This report from UK think tank the Centre for Social Justice examines short, medium and long-term solutions to Britain's human and economic challenge. ‘How to Get Britain Working’ calls on the Government to embrace a once in a lifetime opportunity to deliver welfare reform: delivering both economic and human benefit to ensure more people are...

This report from UK think tank the National Institute of Economic and Social Research looks at living standards in the UK. The United Kingdom is currently neither a high-wage nor a high-welfare country, leaving millions trapped between low wages and inadequate support. The research estimates that around half of the stagnation in real wages can...

This report from UK think tank the Resolution Foundation focuses on the Government’s headline metric of relative child poverty and looks at what might be needed to achieve this goal. The Government is due to publish a Child Poverty Strategy later this year, with a promise to bring about “an enduring reduction in child poverty”....

This report from UK think tank the Institute for Policy Research looks at exploring the lived experiences of childcare for parents on Universal Credit. This report draws on interviews with 22 low-income parents in receipt of Universal Credit and explores how they manage childcare costs, as well as their broader experiences of childcare and work...

This report from UK think tank the Resolution Foundation considers the components of income in the round over the last 30 years. The UK has endured two decades of very sluggish progress on living standards, with a special squeeze on those we describe as Unsung Britain – working-age households, with incomes below the median. This...

This report from UK think tank IPPR recommends tackling child poverty by reforming welfare payments and building more social housing. As the government seeks to develop a new child poverty strategy, it will need to grapple with housing – the single largest cost faced by families. As the government seeks to develop a new child...

This report from UK think tank Pro Bono Economics urges the government to prioritise improving access to disability benefits for those whose quality of life depends on this support. Today, the state of public finances and the government’s determination to control public spending might, at first glance, seem to suggest that the government should look...

This report from UK think tank the Centre for Social Justice explores what has driven the recent rise in the mental ill-health of our nation. Change the Prescription explores what has driven the recent rise in the mental ill-health of our nation. It contends that the prevailing medical model often fails to address the core...

This report from UK think tank the Fabian Society looks at the role of social security in alleviating pensioner poverty. Over the past decade, pensioner poverty has been rising. By the government’s standard income-based poverty measure, the poverty rate increased from 14 per cent in 2010-11 to 16 per cent in 2022-23, which means there...

This report from UK think tank the Social Market Foundation lays out some options for unified social tariff design. As households struggle to afford their water bills, social tariffs have a crucial role to play in ensuring that water is affordable for everyone who needs it. While social tariffs are in place already, their design...

This report from UK think tank the Institute for Policy Research looks at stages on the road to a Universal Basic Income (UBI) This report examines a series of incremental, pragmatic reforms that might be considered steps and stages on the road to a Universal Basic Income (UBI), as well as worthwhile in their own...

This report from UK think tank the Centre for Policy Studies shows that it will cost businesses £2,367 more to employ a full-time worker on the minimum wage than it did in 2024. This year will be the most expensive on record for businesses who employ workers on the minimum wage, according to new analysis....

This report from UK think tank Civitas looks at the continued importance of marriage. Marriage has undergone a remarkable decline in the UK. The marriage rate has fallen two thirds in 50 years; and in 2021, for the first time, more than half of babies were born to unmarried parents. We also see a growing...

This report from UK think tank the Centre for Social Justice considers how the government can fulfil its ambition to end mass dependence on emergency food parcels. Lonely Nation Part 4 considers how the government can fulfil its ambition to end mass dependence on emergency food parcels. To achieve this, it argues that the government...

This report from UK think tank Pro Bono Economics highlights the potential of targeted, evidence-based interventions to address maternal mental health effectively. Maternal mental health: Evidence for policy action. The early years of a child’s life are critical but challenging for mothers, with up to 1 in 5 new and expectant mothers experiencing depression. Many...

Ahead of the Spring Budget we look at how Universal Credit could be reformed in the recovery from Covid-19. For Universal Credit to provide an adequate safety net it must be properly funded By Paul Hackett (The Smith Institute) If Universal Credit is to provide an adequate safety net it must be properly funded. Making...