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34 J. Soc. Welfare & Fam. L. 1 (2012)

handle is hein.journals/jnlosclwl34 and id is 1 raw text is: Journal of Social Welfare & Family Law 9 Routiedge Vol. 34, No. 1, March 2012, 1-3 EDITORIAL Helen Stalford The publication of this issue comes in the wake of some important developments in the field of social welfare and family law, one of the most notable of which is the coming into force in March 2012 of the controversial Welfare Reform Act 2012. The Act sets in legislative stone many of the austerity measures that have been so hotly debated over the last year, confirming many critics' concerns that the wholesale curtailment of benefits and public service provision will acutely affect society's most vulnerable individuals. In particular, there is grave concern that the underlying rationale for the Act - 'making work pay and reducing the incidence of benefit fraud'- will reinforce damaging distinctions between the' deserving poor' and welfare free-loaders, and fail to attach due recognition to those who fulfil unpaid caring roles in the domestic sphere either out of choice or necessity. Among the most controversial changes is the integration of a range of working-age benefits (such as job-seekers allowance, income support, housing benefit, working tax credit and child tax credit) into a single payment or 'Universal Credit' system. This will provide for a standard allowance (to cover basic living costs) supplemented by additional allowances (for responsibility for children or young persons, housing costs and other particular needs) in accordance with the claimant's circumstances. Accompanying this change is the imposition of a cap on the total amount of benefit a person can claim as well as the introduction of a new 'bedroom tax' for those in social housing who have 'spare' bedrooms. All of these measures, it argued, will force many out of their homes and, consequently, out of their local schools and jobs, and plunge a significant number of children into poverty. Even if the benefits are reaching the most needy families, the amalgamation of all credits into a single-payment implies that there is no guarantee that support will be distributed thereafter to ensure that individual family members' needs are met. The Act paves the way for some significant institutional amendments too. Before it has even had chance to become established, plans are afoot to abolish the Commission for the Enforcement of Child Maintenance (CMEC) and to absorb the delicate tasks of assessing and enforcing child maintenance into the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP, March 2012). The Act also officially establishes the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, which will be responsible for overseeing governmental progress in tackling child poverty and inequality in the UK. Again, these developments have been greeted with a level of scepticism, irony even, insofar as they will be charged with addressing the problems that are compounded by the very legislation that created them. This very cursory overview barely touches on the changes introduced by the Welfare Reform Act, but we look forward to featuring a range of papers critiquing and evaluating their impact in future issues of the journal. Turning then to the contents of this issue, a dominant theme connecting a number of the papers relates to the care, support and advice needs of the elderly, although the issues ISSN 0964-9069 print/ISSN 1469-9621 online © 2012 Taylor & Francis http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09649069.2012.682387 http://www.tandfonline.com

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