones

Jones, M., Gray, A. (2001). Social Capital, or Local Workfarism? Reflections on Employment Zones. Local Economy, 16 (3), 178-186.

Contract Culture and Target Fetishism The distortive effects of output measures in local regeneration programmes

Performance management in TECs1 and urban initiatives has developed in the 1990s into a “contract culture” characterised by heavy reliance on quantitative indicators as the basis for funding arrangements. These indicators may have perverse effects. Firstly, they may distort the design of local policy at the level of strategic planning and SRB (Single Regeneration Budget) bid-writing. Secondly, their use in contracts between TECs, City Challenge companies, SRB partnerships and their delivery agencies may distort policy implementation. An instructive parallel may be drawn between this “indicator distortion” and the distortions induced by planning targets in the former Soviet Union.

Care in the community or care of the community? Some reflections on the role of support services in retirement housing

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to enquire how housing providers can facilitate a “social scene” which helps residents to bond together and which indirectly can generate both mutual aid and a collective voice. Design/methodology/approach – The study of 16 retirement housing schemes (including social rented, extra care and leasehold), involved focus groups engaging altogether 130 residents, interviews with estate managers and a postal survey with 120 respondents across eight estates. Findings – The findings highlight an important “community development” role for existing on-site managers and the risk that a move to floating support means losing this function. They illustrate the obstacles faced by retirement housing residents in developing collective social activities or a participatory voice in management. This paper is one of several ongoing and planned outputs of the study covering different aspects of the findings. Research limitations/implications – The initial study reported here is largely ba...

Social Capital and Neighbourhood in Older People’s Housing

Older people’s social networks (family, friends and neighbours) affect their capacity both to avoid social isolation and to obtain practical support with everyday tasks. Isolation often follows bereavement or a decline in health, and may contribute to depression and even to cognitive decline. Through a small-scale study of the social environment in specialised housing schemes for older people in Britain, this paper examines how the different types of social capital available to elders in retirement housing affect the support and social opportunities open to them. It considers how providers of retirement housing can best help residents to sustain and maximise positive social contacts and the different roles played by both staff and by residents’ self-organisation and mutual aid. Through analysis of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, residents in retirement housing are shown to have characteristics which make them disproportionately vulnerable to loneliness and depression. Reduced public funding for staff and facilities presents challenges to housing providers and to communities in helping such residents.