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This paper aims to outline the first stages of an exploratory study into how the UK fire and rescue services (FRSs) identify those children and young people who require psychosocial interventions to address their firesetting behaviour.

A purposive sample (N = 53) representing all the UK FRSs was recruited. Participants completed an online survey to establish the type of firesetting intervention provided, if any; the training and policies available to staff who identify those clients requiring psychosocial interventions and what influences this decision-making.

Decision-making on how to identify clients requiring psychosocial interventions was dominated by professional judgement informed by practitioner training and experience alone, which is subject to human error and bias. Some staff undertaking this risk-critical work have no access to training and/or written guidance to assist their decision-making. Nearly 30% of participants (N = 14) deemed national firesetting policy as not useful in identifying the type of firesetting intervention needed. The development of a risk assessment tool, training and national written guidance were considered the three main ways staff could be helped in identifying those clients requiring psychosocial interventions.

The implications are as follows: the development of a risk assessment tool for fire and rescue service staff working with children and young people who set fires, a requirement for all fire and rescue staff working with children and young people who set fires to receive mandatory training in this specialist field of work, all FRSs to offer firesetting intervention services to children and young people, all FRSs to have written firesetting policies that assist staff in their identification of firesetting risk and national firesetting guidance for FRSs that assists staff in their identification of firesetting risk and the tenets of defensible decision-making.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to look at how the UK FRSs identify those children and young people requiring psychosocial interventions to address their firesetting behaviour. The 100% completion rate to the online survey suggests the findings are generalisable across all the UK FRSs, providing the FRS professional body with an opportunity to instigate the changes their frontline practitioners and managers have identified.

In the Equal Opportunities Commission Annual Report for 1987 Joanna Foster, the Chairman, stated that, “Equal opportunities is no longer a marginal issue. Forward‐looking employers are responding to the changing needs of a changing workforce by introducing equal opportunity programmes and they are recognising that under‐using or discriminating against women — nearly half the workforce — is bad business.”

The content of a conference attended by 300 delegates is reviewed. A main focus was on how to develop women's full potential as managers. Another major theme was cross‐cultural differences, with some specific research from Swedish, Japanese, American and Asian managers discussed. A further emphasis was on the differences in female and male managerial styles, and differing priorities in work and family issues.

When Europe went through the pangs of rebirth after World War II it cast envious eyes across the Atlantic. The USA appeared to be a model of success, not least in the high place which it accorded to management education and in its vast home market, which seemed to provide such an incentive to her productivity and prosperity. From those beliefs INSEAD was born: to serve both the greater European unity and the cause of management studies. Article 1 of its statutes provides that it:

A case study on developing an organizational strategy for equal opportunities, based on experience of agreeing an action plan at the Open University, following a major review. Describes the process and makes seven observations about factors influencing the development and institutional agreement of such a plan: establishing the framework; leadership; a well researched plan; “champions” within the organization; building institutional ownership; resources required and organizational climate. The model is considered within the overall framework of equal opportunities in higher education in the UK, and compared with the research findings and proposals of the Opportunity 2000 campaign. Logs the need for more research on organizational strategy to ensure successful implementation of equal opportunity policy.

Tremendous changes are occurring in the field of employment as a result of the diminishing number of school leavers. This total change is a highly significant factor in the area of women′s careers, and one which will provide marvellous opportunities to well‐qualified women. This, and a variety of other topics were among those addressed at a recent conference, “Harnessing the Female Resource”, and forms the basis of this article. The article aims to further the training and development of women and is directed at anyone who has influence in this field‐women themselves, teachers, career counsellors, employers.

I wish to address here the issue of the future for working women. I believe it is a bright future — brighter than ever before. It is a future of opportunity.

The changes which are occurring in the field of employment are tremendous and are likely to continue at least until 1995, when the full force of the diminished number of school leavers reaches its peak. This total change in the pattern of working is a highly significant factor in the area of women's careers, which is going to give well‐qualified women marvellous opportunities. It will favour both women who are working towards management, and will also make possible the return to work by women who have spent years away from business caring for their families ‐ but there are problems!

Examines employment equity legislation, initially introduced in the UK during the 1970s, along with separate legislation covering sex, race, religion and disability, together with separate enforcement bodies, and separate geographical arrangements in Britain and in Northern Ireland. Notes the role of European Community Law which takes precedence over UK law and increasingly dictates legislation changes. Claims that the period since the 1970s has witnessed growing levels of unemployment, along with a focus on de‐regulation of labour markets. Most British empirical work focuses on explaining earnings differentials using the standard Mincer human capital model with comparative neglect of employment equality issues. The fundamental question is to what extent has employment equity legislation been successful in removing labour market discrimination against minority groups. Uses a cross‐section of data from the 1994 labour force survey to attempt to explain differences in employability across various groups and to analyse the degree of occupational segregation across these same groups which remain after nearly 20 years of experience of employment equity legislation. Reviews the legislation and then estimates first, logit equations to explain employability and second, ordered probit equations to explain occupational attainment, in each case decomposing the results in order to estimate the proportion of the differential which may be explained by “discrimination”.

Although recent years have seen heavy investment in management education programmes, relatively little effort has been made at evaluation. Kane, however, has noted that the time when training and development activities are no longer questioned “appears to be well on its way to passing from a reality to a memory”.