Social Policy in Action - Community Care Policy and Practice: Gypsies and Travellers

Essay by whittleone, University, Bachelor's, B+, April 2010

download word file, 14 pages ( 1 MB ) 5


In this assignment, you will bring 'life' to the key principles covered in the module to this point which link social and economic policy.

Your central task is to undertake a critical review of how policies for a specific needs group are delivered by assessing the impact of welfare policies on this needs group

There are a number of specific needs groups you could consider in your analysis. For example, you could consider:

  • Young homeless people; Homeless families

  • Ex-offenders

  • Victims of domestic violence

  • People with a learning disability

  • People with a mental health problem

  • People with a physical or other form of disability

  • Gypsies and travellers

  • People with a HIV positive diagnosis.

Use the structure below to produce your critical review of welfare policies in respect of your specific needs group.

Step 1: Gather data on your selected needs group.

Prioritise material which provides a critical overview of the needs of your selected group. For example, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation through its 'Findings' series provides accessible policy reports on a range of topics. What recurring themes have you identified about your group? What particular difficulties has your group experienced to accessing government and other welfare services?

Step 2: Begin to develop your critique on the position of your group in 'mainstream' society.

Step 3: To what extent has your selected needs groups been included or excluded

Step 4: Explore current government interventions in terms of policies and the impact these policies have on your selected group.

Step 5: Distinguish between the roles of the statutory sector i.e. governed by 'statute'. (local authority; social services; probation service; NHS; police) and the voluntary sector (e.g. housing support; victim support; faith groups; mental health support; Citizen's Advice Bureau etc). How would you characterise the relationship between the...