The Labour reforms of 1945-1951 aimed to tackle the "five giants" of want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness as outlined in the Beveridge Report. The summary introduces key reforms such as the National Health Service, national insurance, public housing construction and keeping unemployment low. It evaluates that the reforms met basic needs but faced limitations like low benefits, poor housing conditions, and an education system that mainly benefited the middle class. Overall, the reforms made progress against poverty and disease, but faced more limitations in housing, education and nationalizing industries.

1. Labour reforms 1945 - 1951
How successful were the Labour party reforms
of 1945 – 1951?

2. KEY
If you see this symbol you must take notes
If you see this symbol you must not take
notes

3. Today’s lesson
We are developing our knowledge and understanding of how
successful were the Labour reforms introduced between 1945 -
1951
Today will be able to:
1) Describe the key reasons why Labour introduced the reforms.
2) Explain how successful were these reforms when they were
implemented.
Today’s lesson will involve:
1) Build up notes on the topic.
2) Plan a 20 mark essay.
3) Pass a 20 mark timed essay.

5. Social Reforms before WW2
Liberal Reforms 1906-14;
• Huge step away from laissez faire…
• Showed government intervention was welcome…
Didn’t establish a complete social welfare system – (where government
takes full responsibility for welfare of its citizens)
Many politicians and the wealthy were still unconvinced that the poor
deserved help. Remained largely the same until 1939
•

6. Social Impact of WWII
• Air Raids – Britain was destroyed from the air. They
had to rebuild the country literally. Also the German
bombers had no class system, rich and poor were
effected equally and came together and shared
stories in the shelters. The wealthy were shocked.
• Evacuations – Poor city children (undernourished,
unhealthy) went to live in the countryside. Foster
parents were appalled, the young poor knew that a
better life existed
• Rationing – Everyone suffered with rations. It hit
the wealthy worse than the poor and they
sympathised with the poor who lived like this.
The War made the British Public
come together, rich and poor
alike. There was widespread
desire for social changes and
accepting government
intervention.
Britain was fighting to win the
war, and then to reform the
nation.

7. Background Information (For Introduction)
Throughout World War II, the country was run by a government
formed from a coalition of Labour, Conservative and Liberal
politicians.
During the war, the government became much more involved in
people's lives.
As part of the war effort, the government organised the rationing
of food, clothing and fuel and gave extra milk and meals to
expectant mothers and children.
Most people welcomed this government intervention and wanted it
to go further. The government was seen to be taking an active
interest in providing for the welfare of the people

8. Background Information (For Introduction)
The Beveridge Report was a report published in 1942 by William
Beveridge
The findings have been credited with providing the guidelines for
the reforms the new Labour government introduced when elected
in 1945
His findings;
• The main problems in existence in Britain were WANT,
IGNORANCE, SQUALOR, DISEASE & IDLENESS
• He suggested that the government addressed these ‘five giants’
or problems in order to meet the needs of the British people
The Labour Party campaigned almost explicitly to implement the
Beveridge Report and won a shock landslide victory as a result.

9. Context: The Beveridge Report
In 1941, with World War 2 raging and no victory in sight,
Coalition PM Churchill ordered a commission to investigate
how to rebuild the nation after the war.
A committee to investigate the nation's welfare systems and
recommend improvements was set up.
Economist, Liberal politician and employment expert William
Beveridge was made the chairman of this commission.
Beveridge previously helped the Liberal Party introduce many
of their reforms in 1906-14 (he co-wrote the 1911 NI act).
In 1942 the Beveridge Report was published
R. Wilde - “In terms of Britain's social fabric, this is
arguably the most important document of the
twentieth century.”

