The of Making Modern Britain Flashcards
what are the causes of poverty
Late 1800s
Unemployment –
Families had no means of support.
Late 1800s
Large families –
Many children had to be catered for.
Late 1800s
Death of main ‘bread-winner’ –
No one to make money.
Late 1800s
Disability/injury at work –
Loss of earnings through inability to work
Late 1800s
Illness –
Those off work due to illness would not be paid and had the added costs of medical consultation and treatment.
Late 1800s
old age –
No income received if not working
Late 1800s
Lack of effective government intervention/support -
No national social security system to protect people against the worst effects of sickness and unemployment.
Late 1800s
Low wages -
Many had a job and worked 6 days a week, however, the wages were simply too low to escape poverty.
Late 1800s
Irregular Wages -
Many workers had an irregular income; they could be hired and fired easily which often put them into poverty. Seasonal agricultural workers often faced irregular wages
what is self - help and voluntary system
At the start of the 20th century, there were no old age pensions, unemployment benefits, health insurance or help for children.
If the main wage-earner in a family died or could not work, a whole family could be plunged into terrible poverty.
However, the Government believed that the social problems of Britain could be solved through: voluntary action, charity and self-help.
This was the idea that people could get themselves out of poverty if they worked hard.
Samuel Smiles published a book in 1859 called self-help; his ideas were very popular in Britain. He warned against the government helping people too much as it made them helpless.
Smiles argued that the average worker could avoid poverty by working hard and saving some of their wages. Those who did not look after themselves were lazy, unable or unwilling to save or drunks.
What self help was there?
Friendly societies allowed workers who had a regular income to pay in contributions which meant they could receive benefits when they were sick, had an accident or old age.
Savings banks were popular with servants and those who were saving for their children. ‘Penny savings banks’ allowed the very poor to save.
Co-operative movements involved communities to get together to provide low cost food and services e.g. grocery stores.
Criticisms of self-help.
Not everyone could afford to save e.g. Henry Mayhew in his study of London labour and the London Poor (1861) identified that casual labourers were unable to save.
Lack of education and poor health also stopped many people improving their lives.
when self help failed what did charities do
Most of these would only help the ‘deserving poor’ (who had not squandered their money).
Some of these charities still exist today e.g. RSPCA, Dr Barnardo’s, Salvation Army, Quarrier’s.
what did the voluntary system do
By the 1860s there were so many different groups and insufficient help that they organised themselves to co-ordinate effort.
Most of these societies would only help the ‘deserving poor’.
Many of these charities still exist today e.g. RSPCA, Dr Barnardo’s, Salvation Army, Quarrier’s.
what’s the importance of charities
Existence of so many charities was evidence that not everybody could help themselves and escape poverty.
No means clear that the only cause of poverty was the person who was poor.
what did Charles Booth report
Liverpool ship owner who originally believed that if people were poor it was their own fault.
Between 1889 and 1903 he studied the life of the poor in London.
His findings ‘Life and Labour of the people in London’ changed his opinion and he concluded that 30% of London’s population was living in poverty.
He used scientific methods and put people in classes, he worked out a ‘poverty line’ a level of income required to stay beyond starvation.
The scale of poverty he discovered could not be met by charity alone.
what did Seebohm rowntree report
Rowntree decided to conduct his own research in York to compare Booth’s findings. His book Poverty, A study of Town Life found similarities to those of Booth.
Showed poverty was widespread, one third of the population living in towns lived in poverty.
Primary poverty was used to describe those whose earnings were low but could survive on this (15%), secondary poverty was used to describe those whose earnings were enough but who spent their money in a wasteful way (18%).
These investigations found poverty was not the person’s fault. Many of the elderly, ill and unemployed lived poor lives and workers wages were so low they could not afford the basics.
what happened in the Boer war
The Boer war broke out in 1899 between the British Empire and the Boer Republicans (Dutch settlers) in South Africa.
Britain thought the war would be over quickly but Boer troops were well trained and equipped and it dragged on for 3 years.
400,000 British troops were sent eventually to defeat the Boers.
Why did the boer war highlight poverty
Performed badly in war, 3 years to defeat Boers.
9 out of 10 recruits were rejected as they were unfit, this would have implications for defending the empire in the future.
Implied an unfit workforce as well as an unfit army.
