Policy Press

Textbooks

Education is at the heart of our mission to make a difference. Our goal is to support students’ learning with materials that foster understanding, confidence and skills.

Take a look at our textbooks below or browse by subject.

We have more resources, including free journal articles and Open Access titles, available on our student resources page.

All our books are available on e-inspection for lecturers who want to consider the title(s) for use on their course reading lists. You can order an e-inspection copy here. Click ‘Request Access’ and then use the search function to request a digital sample copy of our titles. You will need to create a username and password to access your book(s).

Read our terms and conditions here.

Fill out the inspection copy survey

Don’t forget, if you sign up to our newsletter you will receive a discount on books purchased on our website.

Showing 85-96 of 279 items.

What Works Now?

Evidence-Informed Policy and Practice

Building substantially on the earlier, landmark text, What Works? (Policy Press, 2000), this book brings together key thinkers and researchers to provide a clearly-structured review of the aspirations and contemporary realities of evidence-informed policy and practice.

Policy Press

50 Facts Everyone Should Know About Crime and Punishment in Britain

This exciting book presents 50 key facts related to crime and criminal justice policy in Britain. Offering thought-provoking insights into the study of crime, this fascinating “go to” book reveals the myths and realities of crime in contemporary Britain.

Policy Press

The Short Guide to Health and Social Care

This clear and succinct text offers a valuable introductory guide to health and social care, helping people who want to study or work in the field understand why these services matter, how they have developed and how they work.

Policy Press

The Short Guide to Town and Country Planning

This fully updated short guide discusses the planning system, processes, legal constructs and approaches, taking into account the recent regulatory changes within the UK nations. It explores the interactions of government and society with the planning system, encouraging the reader to adopt a reflective and inquisitive outlook.

Policy Press

Understanding the Mixed Economy of Welfare

Edited by Martin Powell

This updated edition, written by social policy and welfare experts, shows how the mixed economy of welfare links with the important conceptual and policy debates.

Policy Press

Evidence Based Policing

An Introduction

Examining what makes something evidence-based and not merely evidence-informed, this book unifies the voices of police practitioners, academics, and pracademics. It provides real world examples of evidence-based police practices and how police research can be created and applied in the field.

Policy Press

Research Ethics in the Real World

Euro-Western and Indigenous Perspectives

Research Ethics in the Real World highlights the links between research ethics and individual, social, professional, institutional, and political ethics. Helen Kara considers all stages of the research process and provides guidance for quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods researchers about how to act ethically throughout.

Policy Press

Understanding Brexit

A Concise Introduction

Policy Press

Social Policy First Hand

An International Introduction to Participatory Social Welfare

Social Policy First Hand is the first comprehensive international social policy text from a participatory perspective and presents a new service user-led social policy that addresses the current challenges in welfare provision.

Policy Press

Children and Young People's Worlds

This substantially updated new edition sets out the contexts of children's and young people’s lives and encourages students to explore their complexities and contexts. Each chapter challenges students’ assumptions and examines crucial issues in the field, such as participation, race, and transnational childhoods.

Policy Press

Social Work and Social Theory

Making Connections

This book imaginatively explores ways in which practitioners and social work educators might develop more critical and radical ways of theorising and working. It is an invaluable resource for students and contains features such as Reflection Boxes and Talk Boxes to encourage classroom and workplace discussions.

Policy Press

Exploring Welfare Debates

Key Concepts and Questions

Visually and pedagogically rich, this wide-ranging introduction to key concepts and debates in welfare uses an innovative, question-based narrative to highlight the importance of theory to understanding welfare.

Policy Press