10. The essay
Your job is to assess how well Labour did in eradicating these
five giants.
Did they completely meet the needs of the British people? Or
did they fail to meet their needs? Or did they meet them to
an extent?
You need to look at the reforms they introduced, the good
points of each reform as well as the bad points

11. 5 Giants
5 factors
1. Want (poverty/lack of social security)
2. Squalor (poor housing)
3. Disease (ill health)
4. Ignorance (lack of education)
5. Idleness (unemployment)
The Essay

12. Factor 1: Want (Poverty)
National Insurance Act (1946)
• Poverty was seen as the key social problem which affected all
others.
• In 1946 the National Insurance Act was passed which covered
the individual for sickness, unemployment, old age pension,
widows’ pension, orphans’ pension, maternity and death grants
(compulsory comprehensive insurance against most eventualities)
• It provided sickness benefit (for as long as you were sick) and
unemployment benefit (for 6 months), retirement pension and
widow and maternity benefit.
• Family Allowances Act (1945) – 5 shillings per week for each
child after the first.

13. Factor 1: Want (Poverty)
Analysis of National Insurance Act (1946)
• It was said that social provision was made for citizens from
the 'cradle to the grave', catering for their needs from
their time of birth to their death (achievement)
• However, the scheme was criticised for the large number of
officials needed to operate it and others argued that the
Act did not go far enough as the National Insurance benefit
was restricted to those citizens who had made 156 weekly
contributions. (limitation)
• Weekly contributions took up 5% of average earnings & The
pensions were not enough to live on (limitation)

14. Factor 1: Want (Poverty)
National Assistance Act (1948)
Knowledge
• In 1948 the National Assistance Act was passed which
provided benefits for those not covered by the National
Insurance Act.
• National Assistance Boards were set up to help citizens
whose resources were insufficient to meet their needs (i.e.
old people, very sick people).

15. Factor 1: Want (Poverty)
National Assistance Act (1948)
Analysis
• The National Assistance Act helped people who were not in work
or those who had not paid enough contributions into the new
National Insurance Scheme. The scheme was a provide a 'safety
net' to ensure that nobody fell into poverty (achievement)
• The measures did give the elderly an income which allowed them
to live with some degree of dignity (achievement)
• The assistance was means tested. This meant the assistance
received depended on the amount of money or valuable belongings
a family or individual possessed. (limitation)

16. Factor 1: Want (Poverty)
Industrial Injuries Act (1946)
Knowledge
• In the same year the Industrial Injuries Act was passed.
• The act made insurance against industrial injury compulsory
for all employees. Under the terms of the act, industrial
injury benefits were to be paid at a higher rate than for
ordinary sickness.

17. Factor 1: Want (Poverty)
Industrial Injuries Act (1946)
Analysis
• The act made insurance against industrial injury compulsory
for all employees. (achievement)
• Under the terms of the act, industrial injury benefits were
to be paid at a higher rate than for ordinary sickness plus
they were paid by the government not the employer
(achievement)

18. How successful were the Labour Party in
tackling poverty? (Analysis+)
On the one hand, The Labour government improved on
existing reforms and put laws in place which did extend help
to people ‘from the cradle to the grave’ and the reforms did
help some people who would otherwise be in poverty
On the other hand, the ‘means testing’ of national assistance
meant many elderly were reluctant to apply for it and the
insurance benefits were still to low to live on (about 19% of
normal wage)
Evaluation: to an extent

19. Factor 2: Squalor (Housing)
Knowledge point:
• Most of Britain still had slum areas and overcrowding was a
serious problem made worse by bomb damage during the war.
• To deal with the problem of squalor the government
concentrated on the building of decent homes for the working
class after the war.
• The government aimed at building 200,000 houses a year and
many of these were prefabricated houses (prefabs) which were
assembled quickly onsite.
• The New Towns Act passed in 1946 laid the plans for 14 new
towns in Britain to reduce overcrowding, including Glenrothes and
East Kilbride in Scotland

21. Factor 2: Squalor (Housing)
Analysis
• Around 700,000 council houses were built between 1945 and
1951 to provide good quality family accommodation which was a
big improvement for most at a reasonable rent (1/3 of private
sector) (achievement)
• Poor housing, long waiting lists and homelessness were still
serious problems at the end of the Labour administration in 1951
(limitation)
• The 1951 census revealed that there were 750,000 fewer houses
than households in Britain and this was approximately the same
level of homelessness as in 1931 so there was little improvement
in terms of homelessness (limitation)

