Social Work in the Epoch of Thatcherism in Great Britain

Abstract

The article deals with the issue of social policy reform in the UK in the third part of the twentieth century. The subject of the analysis is the impact of conservative government policy under Margaret Thatcher (1979–1990) on the development of professional social work. The development and modification of social work practice was influenced by Thatcher’s ideas on the political and economic course needed in order to reduce state financial intervention in social welfare. This policy combined a strengthening of state legislation with the control of social work practice. It challenged social workers to work in a more regulated and reduced welfare system. This article shows that the main directions in the transformation of professional social work were the re-organization of the structure of social services; the reform of child welfare offices and the rise of managerialism. The paper explores the growth of social services for children within the framework of the Child Act (1989), which placed greater weight on local authorities in the provision of child protection. The main focus in dealing with cases of child abuse and neglect was to avoid delays and emphasise parental responsibility. These measures lead to the deinstitutionalization of childcare. The author shows that managerialism in social work was another sign of Thatcherite social policy and resulted in a clash between bureaucratic and professional values. The author draws the conclusion that, despite a change in political priorities towards a market economy and the development of non-governmental social services during this period, social work converged closely with the State social security system and management. The research findings show that Thatcherite social policy widened the gap between the needs of the population and the capacity of social work professionals to meet them. Tough regulation of social workers "from top to bottom" has adversely affected the development of the profession.