This book introduces a historical perspective on the emergence and development of social welfare. Starting from the familiar ground of 'the family', it traces some of the crucial historical roots and desires that fed the development of social policy in the 19th and 20th centuries around education, the family, unemployment and nationhood. By aiming to discover the link between past and present, it shows that social problems are socially constructed in specific contexts and that there are diverse and competing ways of telling history.

Introduction Gail Lewis, The Open University 1. A Family for Nation and Empire Catherine Hall, The University of Essex 2. 'Remoralizing' the Poor? Gender, Class and Philanthropy in Victorian England Gerry Mooney, The Open University 3. Education for Labour: Social Problems of Nationhood Lilian McCoy, The Open University 4. Education for 'Minorities': Irish Catholics in Britain Mary J. Hickman, The Univerity of North London 5. Patterns of Visibility: Unemployment in Britain during the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries Ian Gazeley and Pat Thane, both at University of Essex 6. Families of Meaning: Contemporary Discourses of the Family Helen Lentell, The Open University 7. Review Gail Lewis, The Open University