Dr Maya Chew

Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations play a critical role in local public service systems, at both national and local levels. Hugely varied in type, they are broadly similar in their overarching civil society objectives and represent trusted, locally rooted entities, frequently reaching people and places that statutory services struggle to serve. Over the last decade, and especially since COVID-19, demand for VCSE support has risen steeply, while becoming more complex, driven by a range of factors including cost-of-living pressures, health and social care backlogs, diminishment in statutory service provisions, and widening inequalities. The environment remains volatile. Core and flexible funding have not kept pace, and the volunteering bedrock of VCSEs has eroded in some areas. Equally, policy changes (including the Social Value Act, the Social Value Model, and the Procurement Act) and emerging provisions (e.g. the VCSE Business Hub) have improved the environment for VCSE participation in public contracts, while local commissioning practices and payment timeliness remain key.

This chapter examines how older nyah or Malaysian trans women negotiate ageing, health, and gender presentation within a restrictive religio-political and sociocultural context shaped by cisheteronormativity and political Islam. Challenging assumptions that trans identities are contingent upon youth or continuous medical transition, it argues that embodied gender identity does not expire in later life but evolves through pragmatic adaptation. Drawing on queer cultural gerontology, life course perspectives, and queer temporalities, the study employs the River of Life visual narrative method alongside semi-structured interviews with thirty nyah aged 40 and above. The findings highlight how later life transitions, such as discontinuing hormones, revising gender-affirming surgeries, and recalibrating visibility, reflect agency, resilience, and shifting priorities around health, safety, and survival. By centering non-Western later life trans experiences, this chapter contributes to more culturally situated and inclusive understandings of trans ageing.

This report, produced as part of the APPG on Fair Value in the Food Supply Chain and the Rural Policy Group, examines farm-based food production and fair value within Surrey's food supply chain. It provides a county-level analysis of the structure and role of Surrey's farming sector, including production, imports and outputs, labour, contractual arrangements, and relationships between primary producers and retailers.Drawing on evidence from farmers and sector stakeholders, the report explores how value is created, distributed and recognised across the food supply chain. It highlights the significant but often under-recognised economic, environmental and social contributions made by Surrey's farming community, while identifying the challenges farmers face in securing fair and sustainable returns for their work.The report argues that achieving fair value requires greater public awareness, stronger cross-sector collaboration, and targeted government support. It concludes with a series of policy recommendations aimed at addressing power imbalances within local and national food supply chains and strengthening the long-term sustainability and resilience of the UK's farming sector.

As part of Centre for Ageing and Biographical Studies [CABS] 30th anniversary celebrations, the panel session on the 3rd October 2025 organised in collaboration with ERA: the Emerging Researchers in Ageing Committee of the British Society of Gerontology and co-led by Sam Toolan [CABS, The Open University] and Dr Amy Prescott [Brunel University of London and ERA Chair] explored the future of gerontological research, policy, and practice against the backdrop of global demographic change. It brought together emerging leaders to identify critical priorities for action and innovation. The discussion considered how the field can confront new challenges and harness opportunities to influence how societies support ageing populations in meaningful and sustainable ways.