How can a social investment approach improve a country’s well-being? In social investment, resources are invested in people and policies are designed to strengthen people’s skills and capacities and support their participation in employment and social life. The main policy areas targeted by social investment include health, education & training, childcare, employment. Due to changing socio-economic conditions, a country’s welfare state is constantly considered to be in development. A new concept of welfare has recently evolved since the final years of the twentieth century, and this has changed the social protection concept to that of social investment. Given that this concept is vague, it is mainly based upon the investment in human capital …show more content…
These socio-economic situations are leading to a transition towards alternative and active welfare states, which are resulting in higher labour market participation, thus altering the traditional notion of social citizenship which is based on social rights, putting more emphasis on reciprocity of rights and duties. Individual social responsibility gained more importance in social policy, but at the same time the social investment model puts emphasis on equal opportunities and increasing social mobility. The social investment approach is based on three fundamental concepts; the importance of having social protection systems (welfare states) which cater for the citizen’s needs, especially at critical phases of their lives, thus reducing the risk of social breakdown which causes higher social spending; better accessible social policies to deliver adequate and sustainable social protection systems, which may need lower budgets, therefore less stress on public coffers, but which are more efficient in social policy expenditure; implementation of active inclusion strategies by (amongst various) providing affordable or subsidised childcare and education, reduction of early school leaving numbers, training & employment assistance, housing support and accessible health …show more content…
Single mothers, inactive women of working age and elderly women over 75 were particularly at risk of poverty. The greater exposure of women to the risk of poverty and exclusion partly resulted from 42% lower overall earnings, through the combination of three gender gaps. More equal opportunities for women are creating better access to the labour market, support for independent living and thus better social protection particularly in retirement. Childcare assistance is a key factor in enabling female employment and encouraging labour market participation. There is a strong correlation between the employment rates of women with young children and the proportion who have access to formal childcare, especially in the first three years of a child’s life. Social investment approaches also focus on benefits and services that help people to achieve lasting positive social outcomes throughout their lives and reducing the dependency on benefits. In 2012, on average 12 % of the EU-27 population was overburdened by housing costs, but for those at risk of poverty the figure was 39 %. For the non-poor it
Poverty in America is a very complex issue that can be looked at from many directions. There are a plethora of statistics and theories about poverty in America that can be confusing and at times contradicting. It is important to objectively view statistics to gain a better understanding of poverty and to wade through the stereotypes and the haze of cultural views that can misrepresent the situation.The official poverty line in America begins with a person making at or below $12,060. To calculate the poverty line for a family, an additional $4,180 is added to the base of $12,060 for each additional member(“Federal Poverty Level Guidelines”). According to the last U.S. census, over 45 million or 14.5% of Americans are at or below the poverty line(Worstall). At this level, the U.S. poverty level has not changed much from the 1970s when the government began a “War on Poverty.” However,
In my opinion, social programs are essential to the economic health of both citizens and the country as a whole. Programs such as public education and income support (ex. The GST/HST tax credit for low-income earners) serve as financial equalizers which allow for improved standards of living, and, as a result, increased economic activity. The reasoning behind this is that a more even distribution of wealth results in more consumer spending because money that would otherwise be held in the brokerage accounts of the upper class, for example, are instead used to fulfill the basic needs of the lower class. Additionally, programs such as public healthcare and employment insurance provide financial and psychological stability to citizens and helps to maintain a healthy economy. Although the system can be abused, it does not occur in a majority of cases and I would argue that the benefits outweigh the disadvantages.
Social care and healthcare are both included in the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Bill. In England, there are two bodies that handle matters relating to social welfare. The National Care Standards is tasked with registering bodies that provide social care. The performance and progress of the organizations are monitored by the Social Services Inspectorate. The analysis of the social aspects of care involves collecting data that is analyzed so as to identify the differences that cause variation in the health of different people. The data collected may not be simple to understand. As a result, it requires a deeper analysis so as to establish the social factors affecting health (Larkin, 2011).
