Social inclusion UK agenda - policy

This area of the website will help you keep track of social inclusion policy in each of the four countries of the UK. 

These publications define the direction of travel for the social inclusion programmes. You can find policy relating to specific socially excluded groups under the sections relating to: asylum seekers and refugees; Gypsy and Traveller communities; homeless; learning disabilities; mental health; offenders; and sex workers.

You might also like to refer to the public health topic: Tackling inequalities in health.

You will find the most important government departments listed alphabetically and key publications listed chronologically with the most recent publication first on the list. Some links are PDFs - see how to access PDF files.

For further information on the UK agenda for social inclusion. refer to the guidance and agencies and communities sections.

UK  

Equality and Human Rights Commission: Equality Act
The Equality Act 2010 brings together previously separate legislation into one Act. This provides a simplified and more streamlined legal framework to protect the rights of individuals and promote equal opportunity for all. The Act applies to Great Britain and the core provisions of the Act came in to force on 1 October 2010. The EHRC website provides a range of resources to help with understanding and implementing the Act including a starter kit, guidance and good practice as well as a link to the full version of the Act. There is also a section on the Act on the Government Equalities Office website which includes FAQs and summary guides – see Equality Act 2010.

As the Act applies to Great Britain only it does not alter equality law in Northern Ireland. However the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland is proposing urgent legislative reform to bring equality law more in line with the situation in Great Britain. For legislative developments see: Pressing for reform. 

England

Department for Communities and Local Government: Bringing people together in strong, united communities
This section describes the Department’s policy which aims to achieve “more integrated communities and to create the conditions for everyone to live and work successfully alongside each other”, and what is being done to support this. Activities are based around the policy document Creating the conditions for a more integrated society.

Department for Communities and Local Government (2012) Creating the conditions for a more integrated society
This publication sets out the Government's approach to creating an integrated society. "Integration means creating the conditions for everyone to play a full part in national and local life". The five key factors identified as contributing to this are: common ground ( a clear sense of shared aspirations and values); responsibility; social mobility; participation and empowerment; tackling intolerance and extremism. The document sets out government actions to support each of these areas.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Creating a fairer and more equal society
Actions and legislation to support this policy are described.

Department of Health (2010) Inclusion health: improving primary care for socially excluded people
This guidance document provides practical support for commissioning to improve access to and quality of primary care services for socially excluded people. The guidance outlines some of the key barriers and challenges in service provision for socially excluded people. It identifies a series of underlying principles and features which are present in services which successfully meet the needs of socially excluded people and highlights best practice case studies. The guidance is linked to an ‘inclusion health’ study which has shown that many of the more accessible and successful services share common features irrespective of group served. The inclusion health study and the accompanying evidence pack is available via an archived version of the Cabinet Office website – see inclusion health.

Fair society, healthy lives
In February 2010 an independent review commissioned by the then Secretary of State for Health and chaired by Professor Sir Michael Marmot published this strategic review of health inequalities in England post 2010. The review proposes the most effective evidence-based strategies for reducing health inequalities in England. The website of UCL Institute of Health Equity provides the full text of the review and background information about the work of the Marmot team leading up to the review. It also has information about current implementation activities following the local and regional take-up of the review recommendations.

Making Every Adult Matter: publications
Making Every Adult Matter is a coalition of four national charities which represent over 1600 frontline organisations. From this page within the MEAM website you can access the following key publications:

  • Turning the tide: a vision paper for multiple needs and exclusions (2011). This paper, jointly published with Revolving Doors addresses the "huge financial and social costs of society's failure to support the 60,000 adults facing multiple needs and exclusions in Britain today".
  • An update to the above paper was published in 2012 at Progress on multiple needs and exclusions (PDF 505.6KB).
  • a four-point manifesto for tackling multiple needs and exclusions (2009). The manifesto which aims to influence government policy was developed by MEAM to tackle issues faced by adults with multiple needs who are more likely to face exclusion or only receive help with one but not all of their needs.
  • Hardest to reach? - the politics of multiple needs and exclusion (2010). This looks at "the political challenges for left and right of tackling multiple needs and exclusions and makes the case for a multiple needs and exclusions Green Paper early in this Parliament".