In 1903 the Committee on Physical Deterioration was set up to investigate, in 1904 it reported no long-term physical deterioration of the population, but many made recommendations including medical inspections of children in schools and free school meals.
what happened during Democratic devolopment
By 1890 the majority of people voting were members of the working class. 6 out of 10 had the vote. This meant the working class could now elect people who wanted to change the way Britain was run.
what happened during Trade Unionism
Between 1892 and 1900 membership of TU’s had grown from 1.6 million to just over 2 million members. Skilled and semi-skilled workers were now represented and there were strikes and lockouts.
This led unions to look to Parliament to protect them from unemployment and employers. It also led to the creation of the Labour party.
what did socialism do
Socialists argued that the government should interfere more with the way the country was organised and to help the poor.
The growth of the labour party and socialist thinking pressurised the Liberal Party by threatening to take away the support of the working class.
Liberals had supported the theories of self-help and laissez faire. However new liberals argued that this was not working and that the state had to take a role in improving standards of living.
It was the Liberal Party that would begin to tackle the huge problem of poverty.
what was the Liberal Reforms aim, 1906-1914
The Liberal Reforms aimed to help a number of groups at risk, they are outlined below: the young, the old, the sick, the unemployed.
Education (Provision of Meals) Act 1906 (Free School Meals)
The successes of this were:
Free school meals were provided.
This replaced charity involvement.
Local authorities were given grants from the Treasury to fund 50 per cent of the cost of meals.
School meals rose from 9 million in 1906 to 14 million in 1914.
The limitations of this were:
By 1914, many local authorities were still not providing school meals.
Health deteriorated again during school holidays.
It was costly for the Government.
Education (Administrative Provisions) Act 1907 (Medical Inspection)
The successes of this were:
School children received three medical inspections during their school years.
School boards could act against parents who sent children to school in poor condition.
Free medical treatment was given to school children after 1912.
The limitation of this was:
Free treatment was not available until 1912 - even then, many local authorities did not provide it.
Children’s Act (The Children’s Charter) 1908
The successes of this were:
children were banned from begging.
penalties were given to shops for selling tobacco or alcohol to children.
juvenile courts and borstals were established to separate adult and child offenders.
The death sentence was abolished for children.
The limitations of this were:
little success with alcohol and tobacco, even today.
The Children’s Charter did little to deal with the causes of juvenile crime.
Old Age Pension Act 1908
The successes of this were:
People over 70 with an annual income of £21 to £31 would receive a pension (1 to 5 shillings per week).
By 1914, 1 million people were receiving a pension.
The limitations of this were:
Many pensioners had no birth certificate to prove their age.
Those who earned over £31 did not receive anything.
The pension was not enough to survive on as it was below the poverty line established by Booth and Rowntree.
Many died from hardship before they reached 70 years of age.
National Insurance Act (Part 1) 1911
The successes of this were:
provided compulsory health insurance for workers earning under £160 per year.
Paid 4 pence, the employer paid 3 pence and the state paid 2 pence - to provide sickness benefit of 9 shillings.
If ill, was paid 10 shillings (for up to 13 weeks) then 5 shillings (for an additional 13 weeks).
Was offered free medical treatment.
Was offered 30 shillings for maternity benefit.
The limitations of this were:
After 26 weeks’ absence from work, benefits were lost and the Poor Law had to provide for the worker.
There was no provision for the worker’s family.
Many found that the contributions actually made poverty worse as they were paid less.
National Insurance Act (Part 2) 1911
The successes of this were:
After one week, an insured worker losing their job would receive 7 shillings a week, for 15 weeks.
To receive this - workers paid 2.5d per week, employers paid 2d per week, state paid 3d per week.
Many trades were involved, e.g. shipbuilding, mechanical engineering, construction, iron founding, sawmilling - the scheme was compulsory for these trades.
The limitations of this were:
Cover was only provided for a limited time depending on contributions - after this, the Poor Law had to be used.
If the worker was fired for bad conduct, no benefit was provided.
There was no provision for the worker’s family.
Insurance was only available in certain trades and only insured about 2 million workers.
It became too expensive for the Government after World War One.
Labour Exchanges Act 1909
The successes of this were:
There were offices to help the unemployed find work.
By 1913, 430 labour exchanges were operating.
By 1914, 3,000 people a day were being provided with work.
The limitations of this were:
It was not compulsory for employers to register vacancies.
It was also criticised for only finding temporary and low paid work, so it did not reduce poverty.
