Deborah Ghate was formerly Director at the Policy Research Bureau (PRB), an independent not for profit centre specialising in applied social policy research in the area of children, young people and families. She has since become a Principal Research Officer at the Thomas Coram Research Unit, Institute of Education, University of London. Her recent work has included a national evaluation of services for parents provided through the youth justice system, research on how fathers use family support services, a major review of the international research evidence on ‘what works' in parenting support, and a number of evaluations of community-based initiatives supporting parents and children in high need communities.