National Inclusion Health Board
The Board plays a key role in leading the Inclusion Health programme. This page describes the role and membership of the Board and provides access to minutes of meetings held.

Earlier policy

Department of Health (2009) Tackling health inequalities: 10 years on
This reviews developments in health inequalities over the last 10 years across government from the Acheson report on health inequalities of 1998.  It “provides an assessment of developments against the Acheson report, reviews a range of key data sets covering social, economic, health and environmental indicators, and considers lessons learned and challenges for the future”.

Department of Work and Pensions (2008) 'Working Together' – UK National Action Plan on Social Inclusion 2008-2010
This action plan sets out the government's strategies for tackling poverty and social exclusion over the three year period. It also highlights the progress and challenges since the previous National Action Plan of 2006.  

Northern Ireland

Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Equality
This section of the DHSSPS website describes activities and policies supporting equality in Northern Ireland.

Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (2012) Fit and well: changing lives - 2012-2022. A 10-year public health strategic framework for Northern Ireland: consultation document (2012)
The strategic framework builds on and promote the values, principles and successes of the earlier strategy Investing for health (2002). This includes the value that 'policies should actively pursue equality of opportunity and promote social inclusion'. The consultation period closed in November 2012.

Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (DHSSPS) (2012) Physical and sensory disability strategy and action plan 2012-2015 (PDF 1.15MB)
The strategy and action plan, which has been developed in accordance with the articles in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, is intended to improve outcomes, services and support for individuals, regardless of age, who have a physical, sensory or communication disability. Objectives include supporting disabled people to better exercise their rights, choices and life opportunities and to support the continuing development of an inclusive and effective range of high quality health and social care services in Northern Ireland. The requirement for integrated working, including partnership with the third sector, is emphasised throughout.

Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (2008) Strategy and action plan to promote equality, good relations and human rights
The aim of this strategy is "to promote and mainstream equality, good relations and human rights within a health and social care system that values diversity and is accessible to all those who need it". It complements and supports various strands of the 'Investing for health' strategy designed to tackle underlying determinants of health inequalities.

Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister: Central Anti-Poverty Unit
The Unit has overall responsibility for developing, co-ordinating and driving the Government's priorities for tackling poverty and social exclusion. Its role is to set overall priorities and drive and co-ordinate action. The website includes:

Scotland

Scotland Institute: Social exclusion
The Scotland Institute is an independent think tank which aims to "investigate the implications of devolution, find innovative solutions to the problems of social exclusion and encourage Scotland’s competitiveness in the global market". One of the Institute’s programmes focuses on social exclusion. Two reports published by the Institute are:

  • Social exclusion in Scotland (2012). The overall message of this report is that “social exclusion is a product of income poverty not individual lifestyle choices”. The report draws together the substantial range of material that already exists on the topic. It describes the current situation of social exclusion in Scotland and the different kinds of poverty that exist. It also looks at the complex interrelationships of education and health with social exclusion and at the wider equality agenda in Scotland. The report identifies steps that can be taken to tackle the problem of poverty.
  • The personal, social and economic costs of social exclusion in Scotland (2012). This paper summarises the costs of poverty and social exclusion in three ways: the costs that are borne by individuals who are poor; the social costs that then fall on society, and the economic consequences of social exclusion.

Scottish Government: People and society
The 'People and society' section of the Scottish Government's website encompasses “contemporary issues such as social inclusion, equality and volunteering as they affect people, both young and old". It includes a page on equality.

The Scottish Government has published three complementary frameworks which together form a coherent approach to addressing disadvantage in Scotland - "all are about major and intractable social problems that are interlinked and work across generations to hold back Scotland's progress: children's start in life and cycles of poverty, inequality and poor health:

Scottish Government (2009) Early years framework
The framework seeks to maximise positive opportunities for children to get the start in life that will provide a strong platform for the future success of Scotland.
 
