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The perceptions of welfare reform by Michigan families whose children have disabilities and welfare caseworkers
- Authors:
- LEROY Barbara W., JOHNSON Donna M., ISRAEL Nathaniel
- Journal article citation:
- Social Policy Journal, 3(1), 2004, pp.23-37.
- Publisher:
- Haworth Press
- Place of publication:
- Binghamton, New York
This article examines family and caseworker perceptions of welfare reform and services as they relate to families who have a child with a disability. Interviews were conducted with 39 families and 77 caseworkers. Family questions addressed their perceptions of the welfare system, factors impacting their self-sufficiency, and their perceptions of needed programme changes. Caseworker questions addressed their perceptions of welfare practices and policies and their education needs related to serving families who have children with disabilities. Familial perceptions of the welfare system were validated by caseworker reports. Implications for service improvement are discussed.
People not budgets: valuing disabled children
- Authors:
- HEATH Florence, SMITH Richard
- Publisher:
- Centre for Policy Studies
- Publication year:
- 2004
- Pagination:
- 54p.
- Place of publication:
- London
Nearly half of families with disabled children receive no support from the NHS or social services. The authors found that 48% of families with disabled children received no help from outside the family and a further 30% received less than two hours support per week. Four out of five families (80%) said health and social services were "not properly coordinated". "The level of support given to these families by social services is often extremely poor," the report said. "The system is bureaucratic, has little sense of responsibility and is fuelled by ideological theories that have little relevance to everyday life." The report recommended giving the families of disabled children more control over their own lives. It called for the £140m currently spent on commissioning social services for the disabled to be given directly to the families as a non-means-tested payment in addition to current benefits. The thinktank estimated this extra money would be worth £115 a week.
Disability, social exclusion and the consequential experience of justiciable problems
- Authors:
- O'GRADY A., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Disability and Society, 19(3), May 2004, pp.259-271.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
In this article, the authors examine the situation of disabled people in England and Wales with regard to one specific aspect of social exclusion--experience of justiciable problems, and the potential effects such problems can have on their lives. Having defined 'disability', they examine how this fits within the wider dialogue on social exclusion issues. By analysing the results of the Legal Services Research Centre's (LSRC) periodic survey of justiciable problems, they find that disabled respondents were not only more likely to experience a problem, but also experienced more problems. Increased likelihood of a problem was observed in the majority of problem categories and particularly those relating to issues of social exclusion, such as housing and welfare benefits. This propensity to experience multiple problems can lead to a negative impact on the lives of long-term ill and disabled people.
Disabled people's costs of living: more than you would think
- Authors:
- SMITH Noel, et al
- Publisher:
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2004
- Pagination:
- 113p.
- Place of publication:
- York
This research, conducted by the Centre for Research in Social Policy with the support of Disability Alliance, presents budget standards for groups of disabled people who have different needs arising from physical or sensory impairments. The budget standards represent the amounts disabled people (of working age) require in order to cover the costs of an acceptable and equitable quality of life. They were developed by disabled people themselves, through a series of rigorously conducted focus groups. The budgets were not based on 'wish lists'. Rather, they represent the minimum essential resources necessary to meet disabled people's needs, to enable them to achieve, as far as possible, a 'level playing field' with non-disabled people. The research found that: disabled people experience additional costs in most areas of everyday life, from major expenditure on equipment essential for independence, to ongoing higher expenses for, for example, food, clothing, utilities and recreation.
Fit for purpose: the reform of incapacity benefit
- Authors:
- STANLEY Kate, MAXWELL Dominic
- Publisher:
- Institute for Public Policy Research
- Publication year:
- 2004
- Pagination:
- 34p.
- Place of publication:
- London
The report maintains that incapacity benefit has become a barrier to work. Claimants must demonstrate that they are incapable of work and therefore risk losing their benefit if they look for a job. Yet at the same time they are required to attend work focussed interviews. The report also finds the benefit is failing to ensure a decent standard of living for people with a health problem or disability who cannot work, with the average payment totalling just over £4,200 a year. The report recommends a new active welfare reform strategy in which incapacity benefit is replaced by: a flat rate ‘Earnings Replacement Allowance’ - de-coupling disability from incapacity as well as removing the incentive to move off Jobseeker’s Allowance and the incentive to stay on incapacity benefit longer to qualify for extra cash; mandatory action agreements - negotiated between well-trained Personal Advisers and claimants; and an enhanced Disability Living Allowance – to ensure that the extra costs of living with a health problem or disability can be met.
Disabled people's costs of living
- Author:
- JOSEPH ROWNTREE FOUNDATION
- Publisher:
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2004
- Pagination:
- 4p.
- Place of publication:
- York
This research, conducted by the Centre for Research in Social Policy with the support of Disability Alliance, presents budget standards for groups of disabled people who have different needs arising from physical or sensory impairments. The budget standards represent the amounts disabled people (of working age) require in order to cover the costs of an acceptable and equitable quality of life. They were developed by disabled people themselves, through a series of rigorously conducted focus groups. They represent the minimum essential resources necessary to meet disabled people's needs, to enable them to achieve, as far as possible, a 'level playing field' with non-disabled people.