By Linzi Ladlow (University of Lincoln and SPA Family Policy Group). Image credits: Sense about Science. Keywords: Evidence Week, parental leave, family policy, gender equality [...]

Three decades after Clinton-era welfare reform, the second Trump administration has initiated its own changes to the system which strengthen work requirements for Medicaid and [...]

Professor Colin Clark (University of the West of Scotland) and Professor Alessio D’Angelo (University of Derby) Ethics is not what happens before the research begins. [...]

The Social Policy Association (SPA) is delighted to congratulate our members who have been recognised by the Academy of Social Sciences for their outstanding contribution. [...]

Kathryn Hartley, Jessica Hobbs, Emily Humphreys, Clare Matysova Imagine life as a mum of young children on a low income: you might be juggling two [...]

By Dean Ross, Doctoral Researcher in Politics and International Relations at the University of Glasgow. [Image: Dean Ross, Edinburgh, 2023.] Over the last two decades, [...]

By Paria Goodarzi (see author bio at bottom). This blog is based on work presented at the Unbordered Futures conference at the University of Edinburgh [...]

Comparing four basic income pilots, the study finds strong well-being gains but shows political and institutional factors decide reform outcomes.

YouTube video by liverpoolhopeuni1

The UK Government’s homelessness strategy represents a welcome shift in national conversations about homelessness, but its strengths may be more symbolic than structural. By Colin Clark, [...]

By Phoebe Malone, PhD Researcher, University of Glasgow. [Image: Phoebe Malone, Dunkerque, 2023.] Keywords: Space, Place, Spatial Governance, Migration, Asylum, Borders, Solidarity, Resistance, Abolit...

By Melanie Henwood. [Photo by Dominik Lange on Unsplash]. An Action Plan for unpaid carers was published in the final days of the Starmer Labour [...]

Position Overview The University of Helsinki Doctoral School (UHDS) invites applications for 30 salaried doctoral researcher positions in various disciplines.

Excellence in social policy research and impact has been recognised by the 2026 Social Policy Association awards. The list of winners for each category and [...]

Lee Gregory suggest that the next Labour leader should reject the false choice between welfare and defence by arguing that reducing poverty is an essential investment in national security, economic st...

Liverpool Hope University, Creative Campus, Shaw Street, Liverpool, L6 1HP The Social Policy Association is pleased to announce that Liverpool will host our 2026 conference, [...]

Asylum Link Merseyside supports people seeking asylum in Liverpool through casework, English classes, hot meals, wellbeing activities and community.

Update: deadline extended to Friday, 12th June 2026 The Journal of Social Policy (JSP) is a highly impactful UK and international journal which is going from strength [...]

Update: deadline extended to 5pm, Friday 19 June 2026. The Social Policy Association (SPA) invites applications for the Chair of the Editorial Board of the [...]

Liverpool Hope University, Creative Campus, Shaw Street, Liverpool, L6 1HP The Social Policy Association is pleased to announce that Liverpool will host our 2026 conference, [...]

A couple of years ago, inspired & supported by Ellen Stewart, I ran my first 'witness seminar' (a form of group oral history). Marking 25 years of devolved health policy in Scotland, we discussed how...

This year’s public online event from the SPA’s Pension Policy Group focuses on the topic of the state pension age. Our main speaker is Dr [...]

What's happening to employment policy in Britain and beyond?

By MD Rezaur Rahman, PhD Researcher, Institute for Global Health and Development, Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, Email: mdrrahman@qmu.ac.uk. Image supplied by the author. — Meaningful [...]

Social Policy Association Opportunity Grants Please find information below about the Social Policy Association’s Opportunity Grants programme for Spring 2026. Deadline for applications: 4 May [...]

What's happening to employment policy in Britain and beyond?

Aart-Jan Riekhoff (Senior Researcher, Finnish Centre for Pensions) Dirk Hofäcker (Professor of Quantitative Methods of Empirical Social Research, University of Duisberg-Essen) Traute Meyer (Professor ...

By David Pettinicchio, Associate Professor of Sociology/Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto – Mississauga. Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay. — Across Europe, [....

By David Pettinicchio, Associate Professor of Sociology/Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto – Mississauga. Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay. — Across Europe, [....