Scottish Government (2008) Achieving our potential: a framework to tackle poverty and income inequality in Scotland
This framework builds on earlier work and sets out action and investment to deliver improvement across four key areas to tackle poverty and reduce income inequalities.

Scottish Government (2008) Equally well implementation plan
This sets a "programme for change across key priority areas of children's very early years, the big killer diseases of cardiovascular disease and cancer, drug and alcohol problems and links to violence, and mental health and wellbeing". It describes how the recommendations in Equally well are being implemented.

Scottish Government (2008) Equally well: Report of the Ministerial Task Force on Health Inequalities
Based on the principle of opportunity for all the report brings together thinking on poverty, lack of employment, children's lives and support for families and physical and social environments, as well as on health and wellbeing. The document identifies priority areas. See also the section in the Scottish Government website on the Ministerial Task Force on Health Inequalities 2012.

Scottish Government (2007) Better health, better care: action plan
This presents the Government's programme to deliver a healthier Scotland by helping people to sustain and improve their health especially in disadvantaged communities. It sets out a plan and targeted action for its three main components - health improvement, tackling health inequality and improving the quality of health care.

Scottish Public Health Observatory (ScotPHO) (2010) Dimensions of diversity
This report provides a concise overview of basic information about 13 characteristics or groups of the population of Scotland, linking users to sources of further information.  It covers: age, asylum seekers and refugees, carers, disability, ethnicity, language, literacy, migrants, poverty, prisoners, religion and belief, sex and gender, and sexual orientation. The most important, recurring, theme for health improvement is the damage done to mental health and wellbeing by the pervasive and insidious effects of personal prejudice, collective discrimination and structural exclusion.

Wales

Bevan Foundation (2010) Poverty and social exclusion in Wales
This book was produced as part of activities in Wales to support the European Year for Combatting Poverty and Social Exclusion 2010. The aim of the publication is to analyse and reflect on poverty and social exclusion in Wales and contribute to the policy agenda for the coming decade.
See also the Bevan Foundation blog topics on:

Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (2012) Accessible healthcare for people with sensory loss in Wales
Healthcare Inspectorate Wales is working with RNIB and Action on Hearing Loss to take forward recommendations from this report relevant to their work and incorporating into health care standards. The recommendations result from extensive liaison with service users, patient groups and professional bodies representing people with sensory loss.

National Public Health Service Wales: Vulnerable Groups Team
This page describes the groups covered and the aims of the team.

Welsh Government: Equality and social inclusion
This subsection of the Welsh Government website on housing and community includes sections on cultural inclusion, financial inclusion, and equality with the aim of providing examples of good practice. There is also a section on digital inclusion. The Welsh Government is committed to tackling digital exclusion as through its Communities 2.0 initiative and the launch of a digital inclusion framework.

Welsh Government: Equality and diversity
This section provides information about policy in Wales and also UK and European legislation arranged under headings such as race, faith, age and gender. It includes informatiopn about the Government’s Equality objectives and Strategic equality plan.

Welsh Government: Housing and community: Community cohesion
The Welsh Government is promoting community cohesion through a series of workstreams which includes Gypsy Travellers, Asylum seekers and refugees, and migrant workers. The 'Community Cohesion All Wales Strategy' published in December 2009 can also be accessed from this page. Chapter five in particular discusses aspects of social inclusion and community cohesion and problems specific to Wales.

Europe

European Commission: Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion: Social protection and social inclusion
The European Union (EU) “coordinates and encourages national governments to combat poverty and social exclusion”. This section of the European Commission website describes the different kinds of activities being undertaken by the European Commission and EU countries and their context.

European Commission: 2010 European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion
The European Commission designated 2010 as the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. The guiding principle for the year was “to give voice to the concerns of people who have to live with poverty and social exclusion, and to inspire every European citizen and other stakeholders to engage with these important issues”. This section of the European Commission’s website hosts information about events that occurred during the year and the related resources.