22. How successful were the Labour Party in
tackling poor housing?
On the one hand, In housing, the Labour Government's record
is far from praiseworthy, not comparing well with either pre-
war levels or with the record of the Conservatives in the
1950s
On the other hand, However, given the severe social and
economic problems (i.e. postwar baby boom) facing the
government in 1945 after the end of WWII perhaps the
government deserves less condemnation in this respect
Verdict/Evaluation: largely unsuccessful

23. Factor 3: Disease
Knowledge
• In 1946 the National Health Service (NHS) Act was passed
and for the first time every British citizen could receive
medical, dental and optical services free of charge.
(universal, comprehensive, free at the point of use)
• Treatment by GPs and in hospitals was free also. These
benefits were free at point of use, no patient being asked to
pay for any treatment on the spot

24. Factor 3: Disease (Poor Health)
Analysis
• The NHS has to be considered the greatest single achievement in the
development of the welfare state as it meant that healthcare was no
longer based on your ability to pay (achievement)
• The NHS faced a backlog of untreated problems, with doctors,
dentists and opticians being inundated with patients queuing up for
treatment that they had previously been unable to afford.
Prescriptions rose from 7 million per month before the NHS to 13.5
million per month in September 1948. (limitation)
• The enormous expense of the NHS came as a severe shock to the
government and by 1950 the NHS was costing £358 million per year.
The Labour Government, consequently, had to backtrack on its
principle of a free service by introducing charges for spectacles and
dental treatment. (limitation)
• Further, the government was constrained in what it could realistically
afford by the economy's performance and plans for new hospitals and
health centres had to be shelved. (limitation)

25. How successful were Labour in tackling poor
health/disease?
On the one hand, the NHS was a wonderful achievement of
the Labour government, the ‘jewel in the crown’ of the
welfare state. It meant your social status no longer dictated
your access to healthcare
On the other hand, the government reneged on their founding
principle of the NHS being free at the point of use, ageing
Victorian hospitals affected the provision of healthcare, most
doctors (90%) opposed the scheme and the cost was too high
to maintain
Verdict: largely successful

26. Factor 4: Ignorance (Education)
Knowledge
• In 1944 the war time Coalition government passed the Education act.
The act was actually proposed by the Conservatives (Rab Butler) , but
after the 1945 general election, it was the Labour government that
implemented its measures.
• The Butler Act made secondary education compulsory until the age of
15 years and provided meals, milk and medical services at every school.
• An examination at age 11 years (called the '11+') placed children in
certain types of school, according to their ability. Those who got the
best marks in this exam went to senior secondary (grammar schools in
England) and were expected to 'stay on' after 15 years and possibly go
to university and get jobs in management.
• Children who failed the exam went to a ‘junior secondary’ or ‘technical
school’ and were not expected to stay at school after 15 years and
they were expected to get unskilled types of employment.

27. The 11+
Introduced in 1944, the examination was used to determine which
type of school the student should attend after primary education: a
grammar school, a secondary modern school, or a technical school.
Grammar School Secondary Modern
School
Technical School
Were intended to teach a highly academic
curriculum, teaching students to deal with
abstract concepts. There was a strong focus
on intellectual subjects, such as literature,
classics and complex mathematics
Would mainly train pupils in
practical skills, aimed at
equipping them for less skilled
jobs and home management
(woodwork, metal work,
cooker & secretary work)
Were designed to train children adept in mechanical
and scientific subjects. The focus of the schools was on
providing high academic standards in demanding
subjects such as physics, chemistry, advanced
mathematics and biology to create pupils that could
become scientists, engineers and technicians
Largely attended by middle/upper class
children. They could afford tutors to prepare
for test.
Attended by working class section
of society, many continued to leave
at 15 with no paper qualifications.
School stock was depleted and most local authorities
didn’t have the money to build a school with the
equipment or classroom types for a technical education.
Meanwhile, local authorities didn’t have to pay to build
most grammars. Many were private schools that
converted to become state-funded as long as they could
maintain a selective intake.
Around 25% of children went to a
grammar school. It became ‘a scramble
for the middle class to get these
places.’
Around 70% of children went to
secondary moderns but despite that
they suffered from underinvestment
and poor reputations.
Only 5% of children attended due to lack of
these being opened around the country.

