Geof Mercer

Disability, Work and Welfare

This article engages with debates relating to social policy and disabled people’s exclusion from the British labour market. Drawing on recent developments from within the disabled people’s movement, in particular, the concept of independent living and the social model of disability, and the associated disability studies literature, a critical evaluation of orthodox sociological theories of work, unemployment, and under-employment in relation to disabled people’s exclusion from the workplace is provided. It is argued that hitherto, analyses of work and disability have failed to address in sufficient depth or breadth the various social and environmental barriers that confront disabled people. It is suggested therefore that a reconfiguration of the meaning of work for disabled people - drawing on and commensurate with disabled people’s perspectives as expressed by the philosophy of independent living - and a social model analysis of their oppression is needed and long overdue.

Cultures of welfare at the front line: implementing direct payments for disabled people in the UK

Direct payments are central to UK independent living and welfare modernisation agendas, however, little is known about the local cultures of welfare within which they are implemented. This article uses eight case studies of devolved governance within local authorities and trusts to explore the dynamics of implementation cultures at the front line. While national and local policies are clearly important, so too are political cultures, commissioning practices and interrelationships between key stakeholders. While local authorities have enjoyed considerable discretion and autonomy in this area, the article concludes that greater harmonisation may be required in the interests of social justice.

Adolescent Views of War and Peace - Another Look

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