Our project has submitted written evidence to the UN Special Rapporteur on on extreme poverty and human rights, Professor Philip Alston. Professor Alston will undertake an official visit to the UK from 6 to 16 November 2018 at the invitation of the government. His visit will focus, in accordance with his mandate, on the interlinkages between poverty and the realisation of human rights in the United Kingdom.
In our evidence, Project Director Professor Peter Dwyer, University of York; Dr Lisa Scullion, University of Salford, and Dr Sharon Wright, University of Glasgow, write on behalf of our project on the erosion of economic and social rights as a core component of national citizenship status and justifications for such rights on the basis of universal human needs. Based on our final findings, the researchers’ evidence details how benefit sanctions leave many unable to meet their basic needs, with those sanctioned increasingly reliant on charitable and (where available) familial provision for support.
We are delighted to invite you to our next event to discuss the project’s final findings, on Wednesday 18 July.
This free event will provide a unique opportunity to debate the research findings, and how they can feed into the work and welfare agenda across Greater Manchester.
The event includes a research presentation from Professor Peter Dwyer (University of York), Dr Lisa Scullion and Dr Katy Jones (University of Salford), followed by a panel response including Matthew Ainsworth, Assistant Director – Employment (Policy, Strategy & Delivery), Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Catherine Connors, Skills and Work Board Manager, Salford City Council.
The event will be held on Wednesday 18 July, 1.00–4.00pm at the Old Fire Station, University of Salford, M5 4WT.
Katy Jones and Lisa Scullion give some early findings from this exciting new project
The Welfare Conditionality project has demonstrated the varied experiences of different groups in an increasingly conditional welfare system. In this blogpost we share some interim findings from a new, linked project: Sanctions, Support and Service Leavers, in which we explore the experiences of former Service personnel in receipt of Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and Universal Credit (UC), as they attempt to navigate the transition from military to civilian life. Read More
A new blog by Daiga Kamerāde and WelCond researcher Dr Lisa Scullion, both from the University of Salford, explores the outlook for people moving from benefits into low paid, often temporary work. In this blog originally published by The Conversation, they argue that improving job statistics hide the harsh reality for many. Read Welcome to Britain: a land where jobs may be plentiful but are more and more precarious
The British chancellor, Philip Hammond, was roundly criticised on November 19 after claiming there were “no unemployed people” during a BBC interview with Andrew Marr. Read More
Lisa Scullion reports on a groundbreaking research project linked to our own Welfare Conditionality Project
Each year about 17,000 men and women leave the British Armed Forces and enter civilian life. There is a range of support available for Armed Forces Service leavers, including the Career Transition Partnership (CTP), the Ministry of Defence (MoD) official transition service, which provides advice and guidance, vocational training, and a range of employer brokerage activities.
Welfare Conditionality Project impact officer Janis Bright reports on last week’s joint event with the EU Rights Project, titled ‘Brexit: what welfare, what rights for EU migrants in Britain?’
The date – 29 March – was certainly memorable. On the same day that Prime Minister Theresa May initiated Britain’s exit from the EU, our event in York debated the welfare and rights of those EU citizens already here in the UK. It was clear that many participants in our event were concerned with the treatment of EU migrants under the current rules and practice: so what would the future hold? Read More
Roundtable event
Wednesday 29 March, CSE/082&083 Meeting Room, Computer Science Building, University of York
11am-3.20pm
Free, booking essential
Many aspects of the UK’s exit from the European Union are unclear at this stage. But we do know that important issues of principle and practice in the legal and welfare systems are at stake. This roundtable event showcases recent research concerning EU migrants in the UK and offers the chance to help shape a practical legal rights toolkit. It invites debate on future provision to underpin EU migrants’ welfare support and access to justice. Read More
A grant of a £171,995 has been awarded to the University of Salford, working with the University of York on a two-year project, to examine what impact interaction with the benefit system has on the transition of military personnel to civilian life, thanks to support from the Forces in Mind Trust (FiMT). The project will link with our own WelCond research.
