Harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology: new frontiers in the study of family law

Background In all decisions concerning the upbringing of a child, the child’s best interests are a primary consideration (art 3(1) UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989). The extent to which the English family justice system (FJS) promotes children’s well-being, however, is not clear due to...

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Main Authors: Matthew Jay, Ruth Gilbert
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Swansea University 2018-06-01
Series:International Journal of Population Data Science
Online Access:https://ijpds.org/article/view/506
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author Matthew Jay
Ruth Gilbert
author_facet Matthew Jay
Ruth Gilbert
author_sort Matthew Jay
collection DOAJ
description Background In all decisions concerning the upbringing of a child, the child’s best interests are a primary consideration (art 3(1) UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989). The extent to which the English family justice system (FJS) promotes children’s well-being, however, is not clear due to a lack of research in this area. In particular, very little is known about educational trajectories and outcomes of looked after children and children in need. Methods This poster will describe administrative data resources generated by the FJS and education sectors and will describe an on-going project examining educational outcomes in vulnerable children. We will use the national children looked after (SSDA903) and child in need returns, linked to the National Pupil Database to examine factors predicting the nature and quality of secondary schools that children in care and in need attend and whether these differ from the general population. Further, we will examine, given the schools that children attend, how secondary school outcomes (absences, exclusions and exam results) vary among different groups of children. Conclusion This project will demonstrate how we can use linked administrative data to evaluate the operation of law and, importantly, substantive outcomes for the children whom it affects. Such studies enable us to monitor changes in policy and practice and thereby evaluate the effectiveness of law.
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spelling doaj.art-e5e4ff107e3548ca940bf79d1360e4192023-12-02T02:28:24ZengSwansea UniversityInternational Journal of Population Data Science2399-49082018-06-013210.23889/ijpds.v3i2.506506Harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology: new frontiers in the study of family lawMatthew Jay0Ruth Gilbert1University College LondonUniversity College LondonBackground In all decisions concerning the upbringing of a child, the child’s best interests are a primary consideration (art 3(1) UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989). The extent to which the English family justice system (FJS) promotes children’s well-being, however, is not clear due to a lack of research in this area. In particular, very little is known about educational trajectories and outcomes of looked after children and children in need. Methods This poster will describe administrative data resources generated by the FJS and education sectors and will describe an on-going project examining educational outcomes in vulnerable children. We will use the national children looked after (SSDA903) and child in need returns, linked to the National Pupil Database to examine factors predicting the nature and quality of secondary schools that children in care and in need attend and whether these differ from the general population. Further, we will examine, given the schools that children attend, how secondary school outcomes (absences, exclusions and exam results) vary among different groups of children. Conclusion This project will demonstrate how we can use linked administrative data to evaluate the operation of law and, importantly, substantive outcomes for the children whom it affects. Such studies enable us to monitor changes in policy and practice and thereby evaluate the effectiveness of law.https://ijpds.org/article/view/506
spellingShingle Matthew Jay
Ruth Gilbert
Harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology: new frontiers in the study of family law
International Journal of Population Data Science
title Harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology: new frontiers in the study of family law
title_full Harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology: new frontiers in the study of family law
title_fullStr Harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology: new frontiers in the study of family law
title_full_unstemmed Harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology: new frontiers in the study of family law
title_short Harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology: new frontiers in the study of family law
title_sort harnessing administrative data in legal epidemiology new frontiers in the study of family law
url https://ijpds.org/article/view/506
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