Social Policy and the Family

Starter If you were in charge of the government, what policies would you implement for families and households? What effect might these policies have? What ideology has motivated you to create these policies?

What is your view of Bernades (1997) view? ‘ It is not the job of government to force couples to stay together by making divorce more difficult. Nor should rights and privileges be denied to those who cohabit simply because they aren’t married. Governments should not make judgements about which form of family is best and base policy on such judgements. They should accept the decisions people have made about their form of family life and develop policies to support all families’.

1942 – Bevridge Report No provision for single parents – responsibility of the family Married couples allowance and tax allowances for each child – feminists saw this as advocating that a woman’s place in the home Post WW2 Family Allowance Act NHS

Why do you think these policies were implemented?

Labour Government Abortion act (1967) Sexual offences act (1967) legalised homosexuality Divorce Reform Act (1969) Equal pay act (1970)

How would you describe the policies of the 1960s?

1980s A shift of norms and values Thatcher: UuwXQv4 UuwXQv4

Margaret Thatcher “though there were crucially important limits to what politicians could do in this area, the Government could only get to the roots of crime and much else besides by concentrating on strengthening the traditional family”

Margaret Thatcher The nuclear family was seen as the central force of modern life. It leads to decency, manners, respect for property, law and self reliance.

Margaret Thatcher “…great pressure which I had to fight hard to resist to provide tax relief of subsidies for childcare…”

Margaret Thatcher She fought hard to keep “fault” in the divorce options because she thought it would discourage divorce.

Margaret Thatcher Influence by the New Right, she argued that the Divorce Reform Act (1969) and the generous welfare system was at fault for the deterioration of society’s values and irregular families.

Margaret Thatcher Charles Murray (New Right) argued that the 1960s created an underclass which has created dependency, crime and alcohol abuse. Thatcher reduced benefits and introduced stricter means testing

Margaret Thatcher 1989 Children’s Act and Child Support Act 1991 (not Thatcher) – placed focus on both parents to support child.

The family, Morality and State Moreover, the state is accused of not doing enough to protect the traditional family. Some have suggested that the liberal state policies, especially those introduced in the 1960s, are responsible for starting the perceived decline in traditional family values.Those who claim that the family is in decline can be grouped under the label ‘New Right’, in that they are usually conservative thinkers and politicians who believe strongly in tradition. These commentators often assume that there was once a ‘golden age’ of the family, in which husbands and wives were strongly committed to each other for life, and children were brought up to respect their parents and social institutions such as the law.

They point to social policies, such as the legalization of abortion in the 1960s and the NHS making the contraceptive pill available on prescription, as marking the beginning of family decline. The sexual freedom that women experienced as a result of these changes supposedly lessened their commitment to the family. At the same time, equal opportunities and equal pay legislation distracted women from their ‘natural’ careers as mothers. The 1969 Divorce Reform Act was seen as undermining commitment to marriage. The decriminalization of homosexuality and the lowering of homosexual age of consent have been interpreted as particularly important symbols of moral decline, because the New Right see homosexuality as ‘unnatural’ and deviant.

New Right views on the family reflect a familial ideology- a set of ideas about what constitutes an ‘ideal’ family. This familial ideology also makes a number of assumptions about how not to organize family life. It sees the declining popularity of marriage, the increase in cohabitation, the number of births outside marriage, teenage pregnancy and the decline of family morality. Homosexuality, single parenthood, liberal sex education, abortion and working mothers are all seen as threats, both to family stability and to the wellbeing of society itself. It is argued that this underclass is welfare- dependent, and that teenage girls are deliberately getting pregnant in order to obtain council housing or state benefits. This underclass is socializing its children into a culture revolving around crime and delinquency, and anti- authority, anti-work and anti-family values.

