Higher Modern Studies Social Issues in the UK Unit Overview

Categories of Questions Wealth Inequalities Causes of wealth inequalities Effectiveness of Govt responses to wealth inequalities Health Inequalities Causes of health inequalities Effectiveness of Govt responses to health inequalities Social Inequality on Vulnerable Groups Groups most likely to suffer from social inequality One group most likely to suffer from social inequality Gender/Racial Inequalities Effectiveness of Govt responses to gender/racial inequalities Welfare State How effective have govt been in meeting aims of the Welfare State Welfare provision should be the responsibility of the govt (collectivism Vs Individualism)

Social Issues in the UK – Potential Questions Wealth Inequalities Q. Analyse different views as to the main causes of social inequality in society. Q. Analyse the main causes of poverty in society. Q. Evaluate government policies which aim to reduce social inequality. Q. Analyse different government policies in tackling inequalities in wealth. Q. Evaluate the effectiveness of either the benefits system or health services in tackling social inequality. Health Inequalities Q. Analyse the different lifestyle choices that may result in poor health. Q. Analyse different government policies in tackling inequalities in health. Impact of social inequality on vulnerable groups Q. Analyse the view that social inequality affects some groups in society more than others. Q. Analyse the consequences of social inequality on a group you have studied. Gender & Racial Inequalities Q. Evaluate government policies which aim to reduce gender and/or racial inequalities. Welfare State Q. Evaluate how effective the government have been in meeting the aims of the Welfare State. Q. Analyse the view that health and welfare provision should be the responsibility of the government.

The Welfare State Key Points Background of the welfare state. The modern welfare state? Why is the welfare state important

What will I learn? I will learn about the creation of the Welfare State

Success Criteria I will be able to define the term ‘welfare state’ I will be able to identify the ‘Five Giants of Poverty’ and explain what they mean. I will able to outline the founding principles that the Welfare State was based on.

Agree or Disagree? All health services should be free at the point of need. The state should be responsible for providing health care and not private companies for profit. If you lose your job, the government is responsible and should help out. When in need, people should fend for themselves and not look to the government for help. Education should be free to all and not be privatised.

Background of the Welfare State Who was responsible for the origins of the Welfare State? Sir William Beveridge was an expert on social welfare and unemployment who was asked in 1941 to investigate how improvements could be made to the system of dealing with sickness and unemployment. The creation of the welfare state

Report’s Findings Report published in Dec 1942. Beveridge identified 5 Giants in Society that had to be tackled: Want Disease Idleness Ignorance Squalor

Beveridge’s five giant evils Disease (lack of health care) Idleness (unemployment) Beveridge famously identified five giant social evils that had to be tackled. Unemployment, poverty, poor housing, lack of education and lack of health care. Want (poverty) Ignorance (lack of education) Squalor (poor housing)

How did Beveridge suggest the 5 gaints should be tackled? Want: reform and extend the social security system. Disease: create a new national health system. Idleness: introduce economic policies that would promote high levels of employment. Ignorance: reform the education system. Squalor: programme to improve living conditions.

1. Want People should not be desperately in need of money. Idea of ‘social security’ developed. The government set up a comprehensive range of benefits for the young, the old and those of working age who were unable to work.

Examples: child benefit, sickness benefit, housing benefit and state retirement pension. Government funding to be gained through general taxation of the working population.

2. Disease Everyone to have health needs met, regardless of income. The National Health Service was set up in 1948.

2. Disease The NHS in Scotland was set up in 1948. It provides a comprehensive range of healthcare services to citizens based on need and not ability to pay. NHS services include: Hospital services e.g. Glasgow Royal Infirmary Primary care - GPs, dentists, opticians, pharmacies, etc. Local authority services including community nurses and health visitors

3. Squalor Everyone to have adequate housing. Slum housing in big cities torn down. Programme of council building started. ‘New towns’ were built in Scotland: Cumbernauld, East Kilbride, Glenrothes, Irvine and Livingston.

3. Squalor Social housing is a term used to describe affordable rented accommodation which is owned and managed by a local authority (or council) or increasingly, housing associations. Social housing properties are rented out to those who cannot afford to buy or rent from the private sector or, who need special types e.g. elderly people in sheltered housing. We might know this type of housing better as Council Houses.

4. Ignorance Every child to leave school with a decent level of education. School leaving age gradually increased to 16. Comprehensive schools set up for all children 11-16 years. End of 11+ exam.

5. Idleness Aim to achieve full employment – a job for every person able to work. The government ‘nationalised’ many of the private companies – eg. ‘British Rail’ and ‘British Steel’. As the government was now the major employer, it believed it could control the amount of jobs available.

Principles behind the Proposals Funded from national insurance that would meet peoples’ needs from the ‘cradle to the grave’. The Welfare System was to be based on 4 founding principles: Collectivist: the government would fund the welfare system. Universal: the welfare state would be available for the whole population for free. Comprehensive: a wide range of services would be provided to tackle all of society’s social problems. Equality: there would be equal provision for all people in all regions and areas.

Background of the Welfare State Tasks Use the Welfare State Background reading on the blog to answer the following questions: Explain what the Welfare State is. (Pg 25) Explain who William Beveridge was and describe the main findings of the Beveridge Report – the 5 giants. (Pg 25-26) Beveridge believed a welfare system would help tackle these 5 giants – list the four founding principles of the welfare state. (Pg 27) For each founding principle mention: What it is (Pg 27-28) How various UK governments over the period have tried to meet it (pg 27-28)