Knowra Social policy Social policy Social policy comprises public decisions and programs that address social conditions and collective needs, including welfare, health, education, housing, and employment.
Social security : Public programs that protect people against income loss from old age, disability, unemployment, or family responsibilities. Its pensions and insurance schemes are among the largest instruments of social policy.
Welfare state : A system in which government assumes substantial responsibility for social protection and public services. Social policy is the set of decisions and programs through which welfare states act.
Universalism : A principle of providing a benefit or service to everyone in a defined population, regardless of income or status. Universal programs contrast with eligibility rules that reserve support for selected groups.
Poor Law : English legislation governing public relief for people in poverty, especially from the sixteenth through nineteenth centuries. It established an influential, locally administered model of assistance and eligibility.
Poverty reduction : The decline in the share or number of people living below a defined poverty threshold. Transfers and public services can raise living standards and reduce measured poverty.
Public health : Organized efforts to protect and improve the health of populations through prevention, policy, and services. Health policy applies social-policy tools to population-wide risks and unequal access to care.
Means testing : A method of determining eligibility for benefits by assessing a person’s income, assets, or other resources. It determines whether support is targeted to people with limited resources.
Targeted welfare : Public assistance restricted to people who meet specified criteria, often based on income or need. It prioritizes concentrated aid over benefits available to the whole population.
Bismarckian social security : A model of social insurance developed in nineteenth-century Germany, linking benefits to employment and contributions. Its insurance structure shaped many later contributory pension and health systems.
Income inequality : The uneven distribution of income across individuals or households in a population. Taxes, benefits, and services can narrow or widen income differences.
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