social policy Flashcards
Social policy
Refers to the plans and actions of state agencies such as health and social services, the welfare benefits system and schools and other bodies
The 1969 divorce act
Previous to 1969, one partner had to prove that the other was ‘at fault’ in order to be granted a divorce, however, following the Divorce Reform Act of 1969, a marriage could be ended if it had irretrievably broken down, and neither partner no longer had to prove “fault”. However, if only one partner wanted a divorce, they still had to wait 5 years from the date of marriage to get one. In 1984 this was changed so that a divorce could be granted within one year of marriage
The Civil partnerships Act 2004
The Civil Partnership Act 2004 gave same-sex couples the rights and responsibilities similar to those in a civil marriage. The Act was introduced by the New Labour government in power at the time. Civil partners are entitled to the same property rights, the same exemptions on inheritance tax, social security and pension benefits as married couples. They also have the same ability to get parental responsibility for a partner’s children
The Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Act 2013
This act allows same-sex couples to enter into a marriage in England and Wales on the same basis as opposite-sex couples, and to convert Civil Partnerships to Marriages
The Marriage and Civil Partnership Minimum Age Act 2022
In 2022 the minimum age of marriage in England and Wales was raised to 18. Previously it had been possible for 16 and 17 year olds to get married with parental consent. Since 2022 it is illegal to force children, including 16 and 17 year olds to marry and to do so could incur a jail sentence of up to seven years in prison
Maternity and Paternity Policies
In 2023 new mothers in the UK are entitled to 52 weeks statutory maternity leave, 39 weeks of which is paid, but at different rates - The first 6 weeks of maternity leave are paid at 90% of your salary, the next 33 weeks you are paid £172.48 per week or 90% of weekly average earnings then remaining leave is unpaid up to a maximum of 52 weeks - fathers are only entitled to up to two weeks of paternity leave, paid at the same rate as the final 33 weeks of maternity leave pay for mothers
The Employment Protection Act of 1975
Social responsibility for women’s health during childbearing was first recognised through the 1911 National Insurance Act. It included a universal maternal health benefit and a one off maternity grant of 30 shillings for insured women (around £119 in today’s money)However, many women were sacked for becoming pregnant until the late 1970s and the UK only introduced its first maternity leave legislation through the Employment Protection Act 1975. However, for the first 18 years, until 1993, only about half of working women were eligible for it because of long qualifying periods of employment. The act was amended in 1993 so that all pregnant women got a minimum of 14 weeks statutory maternity leave regardless of prior employment
Paternity polices
In 2003, male employees received paid statutory paternity leave for the first time, an entitlement that was extended in January 2010. Since 2010 this leave is divided into two 26-week periods. After the first 26 weeks, the father of the child has the right to take up to 26 weeks’ leave if their partner returns to work, in effect taking the place of the mother at home. It is unlawful to dismiss a pregnant employee for reasons connected with her pregnancy
Shared Parental Leave
From 2015, parents will be given the right to share the care of their child in the first year after birth. Women in employment will retain their right to 52 weeks of maternity leave. Only mothers will be allowed to take leave in the first two weeks’ leave after birth. But after that parents can divide up the rest of the maternity leave
Child Benefit Policies
Child benefit is payable for every child parents have, although if you’re a parent who earns more than £60,000 in 2023 you have to pay back all of it in the form of extra taxes
The Child Benefit Acts (1975)
The Child Benefit Bill introduced for the first time a universal payment, paid for each child. The rate payable was £1/week for the first and £1.50 for each subsequent child. An additional 50p was payable to lone-parent families. Child Benefits increased in line with inflation, until 1998, when the new Labour government increased the first child rate by more than 20%, and abolished the Lone Parent rate. Rates increased again in line with inflation until 2010, since which time they have been frozen. Effective from 7 January 2013, Child Benefit became means tested – those earning more than £50,000 per year would have part of their benefit withdrawn, and if earning over £60,000, would receive nothing at all
Child Benefit in 2023
In 2023 everyone with children receives child benefit payments in the following amounts:- £24 a week for the first child- £15.90 a week for each subsequent child. - There is no limit to the number of children parents will receive child benefit forThese payments are awarded for children up to the age 16 and up to age of 20 if they stay on in further or higher education. They are payable to everyone whether working or in receipt of Universal Credit and the payments are in addition to the child payment part of universal credit. However for those earning £50,000 or more a year, they pay additional taxes: a ‘child tax credit charge’ which recoups some of the money received in child benefit, and for those earning £60K a year, they pay so much this cancels out the entire amount they will receive in child benefit
Universal Credit Child Benefits
Universal Credit was introduced in 2013 to replace a wide range of other individual benefits including income support, housing benefit, working tax credit and child tax credit. The general idea behind universal credit is to encourage people into work by making sure they are not earning less when working in part-time or low-paid jobs compared to claiming benefits. Prior to Universal Credit the benefits system had perverse incentives meaning you could earn less working 16 hours a week than on benefits because when you started working more than 16 hours per week JobSeeker’s Allowance would stop and you would lose your housing benefit
The Adoption Act 2002
In 2005, under New Labour, the law on adoption changed, giving unmarried couples, including gay couples, the right to adopt on the same basis as married couples
