By Janie Percy-SmithThis timely book examines current policy responses to social exclusion. It begins by asking: what do we mean by social exclusion? What are the dimensions of social exclusion? How is it measured? and What are the common threads that run through contemporary policy? Each contribution assesses a different area of policy, describing the context for the intervention, examining key themes and lessons and assessing the likely effectiveness of policies.

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The NHS online recruitment trial started at the end of last year is now being converted to a full scale national roll out. The trial website has displayed around 500 jobs daily. Some 24,000 job seekers registered with the service and over 3000 have applied for jobs on-line. The service at http://www.nhs.uk/jobs   allows users to search for jobs, find jobs that match their skills, and apply for jobs online. They can also sign up to a daily ‘Jobs by Email’ to receive new vacancies to suit their job search.Already around a hundred NHS organisations across the country have confirmed dates for taking up the service, which offers immediate access to millions of job seekers. The first employers to join the service in April and May are in the North West, West Yorkshire, London and the South East, the South West and Birmingham.

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The crime rate has fallen by nearly 28% in the first wave of areas with neighbourhood wardens. The wardens are a key element of the innovative approach which involves a coalition of stakeholders including local residents, representative steering groups and a range of partnerships. The evaluation of the first 84 areas to get neighbourhood wardens was carried out by Social Development Direct in collaboration with NOP and Crime Concern, on behalf of the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.The findings also show that in the warden areas evaluated there was also a 10 per cent decline in fear of mugging and street robberies and a 6.5 per cent decline in worry about bogus callers. The evaluation also found that neighbourhood wardens play a unique role as the friendly face of regeneration. They forge links between local people and other agencies to tackle the issues that affect quality of life in disadvantaged communities.

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