28. Factor 4: Ignorance (Education)
Analysis
• With education, the government had introduced the '11+'
examination as a selection procedure for the limited number of
places at senior secondary and grammar schools. This policy was
popularly seen to be socially divisive and highly contentious/
controversial (limitation)
• The 11+ - ‘for every selection there was a rejection’ – B
Walsh (primary source)
• Critics said that little had been done to enhance the
opportunities for working class children, most of whom left
school at 15 years after 1947 with few if any paper
qualifications. (limitation)
• Furthermore, the building of new schools concentrated on the
primary sector to cope with the baby boom; the secondary sector
was largely neglected. (limitation)

29. How successful were Labour in tackling
education inequality?
• On the one hand, Compared to the equality of opportunity
and provision being enacted in the fields of social security
and health, the Labour Government did little for the
educational welfare of the working class. Most education
reform was developed by the wartime Conservative led
coalition, not the Labour party
• On the other hand, the school leaving age did rise to 15 and
for those who passed the 11+ and attended grammar schools
they largely received a good education with the best
teachers so middle class benefitted most
Verdict: largely unsuccessful

30. Factor 5: Idleness (Unemployment)
Knowledge
• After the war, there seemed to be work for everyone as Britain
rebuilt itself. The Labour Government succeeded in its
commitment to maintain high levels of employment after the war.
• By 1946, unemployment was reduced to 2.5 % and this was in
spite of huge post-war problems such as shortages of raw
materials and massive war debts.
• One way in which the government kept almost full employment
was through nationalisation.
• Following the principles of economist John Maynard Keynes, the
government took control of certain industries such as iron and
steel manufacture. Under this managed economy the government
could use tax money to keep an industry afloat even if it faced
economic difficulties.

31. Factor 5: Idleness (Unemployment)
Analysis
• Unprofitable industries were subsidised in order to keep
people in work, keeping unemployment low and showing the
government’s commitment to keeping & creating jobs
(achievement)
• Despite this, nationalisation did little to improve working
efficiency in these industries. Supported by taxation money,
these industries had little incentive to be profitable. As
such, wages and working conditions remained generally
unimproved.(limitation)

32. How successful were Labour in tackling
unemployment?
• On the one hand, the Labour government kept their promise
of ensuring employment rates were low and put employment
as a priority over the economy, supporting unprofitable
industries
• On the other hand, nationalisation affected the British
post-war economy badly, the British government was reliant
on American Marshall Aid, working conditions did not
improve, wages remained low and later Conservative
governments also managed to keep unemployment low
Verdict: succesful to an extent

33. Historical views
• Kerr argues many social reforms were either in place or proposed long
before Labour swept to power and claimed to establish a welfare
state. (Poverty)
• Kerr argues Labour were credited with reducing unemployment when in
actual fact unemployment went down naturally due to rebuilding after
WWII. (Unemployment)
• Harris has argued the Labour government should have spent money on
the labour force not the old, sick and poor like other European
countries did in order to become more efficient (Overall)
• Kerr argues that by 1951 the Labour government had transformed
British society and improved the lives of millions of people (Overall)
• Some historians use Labour’s loss in 1951 to back up the view that
Labour had failed to fully meet the needs of the British people
(Overall)

34. Example question – exemplar paper
The social reforms of the Labour government of 1945-1951 failed to
deal effectively with the needs of the people.
How valid is this view?
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