Examines the policies and research on charter schools and their equivalents in five countries –USA, Sweden, Chile, England and New Zealand. Summary Charter schools and free schools – publicly-funded, privately-managed schools – have been introduced in several countries around the world as a way of extending school choice, particularly for low income families. This report...

Summary: Across the English-speaking world, child protection authorities are increasingly placing children with extended family rather than in foster care or residential care. Many more children are in such arrangements informally. A number of surveys of kinship carers have been conducted in recent years in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. This paper systematically...

This paper proposes a method to estimate the capitalized value of the architectural design quality of a neighbourhood.

Under the current NSW Child Protection legislative reforms, there is increased emphasis on permanency arrangements including adoption and long-term guardianship orders. This paper provides an overview of the development of post-adoption support services in the US and UK; outlines research on the benefits of post-adoption support; and identifies the key elements of effective post-adoption support...

This publication surveys lobbying codes of conduct and registers introduced by Australian federal and state governments and some overseas governments. Executive summary This publication surveys lobbying codes of conduct and registers introduced by Australian federal and state governments and some overseas governments. Although lobbying is a legitimate practice and part of the democratic process, the...