Discourses of Voluntary Action at two 'Transformational Moments' of the Welfare State, the 1940s and 2010s

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The publication of the Beveridge Report in 1942, and the subsequent establishment of comprehensive welfare services in the UK, was referred to as 'a revolutionary moment'. The same term has been used to describe the current context in which welfare services are being dismantled in England. At these two transformational moments, fundamental questions have been raised about the respective roles and responsibilities of the state and the voluntary and community sector (VCS) in welfare services provision. During the 1st revolutionary moment (1940s) the Beveridge report proposed a series of measures to address the 'evils' of the time. The subsequent restructuring of welfare provision led to significant changes in the structure and focus of many VCS organisations, and a period of intense debate about the nature and extent of the voluntary action. In our current 'revolutionary moment' as a result of major national and international events the role of the VCS as a welfare service provider has intensified despite severe cuts to funding. A fundamental renegotiation of the role of the state is underway; we are entering a period of intense debate about the nature and extent of voluntary action and its relationship to the state and welfare provision.The overarching aim is to explore the debates that have taken place on the role of voluntary action in the provision of welfare in the 1940s and 2010s in England. It will compare and contrast popular, political and VCS discourses. In order to meet this aim, we address 3 sets of questions: 1.What are the similarities and differences in narratives about the role, position and contribution of the VCS in the provision of social welfare in the 1940s compared with the 2010s? And, drawing on social origins theory, what combination of factors, including but not restricted to the balance of class forces, can help account for shifting narratives between the 1940s and 2010s? 2.What are the similarities and differences within and between the narratives of voluntary sector representatives, government officials, and the general public about the role, position and contribution of the voluntary and community sector in social welfare provision, firstly during the 1940s and secondly through the 2010s? And, drawing on the theory of strategic action fields, to what extent and how do different narratives reflect field shaping discursive interventions and a changing configuration of actors? 3.What evidence is there of how different narratives have been constructed, articulated, contested, and circulated? And, drawing on discursive institutionalism, how are different narratives related to each other in the struggle for 'room' and 'common sense' during periods of unsettlement and transition, as actors seek to frame action and construct the possibilities for change? Our approach to addressing these questions is to explore: 1.Public narratives: analysis of Mass Observation directives on voluntary action and social welfare from 1940s 2010s, plus one commissioned in 2017. 2.State narratives: analysis of key government policy documents (e.g. green and white papers, acts of parliament), speeches and parliamentary debates relating to the role of the voluntary sector in welfare service provision in England generated during the 1940s and 2010s (accessed from The National Archives, Historic Hansard, Hansard and various websites). 3. Voluntary sector narratives: focusing on 4 VCS organisations (NCVO, Children England, NCVYS, Age UK) review key statements, policy documents, and publications produced by them in the 1940s and 2010s, stored in their archives and websites. This 2 year study co-produced with NCVO, NCVYS, Children England, Age UK and Mass Observation; guided by a project Steering Group; and involving various knowledge exchange activities will contribute to the development of VCS policy and practice, through building capabilities, enhancing the existing evidence base and reframing debat