Last
month we celebrated our fourth anniversary; this month we have our
big Five-0. When we labelled the first issue 001, it looked a bit
pretentious, but a bit over four years later, we are half way to the
hundredth Webmag, which will come out, Deo volente, in April 2008.
We
are marking this occasion with a batch of articles from representatives
of our sponsoring bodies (though they have all contributed in a personal
capacity).
-
Chris Hanvey is not only Head of Operations for Barnardo’s
but a Trustee of the Vladimir and Barbara Kahan Trust, and he has
written about the opportunities and dangers of IT for children,
a theme on which Barnardo’s are focusing at present.
- Kathleen Lane is a Trustee of the Social Education Trust, which
managed and funded the Webmag for nearly three years. She has written
a challenging piece about the need to address a range of problems.
- Matthew Payne is a Director of the Institute of Care and Social
Education, which triggered off the concept of the Webmag in the
first place. He has focused on the need for good communication and
co-ordination in vetting staff.
We
have quite a variety in the rest of the Webmag :
-
a report about the recent Social Care Association Annual Seminar
in Blackpool, - an account of a Hesley Group venture to involve
authors with children,
- a Terry Hoon column on the need for physical education,
- a report by Karen Vitler on the recent meeting called by AIEJI
about training for social education / pedagogy,
- and, of course, Cuttings.
It’s
a sad issue too, as Bluebrick children’s home is closing as
this magazine comes out, and we’d like to use this opportunity
to thank Gus Greene for the Saga of life in the home. It’s been
about everyday life, but has shown that - without copying TV soap
operas by overdoing it - there is no such thing as a normal day, and
life for the staff in residential work is always challenging and interesting.
(You can, of course, go right back to the beginning and read the lot
again if you want to.)
Finally,
the Editorial focuses on the Big Questions - a theme that we believe
will run for some time over the coming years.
How
to use our website - please click here
for some pointers
SEARCH THIS ISSUE
OF THE WEBMAG HERE
