Poor Relief or Poor Deal?

Trevor Buck - Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law, University of Leicester Roger S. Smith - Lecturer, School of Social Work, University of Leicester

’Despite the widespread criticisms voiced over the introduction of the Social Fund in the 1980s and the many changes in social security and anti-poverty policy since then, it has remained a largely unaltered - and perhaps largely forgotten - feature of the support, or lack of it, provided to some of the poorest citizens in this country. This book provides us with an extensive review of the scheme setting it in both a historical and comparative context, and is a timely reminder of the continuing need for an urgent review of this area of support.’ Pete Alcock , Professor of Social Policy and Administration, University of Birmingham UK 'There is diversity both in subject and in focus...For those who wish to understand the context and development of this area of social security policy,...this is an excellent collection...hopefully the publication of the book will re-ignite some further debate.' Cambridge University Press

• Contents: The Historical and Political Context: Lump sum and emergency payments: a brief history, Gary Craig; Social assistance in Belgium: public centres for social welfare, Koen Hermans and Anja Declercq; Balancing the books: the social fund in action, Gary Craig; Politics, social justice and the social fund, Roger S. Smith. Meeting Exceptional Needs in Practice: Claimants, applicants, customers or supplicants?, Roger S. Smith; Decision-making processes, Mike Rowe; Safety nets and trampolines: the implementation of exceptional need provision in Britain and the Netherlands, Jacqueline Davidson; Undoing the damage: review processes, Trevor Buck. The Prospects for Reform: Making it better? the impact of reform, Sharon Collard; Achieving policy goals, Beth Lakhani; Discretionary assistance to the poor: the case of France, Anne Daguerre and Corinne Nativel; A better deal: the propects for reform, Trevor Buck and Roger S. Smith; Bibliography; Index.