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Social Policy and Social Work
An Introduction
Third Edition
- Jo Cunningham
- Steve Cunningham - University of Central Lancashire, UK
- Alice O'Sullivan - Leeds Beckett University, UK
June 2025 | 336 pages | Learning Matters
An understanding of social policy is crucial for social workers as it underpins and shapes the legislative framework that they work within. From safeguarding service users and enabling them to improve their lives, to protecting the most vulnerable in society, social policy also has a vital role to play within social work education. It is therefore important that you, as a social work student, learn to engage critically with social policy. This book will introduce you to policy and show you how it has changed and evolved over time, how it reflects changes in society and how it can be applied to your practice.
Part I: The historical and theoretical context
Chapter 1: Social policy and social work
Chapter 2: The development of social policy and social work in the nineteenth century
Chapter 3: Ideology, social policy and social work
Chapter 4: Social democracy and the development of social policy and social work after 1945
Chapter 5: Neo-liberalism and the development of social policy and social work after 1979
Part II: Social policy, social work and service users
Chapter 6: Marxism, Social Policy and Social Work
Chapter 7: Children, social policy and social work
Chapter 8: Youth, social policy, social work and the 'crisis of youth’
Chapter 9: Adults, social policy and social work: The personalisation agenda
Chapter 10: Ageing, social policy and social work