News and events

University reforms have created "middle-income poverty trap"|
(2 May 2012)
Systems of financial support for poorer students applying to university are confusingly complex and involve dramatic “cliff-edges” where help for the marginally better-off suddenly disappears, new analysis by the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion| has found.

Book launch - Bangladesh: politics, economy and civil society|
(26 April 2012)
Professor David Lewis| (pictured) launched his book Bangladesh: politics, economy and civil society at an event in Dhaka, Bangladesh, jointly organised by the British Council and the LSE Bangladesh Alumni.

Stop Search|
Broadway Theatre, Catford, 27 April - 26 May
Dr Michael Shiner|, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, is the Executive Producer for a new StopWatch| production examining the impact of police Stop and Search powers.

Nearly eight million struggle to afford keeping warm says independent review| (15 March 2012)
Professor John Hills| today published the final report of his independent review of fuel poverty. The review confirms that fuel poverty is a serious national problem and shows that it is set to rise rapidly.

Anorexia study backs government ban on underweight models| 
(1 March 2012)
Anorexia is a socially transmitted disease and appears to be more prevalent in countries such as France where women are thinner than average, according to new LSE research.

Professor Eileen Munro takes up key strategic role at The College of Social Work  | (7 February 2012)
Professor Eileen Munro CBE is to work with the recently launched  College of Social Work in the role of Transitional Chair for the College's Children's Faculty.  She will take up the position in March for a period of 12 months.

Former student participating in BBC series| 
Dr Milla Marinova, a graduate of the MSc International Health Policy programme, features in the second series of the BBC Three programme 'Junior Doctors: Your Life In Their Hands'.  She is one of eight newly-qualified doctors filmed as they embark on their foundation year at the Chelsea and Westminster hospital.

Child protection expert wins New Year's honour| (4 January 2012)
Professor Eileen Munro (pictured) has been awarded the CBE for her services to children and families.

Choosing a school is not parents' top priority finds new study| 
(7 December 2011)
More than eight in 10 people think parents should send their children to the nearest state school, reveal new findings from the first survey to gauge Britons' attitudes to school choice in detail.  

Reading the Riots| (5 December 2011)
Unprecedented study by LSE and the Guardian finds that widespread anger and frustration with the police was a significant factor behind the summer riots.

Are there really seven billion of us?| 
(BBC News, 31 October 2011)
Professor Mike Murphy| comments on the United Nations estimate that on Monday 31 October the world's population will reach seven billion. "As you can never get a true figure to compare, you are always going to be essentially guessing… We will never have a true, definitive figure."

Self-taught pioneer of the Welfare State honoured| (26 October 2011)
Richard Titmuss (1907-73), who founded the academic discipline of Social Administration (now Social Policy) at LSE, has been commemorated with an English Heritage blue plaque at 32 Twyford Avenue, Acton, London. 

LSE to Monitor Inequality and Poverty under the Coalition| 
(21 October 2011)
LSE researchers have launched a new programme to report on the impact of the recession, spending changes and the government's social policy reforms on inequality and poverty in the UK.

Fuel poverty a serious problem says independent review by LSE expert| (19 October 2011)
At least 2,700 people in England die each year because they cannot afford to keep warm an interim report to the Government has warned.

LSE academic prescribes 'hope' in the battle against HIV/AIDS| 
(27 September 2011)
'Hope' could be a valuable tool to enable policy makers to adopt the best policies to combat HIV/AIDS in Africa, an LSE professor has argued.

Research Highlight: Re-imagining Happiness| (13 September 2011)
What makes us happy? Professor Paul Dolan|, a behavioural economist, knows that he is not very reliable at predicting what will make him happy.

Great recession will hit incomes for years| (12 September 2011)
Ordinary households have yet to feel the worst effects of the recession on their income a study of 21 wealthier countries reveals today.

Do tax credits really 'make work pay'?| (9 September 2011)
Using benefits or tax credit schemes to top-up low wages is not necessarily a good way of promoting a work ethic among people in chronically low-paid work, according to new research from LSE.

