Iriss

Introduced by Catherine McCrae. Here's a Hand is an innovative service designed to connect people to their family, friends and neighbours, making it quicker and easier to ask for and offer a helping hand, a bit of advice or companionship. The service uses mobile phone texts, email, and online messaging to communicate across the group instantly and simultaneously, creating a real time, dynamic network of support.

Students from Glasgow School of Art will present highlights from their work with Iriss on service design projects, focusing on Reshaping Care for Older People

Joe Heapy (Director of Engine) leads the work with the public sector at Engine Service Design. He collaborated with Demos to research and publish 'The Journey to the Interface', setting out the role of user-centred approaches to service design in the public sector.

Minister for Children and Young People, Angela Constance MSP introduced 2011 Iriss Forum held in Glasgow on 6th December 2011. She has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament for the Livingston Constituency since May 2007, prior to which she worked as a social worker and mental health officer and was a local councillor in Livingston.

Includem is a third sector organisation supporting some of Scotland's most vulnerable, high risk and challenging young people. It provides relationship-based support to help troubled young people achieve better lives, working in partnership with local authorities, carers, families and other agencies.

This report presents the results of a small qualitative study undertaken between February and March 2011. It considers the role of evidence in decision making around risk in social work and what affects this process.

The research aims to shed light on the relationship between evidence and practice wisdom (as an evidence type or integrating vehicle) or professional judgement, and how this relationship shapes decision making.

A screencast from Fergus McNeill, Professor of Criminology and Social Work University of Glasgow, in which he explains what is meant by desistance.

An article written by Who Cares? Scotland and the young people involved in the community research project Working with young people, which evaluated Who Cares? Scotland's advocacy services in two local authority areas. The article talks about the young people's experience of the project and what they gained from their involvement.