Poverty, inequality and social mobility

This book is the most authoritative study of poverty and social exclusion in Britain at the start of the 21st century. It reports on the most comprehensive survey of poverty and social exclusion, ever to be undertaken in Britain: The Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey.

This book is the first of its kind to examine the relationship between social exclusion, poverty and the labour market. It challenges long-standing and dominant myths about ‘the workless’ and ‘the poor’, by exploring close-up the lived realities of life in low-pay, no-pay Britain.

This report demonstrates the urgent need to re-evaluate our understanding of poverty and home ownership. Drawing on data from the Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey of Britain, it presents a detailed picture of the realities of home ownership at the margins, providing evidence in support of radical policy for sustainable home ownership.

A wide-ranging review of the literature relating to poverty and ethnicity has identified the stark differences in rates of poverty according to ethnic group. This review brings together the available evidence on different aspects of poverty and examines what has been studied in relation to its causes.

A free pdf is available at www.jrf.org.uk

A century ago, Seebohm Rowntree embarked on an investigation of poverty in York. The study was hugely influential in the thinking which led to the foundation of the welfare state and his research methods still have validity today. This classic work is republished in a special centenary edition with an extended Preface by Jonathan Bradshaw.

This is a study of the longer-term transitions of young people living in neighbourhoods beset by the worst problems of social exclusion. Based on a rare example of longitudinal, qualitative research with 'hard-to-reach' young adults, the study throws into question common approaches to tackling social exclusion. Free PDF available at www.jrf.org.uk

This topical book examines the social and political construction of anti-poverty programmes in Central Eastern Europe and their transition from communist rule to the current economic crisis. It illustrates how the distinction between different categories of ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’ poor has evolved as the result of changing paradigms.

The recent focus on reducing child poverty stems mainly from worries about the future consequences of poverty on children's later achievement. This report explores the link between childhood poverty and poverty later in life, and asks whether this link has grown stronger or weaker in recent decades. Free PDF available at www.jrf.org.uk

Dorling brings together new material alongside a selection of his most recent writing on inequality from publications including the Daily Telegraph, the Guardian, New Statesman, Financial Times and the China People’s Daily. He explores whether we have now reached ‘peak inequality’ and concludes by predicting what the future holds for Britain.

Using new EU-wide data, this report shows very different patterns of poverty across Europe, depending on the benchmark used. The findings have important implications for the spatial distribution of poverty within and between countries (including the UK) and for the development of anti-poverty policy across the EU.

Naomi Eisenstadt and Carey Oppenheim explore the radical changes in public attitudes and public policy concerning parents and parenting, arguing that a more joined-up approach is needed to improve outcomes for children: both reducing child poverty and improving parental capacity by providing better support systems.

Challenging populist views about the white working class in the US, this book showcases what they really think about the defining issues in today’s America. As the 2020 presidential elections draw near, this is an invaluable insight into the complex views on 2016 election candidates, race, identity and cross-racial connections.