The New Right argue that commitment to marriage has been weakened by governments making divorce too easy to obtain. Morgan (2000) even suggests that the government is ‘anti-marriage’. Lewis (2007) argues that Labour have taken the idea of ‘social investment in children’ seriously and have increasingly recognized that family forms are changing. Most families rely on two incomes and most women work. Lewis notes that Labour has: Invested in subsidies for nursery childcare. Lengthened maternity care from 14 weeks to 9 months. Almost doubled maternity pay. Introduced the right for parents of young children to ask for flexible working patterns from their employers.

Oakley points out that if society subscribes to the view that women have a maternal instinct, it follows on that society will believe that women who elect not to have children are somehow deviant, that ‘real’ women are committed to giving up jobs to bring up children, and that working mothers are somehow ‘damaging’ their children. Oakley argues that this benefits men- as women withdraw from the labour market and they do not compete with men for jobs which results in men enjoying advantages in promotion and pay.

Barrett and McIntosh (1982) argue that familial ideology is antisocial because it dismisses alternative family types as irrelevant, inferior and deviant. Increasing acceptance and tolerance of a range of family types may be healthy for society, rather than a symptom of moral decay. The Child Support Act was passed which led to the formation of the Child Support Agency. The main aim was to force absent fathers to pay maintenance for their children in the hope of reducing welfare payments to lone mothers. Sure Start programme provides health and support services for low-income families with young children.

New Labour and the Third Way A mixture of New Right and socialist policies Christian beliefs Family values

New Labour and the Third Way New Deal (1998) Focused on moving people off welfare into work Subsidises for businesses Poor working class families told they would be held responsible for children’s crimes

‘ Work for those that can, security for those that can’t’. Labour’s policies focus on money and work- children need money, parents have a responsibility to work (Lewis, 2001).

New Labour and the Third Way 2002 – Adoption and Children’s Act -unmarried couples are able to adopt Single people Sexuality doesn’t matter

New Labour and the Third Way EMA: Educational Maintenance Allowance Welfare Reform Acts 2007 and New expectations of those out of work

% of children lived in household classes as below poverty line (down 2%) Child Poverty Act – aimed to eliminate poverty by 2020

The provision of parenting classes, drop-in centres and the weekly twelve-and- a –half hours of nursery for young children. Initiate a discussion on how this affects families. Discuss child tax credit. Discuss maternity and paternity leave and show the current entitlements for men and women.

Conservatives and Cameron “A family friendly government”

The Conservative leader David Cameron. ‘Families matter because almost every social problem comes down to family stability’.

Conservatives and Cameron Child benefit for higher rate tax payers scrapped

Conservatives and Cameron 1999 – – Percentage of lone parents on child maintenance

Conservatives and Cameron 2002 – All children born after this will have a bank account of £250/500 which will rise to £ with government top ups. Access when 18

Conservatives and Cameron Relate - £19.5 million extra funding

Conservatives and Cameron Adoptions up a quarter £19 million support fund for councils

Conservatives and Cameron Troubled families programme – 120,000 to 500,000 families

Conservatives and Cameron Tax breaks - £200 a year for couples with one earning less than basic tax allowance (£10,000)

Conservatives and Cameron Lib Dems have pushed through free school meals for reception to Year 2 students

Conservatives and Cameron 2010 – EU Increased maternity leave from 3 to 4 months

Conservatives and Cameron 2011 – fathers able to take 20 weeks additional paternity leave

Conservatives and Cameron 2013 – parents can share 34 weeks

Conservatives and Cameron Ed Balls (Labour) argues that the Tory policy is to judge marriage as first class and any other relationship as 2 nd

Conservatives and Cameron Average cost of weekly childcare is £170 Gender pay gap at 20%

Try the Questions (a)-(d) on family and state policy! 1. What legalisation introduced in the 60s & 70s is seen as damaging to the family, according to New Right commentators? 2. What are the main symptoms of the decline in family morality, according to the New Right? 3. In what ways has state policy been good for family members?

The family, morality and state policy. 1)Explain what is meant by ‘familial ideology’. 2)Identify 2 ways in which the state may intervene in family life. 3)Suggest 3 factors which New Right thinkers might see as undermining the traditional family.