Historical Development of social work in uk

1. HISTORICAL
DEVELOPMENT OF
SOCIAL WORK IN UK
PRESENTATION BY:HASNAIN UMEIR

2. INTRODUCTION
◦ The beginning of social services from church
throughout the middle ages and even renaissance and
reformation, was much more attentive to what
scholars wrote and thought about man’s mind and his
behavior in society form it was towards what was
being studied and written in the physical sciences.
◦ Industrial revolution 1700s and 1800s led to the
development of social security in europe. Many people
moved to cities for taking job in factories. They people
doing dangerous work at very low wages.
◦ Till 1800s there were no govermental security
programmes. Only local community aid some aid and
few religious relief organization. But most of the poor
only depend on charity or look forward to living in the
misery of the poor house.
◦ Generally, speaking wealthier people felt that the poor
were to be blamed for their misfortune

3. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
◦ The history of social and welfare service can be traced
to the personal charity that has characterized human
society from very early times.
◦ The english poor law of 1601 in the reign of the first
elizabeth is an instance in point. Here the
responsibility for poor relief in the united states in the
17th and 18th centuries followed the broad framework
of the elizabethian poor law.
◦ It was only in the 18th century that the use of alms
house houses and work house became common.
Earlier the poor were “auctioned” and given away to
the lowest bidder who “took care” of them on payment
of the sum agreed upon.
◦ The church also use to be used active in charitable
work, but it was generally confined to their own
members.

4. SOCIAL WORK DEVELOPMENT
In order to understand the history of social work
and to know its fure trend it would be better to
know the history of social work In united
kingdom. The history of social work may be said
to have passed throught six phases
◦ Primitive stage,
◦ From 1200 to 1500,
◦ 1501 to 1600,
◦ The elizabeth poor law 1601,
◦ Social legislation,
◦ Private social agencies.

5. PRIMITIVE STAGE
◦ In this stage human develop the feeling of
belonging, readiness to mutual protection were
just as essential forces as the selfish desire to
dominate other weaker human being.
◦ Mutual aid served as self-protection for family
of tribe, against hostile world.

6. 1200 A.D to 1500 A.D
With the beginning of religion, the priests
providing protection for the helpless,
widows and sick. Religious devotion
become most powerful incentives for
benevolence and charity.
◦ Until the fourteenth century king did not
concern themselves with the charities of
the church and the guilds.

7. 1501 A.D TO 1600 A.D
◦ In 1531, Henry VIII issued the license for begging and
given an assigned area for begging
◦ The reformation brought fundamental change the entire
system of charity an relief for the poor in england .
◦ The slow disappearance of feudalism and the social
change brought out the problem of unemployment in
1548 to england were due to plague.

8. ELIZABETHAN POOR LAW 1601
The poor law relief law 1601 was an Act of the Parliament of
England. The act for the relief of poor 1601, popularly known as the
Elizabethan Poor Law or the Old Poor Law was passed in 1601 and
created a poor law system for england and walves.
It act formalised for poor relief distribution in engalnd and walves.

9. SOCIAL LEGISLATION
◦ In 19th century social policy in England had been
suppress the labouring classes in interest of land
owners, the manufactures and the merchant. As a
resullt, childern work 16 to 18 hours in a day So
the affect of these many childern suffer lack of
sleep, undernourished, weak and sick.
◦ After this government prohibited the employment
of under nine. An amendment of the factories act
1847 ordered a daily maximum of 10 working
hours for women and children for 8 hours.

10. PRIVATE SOCIAL AGENCIES
◦ In 19th century many social welfare agencies are established and work to help the
old, sick, handicapped to give a counselling
The private social agencies also work on learning new experiment and developing
new forms of social work, which may later on be taken over by public agencies when
theu have proved successful.

11. Reference
SOCIAL WORK: AN INTEGRATED APPROACH BY
SANJAY BHATTACHRAYA