Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
History Britain (An assessment of the effectiveness of labour social…
History Britain
An assessment of the effectiveness of labour social welfare reforms
Want
KU-provided financial protection in the event of unemployment and sickness
KU-applied to all adults
KU-workers received 26 shillings a week (42 shillings for married men)
KU-compulsory for all employees
KU-provided financial relief for those who were temporarily absent from work, due to injury
KU-industrial injury benefits paid at a higher rate than for ordinary sickness
A- Covered everyone and gave them money to provide them with what they need to live with A-provided financial relief for those absent long-term
A+-compensation was paid by the government not employers
A+-criticised for the large number of officials who were needed to operate the scheme
welfare benefits in 1948 were only 19% of the average industrial wage - well below subsistence level
Disease
KU-National Health Service (NHS) established in 1948
KU-provided free access to, and treatment from doctors, dentists, opticians and hospitals
A-doctors, dentists and opticians were inundated with patients seeking treatment they previously could not afford
A+development was hampered by the country’s dated hospitals
A+-by 1950 the NHS was costing £358 million per year
A+-the government had to backtrack on its principle of a free service - charges introduced for spectacles (glasses) and dental treatment
Ignorance
KU- all local authorities had to provide primary education, secondary education, and further education
KU- secondary education was compulsory until the age of 15
KU- meals, milk and medical services were provided at every school
KU-'11+' examination at age 11 years placed children in certain types of school, according to their ability
Squalor
KU- The aim was to build 200,000 houses a year and many were prefabricated houses which were assembled quickly onsite. KU-12 new towns planned in order to reduce overcrowding
A- Provided Houses to reduce the overcrowding in cities
Idlness
KU- One way in which the government kept almost full employment was through nationalisation. Industries in Britain were brought under the control of the government. KU- steel, iron, gas, coal, electricity industries and railways were nationalised in order to create and maintain job levels
A- the Labour government succeeded in its commitment to maintain high levels of employment after the war
A- by 1946, unemployment was reduced to 2.5 per cent
A+- nationalisation did little to improve working efficiency in these industries A+-wages and working conditions remained generally unimproved
An Evaluation of the reasons why women won greater political equality by 1928
Changing Attitudes
KU- A number of laws were passed to improve female standing in society. All of these laws paved the way for further reform in favour of women:
1873 Infant Custody Act – increased women’s rights over children including the possibility of sole custody in the case of divorce
1882 and 1893 Married Women’s Property Acts – women now personally owned property that had been purchased before and during marriage, if it had been purchased with her own finances
1870 and 1872 Education Acts – compulsory education for girls and boys from 5-12 years of age
KU- Women increasingly become involved in work that was seen as traditionally male, such as teaching. Other white-collar jobs such as nursing also improved the standing of women.
A-The more females became succeedful in the ‘male’ world, the more it became acceptable. Many men began to see the stereotypical view of women as outdated
A+- they were still expected to leave their jobs after they were married and were not awarded degrees by universities
A+- the number women serving on local councils was very small 24 out of 11'140
Suffragettes
KU-Emmeline Pankhurst, who had been a member of the Manchester Suffragist group, had grown impatient with the NUWSS and decided to form her own suffrage movement. She believed it would take an active organisation, with young working-class women, to draw attention to the cause. KU- Use of militant tactics such as smashing windows burning golf courses and blowing up postboxes. KU- Emily Davison died when she jumps in front of the King’s horse at the Derby trying to attach a sash to the horse KU- if they were sent to prison they would go on hunger strike which would lead to to them being force fed
A- gained attention from the public
A+-the tactics of the WSPU received massive publicity but much of it was negative
A- Led to sympathy from the public and an outcry against the government due to force feeding
A+-some argued that women who acted like this did not deserve the vote
Suffragists
KU-The NUWSS adopted a peaceful and non-confrontational approach. Members believed that success could be gained by argument and education. The organisation tried to raise its profile peacefully with posters, leaflets, calendars and public meetings.
A- Led to attention from MPs and other important political bodies A-some historians argue that the activities of the WSPU were critical in keeping women’s suffrage high on the political agenda
A+ gained little public attention
War Work
KU-Hundreds of thousands of women were employed in industries key to the war effort - munitions factories and weapons manufacturers. KU-Many more women worked as conductors on buses and trams, as police, as labourers on farms and at docks, in hospitals as nurses, in offices as secretaries and assistants, as well as in the Civil Service.
A-Politicians and the general public alike recognised that women deserved greater political rights
A+-However, the women who benefited in 1918 were mature and married females.
It had been younger, mainly single women who had contributed so much in the munitions factories and elsewhere
An evaluation of the reasons why the liberals introduced social welfare reforms 1906-1914
The poverty reports
KU-Booth conducted research in London, between 1886 and 1903. After interviews with the poor, doctors, teachers and priests, he came to the conclusion that 30% of people in London lived in poverty.