In her article, “Sustainable Social Policy: Fighting Poverty Without Poverty Programs,” Theda Skocpol argues that universal programs that benefit all citizens address poverty more effectively than targeted ones. Skocpol argues from a theoretical basis, implying that the political success of assistance programs is of paramount importance. She posits that such programs are “politically sustainable,” because they almost exclusively target low-income families. The arbitrary measures used to determine who benefits and who doesn’t may lead social unrest. Skocpol provides a basic example; struggling families who fall short of becoming beneficiaries are angered by the fact that they must pay for someone else’s benefits. Consequently, those who are
Knowledge in law, statistics, economics, psychology, sociology just to name a few would then be applied in their work with their clients. Law is an important part of social work practice, it affords a framework which gives social workers powers to take suitable action in making important decisions and preventing anti-discriminatory and anti-oppressive practice. There is also need for statistics when it comes to social work research. For example, statistics is needed for sampling, scaling techniques for reliability and validity and analysis and interpretation of data. Economics also affects social work practice in the sense that social workers are often at the forefront in combating poverty. Therefore, becoming economically literate will help them understand the economic forces that affect the quality of their clients’ lives. This will enable social workers to recognize and direct clients to a state that will enhance their financial stressors. Furthermore, social workers should be to identify physiological influences on people’s lives, taking into account how this informs practice by appreciating human development during their life
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2014 African Americans held the highest poverty rate of 26%, with Hispanics holding the second highest rate at 24% (DeNavas-Walt & Proctor, 2015). When comparing this to the poverty rates of Whites at 10% and Asians at 12% in 2014, we see that in America, racial and ethnic minorities are more vulnerable to experiencing poverty (DeNavas-Walt & Proctor, 2015). In addition, discrimination is seen between genders among those living in poverty. Family households of a single adult are more likely to be headed by women and are also at a greater risk for poverty (DeNavas-Walt & Proctor, 2015). In 2014, 30.6% of households headed by a single woman were living below the poverty line compared to 15.7% for households headed by a single male (DeNavas-Walt & Proctor, 2015). Many factors such as poor wages for women, pregnancy associations, and the increase of single-woman parented families have impacted the increase of women in poverty. Children are most harshly affected by poverty because for them the risks are compounded, as they lack the defenses and supports needed to combat the toxicity surrounding them. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 21% of all U.S. children (73.6 million children) under 18 years old lived in poverty in 2014 (DeNavas-Walt & Proctor,
“Poverty in the United States.” Congressional Digest 89.10 (2010): 298-300. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 24 Jan. 2011.
The lives of all individuals are impacted by social policies that have been created and written in the past and this impact will continue as historical social policies are updated and with each future social policies that is created and written. The impact of social policy is significant because, “Although social policy may address individual needs, it also typically benefits the host society” (Chapin, 2014, p.2). In other words, each social policy does not directly impact each individual in society, but overall social policies impact the entire society in some form or another. “Social policies are the rules, laws, and regulations that govern the benefits and services provided by the government and private organizations to assist people in
In 1990, Schwarz (1990) stated about one in five American families lived beneath the poverty line. According Lein (2013), it is estimated that as of the beginning of 2011, about 1.46 million U.S. households with about 2.8 million children were surviving on $2 or less in income per person per day in a given month. This constitutes almost 20 percent of all non-elderly households with children living in poverty. About 866,000 households appear to live in extreme poverty across a full calendar quarter. The prevalence of extreme poverty rose sharply between 1996 and 2011(Lein, 2013).
Social welfare is an expansive system proposed to maintain the well being of individuals within a society. This paper will explain the progression from the feudal system and church provisions for the poor before the Elizabethan Poor Law to the gradual assumption of the responsibility for the poor by the government. A responsibility assumed not out of humanity and concern for the poor, but as a process of standardizing the ways in which the poor were to be managed. The history of social welfare reflects differences in values as they relate to social responsibility in taking care of the needy. Our society has been influenced by values like Judeo-Christian humanitarianism and the economic doctrine of laissez faire. Our present social welfare structure is also influenced by these values.
Walsh, M., Stephens, P and Moore, S (2005)Social Policy and Welfare, Cheltenham, Stanley Thrones Publishers Ltd
Government support for social economy entities is recognized in European Union, Brazil and Argentina. While in countries of Africa and Asia support is built by the citizens forums and networks on sustainable development and by United Nations agencies. Among policy themes on social enterprises are: improving access to financial resources; research for increasing understanding and visibility; capacity building; ac¬cess to public procurement.
Social welfare dates back almost 50 years, but through those years the real question is, what is social welfare? The interesting part of social welfare is that one persons definition or belief may be different from another’s belief. The truth is, not one person is right about the definition or ideology of social welfare. Social welfare programs have grown, shrunk, stabilized, and declined over the years, and today many believe that we are in a period of decline. The text “Ideology and Social Welfare” states that there are four different views to social welfare, all having their unique attributes. Personally, my view is a combination of the reluctant collectivists, the anti-collectivist, and the Fabian socialists view. I strongly believe that government intervention is necessary in order to control and regulate social welfare while keeping ethics in mind, but at the same time, it is not necessary for everyone. People have the ability to change their lives for the better with hard work and dedication. My opinion is just one of the hundreds that exist today, but as proven throughout history, not one person is necessarily right. The three approaches towards social welfare, the reluctant collectivist approach, the Fabian socialist approach, and the anti-collectivist approach, encompass critical points on social welfare and what can be done to avoid inequality.
The question “what is social policy?” is an extremely difficult one to answer in a mere one thousand words. I decided to try and give a broad answer to this by covering three aspects of social policy. I looked at defining “social policy” and some academics thoughts on this subject. I then looked into a small part of the history of social policy by referring to the start of social policy in Ireland and the entry of some of the major milestones, in education and health. I finished the essay by looking at one of the concepts that is used in social policy, the mixed economy of welfare.
‘Social Planning’, is a model of development which can be described as, ‘Doing For’, the community. If it is perceived by government bodies that a community has sunk so low that is unable to be resolved by using alternative methods, (some of which will be discussed later in this essay), the government will intervene with methods deemed necessary.