Reading the riots - LSE and Guardian launch study of disorder in English cities| (5 September 2011)
The causes and consequences of the English riots last month, the most serious bout of civil unrest in a generation, will be examined in an innovative study by LSE and the Guardian newspaper.

Women more stressed by commuting than men| (22 August 2011)
Women suffer more stress from their daily commute than men according to new research by LSE and the University of Sheffield.

Life-threatening nut allergies viewed as 'frivolous and self indulgent fad'| (16 August 2011)
Parents of nut-allergy sufferers face hostility and scepticism in trying to find safe environments for their children, a new study has found.

Future of Britain's poorest families still relies on urgent social investment finds new book| (4 July 2011)
Some of Britain's poorest neighbourhoods are at risk of decaying into ghetto-like enclaves if budget cuts halt society's efforts to pull them 'back from the cliff edge', a new book warns.

Munro Review of Child Protection| (29 June 2011)
Professor Eileen Munro| gave evidence to the Select Committee on Education in a special session which examined her recently published review of child protection in England.  A video of the committee meeting is available on the Parliament UK| website.

Margaret Hardiman (1918-2011)| (21 June 2011)
It is with sadness that the Department reports the death of Margaret Hardiman at the age of 92.  Margaret was instrumental in the creation of a graduate diploma course in social planning in developing countries.  This course continues to date as the MSc Social Policy and Development.

LSE academic appointed to new Greek cabinet| (17 June 2011)
Professor Elias Mossialos, Brian Abel-Smith Professor of Public Health and Director of LSE Health, has been appointed to the new Greek cabinet.

The Munro Review of Child Protection| (26 May 2011)
Professor Eileen Munro, Department of Social Policy, has completed her ten month long review of the child protection service in England.

Promotion, prevention and early intervention dramatically cut the costs of mental ill health, says government – sponsored research report| (20 April 2011)
Every pound spent on parenting programmes to prevent conduct disorder in young children saves the UK £8 over a child's lifetime, according to a new report.

Will the Olympics make us happier?|  (5 April 2011)
A new study into whether hosting the 2012 Olympic Games will boost our happiness is being launched by LSE, with funding from the Economic and Social Research Council.

Doubling expenditure on the NHS between 1997 and 2010 had a variable impact on health system performance| (16 March 2011)
A new report reveals that while public expenditure on health care in England more than doubled between 1997 and 2010, the impact on health system performance has been variable.

Social Policy professor to lead government fuel poverty review| 
(14 March 2011)
Professor John Hills (pictured) has been appointed by energy and climate change secretary Chris Huhne to lead an independent review of the fuel poverty target and definition.

Closing the gap between development policymakers and people|
(The Guardian, 10 March 2011)  
An innovative programme in Bangladesh is bringing international aid policymakers closer to the people affected by their policies according to Professor David Lewis (pictured).

Treating NHS hospitals with competition and closures
|(The Guardian, 23 February 2012)
Patients in England, especially the poorest, have benefited from choice and competition according to LSE economist Zack Cooper

Government's Spending Review: fair?| (9 February 2011)
The government's claim that its 2010 Spending Review promotes 'fairness' has been challenged by Dr Tania Burchardt, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Social Policy

Crime maps, policing and fear| (The Guardian, 2 February 2011) 

Daniel Bear, a PhD candidate in the Department of Social Policy at LSE, whose research includes street level policing in London, discusses the pros and cons of the Home Office's new crime mapping website - 'Sometimes a crime map is just a crime map.'

LSE professor to chair Mutuals Taskforce| (2 February 2011)
Francis Maude, minister for the Cabinet Office, announced today that Professor Julian Le Grand (pictured), Richard Titmuss Professor of Social Policy, will lead a new Mutuals Taskforce to drive reform at the centre of government with the prime minister's backing.

Child protection must focus on the child, not on rules and targets
|(1 February 2011)
Professor Eileen Munro has signalled a new approach on child protection with an interim report for the Government which focuses on helping children, rather than on the regulations, inspections and procedures that have thrown the system out of balance.