social reforms post war 1945-64

Question 1

education

Answer 1

butler act 1944 (based on norwood report 1943) - made secondary schools free & compulsory, standardised & rationalised existing primary & secondary provisions.
-also implemented 1926 hadow report as part of it -11+ test would decide whether u would go to a grammar or secondary modern.
-created a tripartide system of education w 3 diff secondary schls -grammar, tech & modern (gold,silver,lead) -would better prepare them for their lives in the future.
-unfair as only w/c children only had a 1/10 chance of passing the 11+.
-designed to be equal in status/resources but weren’t -grammar schls were better funded/smaller.
no. of tech shls decreased in the period from 319 to 266 -reduced choice.
- only grammar schls took exams that led to HE -20% took GCEs, 40% -CSEs & 40% unqualified.
-no. of 15, 16 &17 yr olds in education doubled from 1950-55
-spending on education doubled 1947-58
-NEWSOME report found waste of educational talent due to unequal opps
-ROSA 1947
-35000 new teachers
-HE - only 4% of 18yr olds attended HE (mainly m/c boys) only 1% of w/c girls went to HE.
robbins report 1963 called for an extension in the no.s in HE & led to 4 more unis being built.

Question 2

housing

Answer 2

-Hitler & WW2 - 200,000 homes -destroyed, 250,000 severely damaged
lab promised 4M ‘homes fit for heroes’ (wasn’t achieved-would’ve needed a miracle)
housing act 1946
new towns act 1946 - created new towns in areas near london -25 new towns built BY 1951.
1946 - 55,000 homes & 125,000 prefabs
-1945-51 - lab built 1.35M new homes
-mac 1951-56 -oversaw 1M homes -built ‘supermac’ 300,000 pa. -one nation.
-75% of homes built up until 1954 -council & from 1954-60, 60% were for private occupation.
-owner occupied increased as tories ended morgage tax & gave morgage relief to encourage ‘property owning democracy’.
BUT by end of period 17M new homes but 2M unfit & 2.5M substandard. -often poor quality as they were quickly built.
rent controls 1957 -liberalised rent control -rents increased.

Question 3

health

Answer 3

-beveridge report 1942, white paper on health reform 1944 -free, comprehensive health service.
-distributed widely, 600,000 copies bought -highlighted demand among public & in parl for further social reforms.
-adressed 5 social evils in his report -want, squalour, disease ignorance & idelness.
-NHS act 1946 but acc implemented in 1948
-free AT POINT OF ENTRY, apart from dentists & spectacles (financed by tax)
-free prescriptions till 1951
-expanded, nationalised & centralised a fragmented healthcare system
-biggest employer in europe
-met lots of supressed demand from the IWYs
-spending on healthcare doubled 1938-51
BUT -lab just nationalised healthcare system of 1930s, no new hospitals built in 1940s. -guillebrand committee said more hospitals were built in IWYs
-spending on healthcare was always lower than defence spending during the whole period 45-51.
-social services severly underfunded ‘cinderella services’
-severely underestimated cost, budget tripled in the 1st 4 yrs.
-BMA doctors/consultants were allowed to work for the NHS & keep private patients -Bevan said he ‘stuffed their mouths with gold’

Question 4

social security

Answer 4

fam allowances 1945 - gave 5s/wk for a 2nd child or more after - lifted fams out of poverty. -3M benefitted by 1947 & rathbone campaigned for the payment to be given to the mother not the father. but taxable income.
-NI act 1946 -everyone insured twice as many benefits as 1911, pensions increased, no means test. but still too low 5M pensioners in poverty in 1961
-1950s benefit spending -more than double 1938 figure
-national assistance board 1948 -assistance for those excluded from NI. but too low & means tested. no.s on NA doubled from 1 to 2M 1948-60s.
-13% of household -poverty -1960s 15% in 1930s -little improvement
‘austerity welfare state’
defence spending higher -10-14% of GDP