His findings proved that poverty led to illness and death and that the poor were not to blame for the condition they found themselves in.
KU-Seebohm Rowntree conducted research in York between 1899-1901. He reached the conclusion that 30% of people in York lived in poverty and that they needed to earn 21s per week to stay out of poverty.
If they earned less than 21 shillings per week, he said that they were living below the ‘poverty line’.
He claimed that people could not help being poor and that large families helped to cause poverty.
A-When these social surveys were published, they not only shocked the British public but changed popular opinion on the cause of poverty. A- it was also proof that the lassiez-faire was not working
New Liberalism
KU-A new type of Liberalism had emerged by 1900. It championed the idea that the government should intervene to help the poor. This provided the inspiration for social reform.
Many politicians, especially in the Liberal Party, abandoned the idea of ‘lassiez-faire’:
they wanted to use governmental power and money to help the poor
they argued that there were circumstances in which it was right for the state to intervene in people's lives
they felt that the social problems the poor faced were outwith their control
KU-A new type of Liberalism had emerged by 1900. It championed the idea that the government should intervene to help the poor. This provided the inspiration for social reform.
Many politicians, especially in the Liberal Party, abandoned the idea of ‘lassiez-faire’:
they wanted to use governmental power and money to help the poor
National Efficiency
KU-Fears that Britain was in decline as a world power led to the idea that Britain had to improve its national efficiency by taking steps to improve the quality of the workforce. If Britain was to compete and maintain its position as a world power, then it had to be run efficiently with a strong, healthy and well-educated workforce.The existing policy of laissez- faire did not seem to be working as poverty and ill-health remained widespread.
Political Advantage
KU-By the end of the 19th century the trade union movement was gaining pace.
Trade unions recognised that they needed a voice in Parliament if they wanted to change the political nature of Britain.
In 1900 the unions agreed to use some of their funds to set up a new organisation called the Labour Representation Committee: this became the Labour Party in 1906.
KU-Hence, the Liberals gained a great deal of support from the lower classes as there was no other party which offered any real representation for their concerns in Parliament. However, this was changing.
In the early 1900s, the Labour Party was winning public support with its campaign for social welfare reform, including old age pensions and unemployment benefits.
A-To counter the threat from the socialist and Labour movements, the Liberals realised that they had to instigate social reforms or risk losing political support from the working classes.
An assessment of the effectiveness of the liberal social welfare reforms 1906-1914
The Sick
KU-provided compulsory health insurance for workers earning under £160 per year
KU-the scheme was contributory - the employee paid 4d, the employer paid 3d and the state paid 2d - to provide sickness benefit of 9 shillings
KU-if ill, the employee was paid 9 shillings (for up to 13 weeks) then 5 shillings (for an additional 13 weeks)
KU-the employee was also offered free medical treatment
A-workers were provided with money if they were sick before they wouldn't be paid meaning they couldn't support their families so they would usually be in the workhouse
A+-benefits were lost after 26 weeks absence from work
A+-after 26 weeks the Poor Law had to provide for the worker
A+there was no provision for the worker’s family
A+many objected to the compulsory payments they had to make - but they could not opt out
The Old
KU-people over 70 with annual income less than £21 per year, received a pension of five shillings per week
a smaller amount was paid to those earning over £21 but under £31.50 per year
a married couple received 7s and 6d per week
the pension was collected at the Post Office
A- The elderly were kept out the workhouse and did not have to rely on family to provide for them
A+-those who earned over £31.50 per year did not receive a pension
A+-pension was only available to British people who had lived in the UK for 20 years
A+-the pension was not enough to survive on
A+-many died from hardship before they reached 70
The Young
KU-Education (Provision of Meals) Act, 1906 free school meals were to be provided by local authorities for all
this publically funded welfare service replaced charity involvement
KU introduced medical inspections for children
A-Children were given at least one meal today so they are getting something to eat A-school boards could act against parents who sent children to school in ‘verminous condition’ A-Free medical treatment was made available in 1912
A+by 1914, many local authorities were still not providing school meals
it was not made compulsory until this date A+-school boards could act against parents who sent children to school in ‘verminous condition’
The Unemployed
KU-offices were set up to help the unemployed find work
KU-430 Labour Exchanges were operating by 1913
KU-3000 people a day were provided with work by 1914
KU-after 1 week, an insured worker losing their job would receive 7 shillings a week, for 15 weeks
KU-this scheme was contributory - employees paid 2.5 d per week, employers paid 2 d per week, state paid 3d per week
A- Provided those unemployed a chance to find work
A- Workers could support themselves before getting the chance to find a new job
A+-it was not compulsory for employers to register vacancies
A+-cover was only guaranteed to employees in 7 trades, including shipbuilding, construction, iron founding and sawmilling (those that suffered most often from seasonal unemployment).
the cover was only provided for a limited time depending on contributions.