Children and Social Welfare in Europe Book

This volume addresses the range of social problems experienced by children and their carers across Europe and the means by which these social problems are dealt with by welfare systems. For the first time it draws together material on welfare benefits, parental leave arrangements, day care resources and social care/social service provision right across Europe including Eastern Europe and pan-European institutions such as the European Union and the Council of Europe.

The book offers a critique of mainstream welfare frameworks on the grounds that they not Only ignore issues of gender but also those of 'race', age, sexuality and disability. By adopting a clear anti-oppressive practice perspective, it demonstrates that the social welfare of children in Europe can only be truly secured by challenging the range of social oppressions which impact on their lives in numerous ways. While acknowledging the considerable limitations of much provision in the United Kingdom, the book also suggests that in fact an anti-oppressive framework has been developed further in Britain than anywhere else in Europe. The reasons for this development are explored and the barriers to its implementation in the remainder of Europe challenged.