Simon Duffy

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Simon Duffy (born 13 February 1965) is a British welfare rights researcher, philosopher, and activist known for co-founding Citizen Network and the Centre for Welfare Reform (now Citizen Network Research). His academic work has focused on the welfare state, means-tested benefits, Universal Basic Income and personalisation in social care.

Contents

Career

After graduating with an MA in philosophy and politics from the University of Edinburgh in 1987, Duffy led development of early work on individualised funding and brokerage at Southwark Consortium (now Choice Support) between 1990 and 1994. In 1996 he published the book Unlocking the Imagination, which called for new forms of support for people with learning disabilities.

Between 1996 and 2002 he founded and worked for Inclusion Glasgow, which provided personalised support to people with learning disabilities leaving Lennox Castle Hospital. Duffy was award a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Edinburgh in 2001.

From 2003 and 2009, Duffy was a co-founder and chief executive of social enterprise company In Control, [1] where he developed the concept of Personal Budgets. This later became central to government policy on social care in England from 2005, [2] though Duffy left the organisation just as the idea was being implemented by the Department of Health. [3] The Guardian described Duffy as "the guiding inspiration behind what many see as a revolution in social care", [4] but some academics have criticised the concept of Personal Budgets as "consistent with a neoliberal social and economic agenda". [5]

In 2008 he was awarded the Albert Medal by the Royal Society for Arts for his work on personalisation in social care, [6] and in 2011 received a Social Policy Association Award for Outstanding Contribution to Social Policy. [7]

Since leaving In Control, Duffy has criticised the UK government's approach to personalisation in social care, [8] writing that the idea had become "an excuse to cut costs". [9]

He has also published research [10] and written extensively on the effects of austerity on people in poverty and people with disabilities. [11] [12] [13] He has criticised the approach taken by the Department for Work and Pensions to supporting disabled people and has called for the department to be closed down, [14] arguing that disabled people were "hit 19 times harder than the average person" under the 2010-2015 coalition government. [15]

Centre for Welfare Reform

In 2009, Duffy established the Centre for Welfare Reform (now Citizen Network Research), an independent think tank based in Sheffield. The Centre has published on a wide-range of topics, focused primarily on social, economic and political reforms to promote the concept of citizenship. [16] He has since criticised cuts to social care [17] and the system of sanctions within the UK's welfare state. [18]

The Centre called for a new model of social care based around Local Area Co-ordination (LAC) in 2011, which Duffy said would "deliver savings, increase the numbers receiving support and reduces reliance on expensive services". [19]

In 2013, the Centre advised the Government of South Australia on personal budgets and self-directed support. [20] [21]

In 2014, Duffy co-founded the Learning Disability Alliance, which campaigns on behalf of people with learning disabilities in the UK. [22]

The Centre published a report in 2020 about the hostility and isolation experienced by people with chronic health conditions in the UK, based on research with 2,300 people. [23] [24] [25]

The Centre for Welfare Reform's publication People, Places, Possibilities, written by Ralph Broad in 2015, has been widely discussed as a contribution to the debate about the future of social work in the UK. [26]

Citizen Network and UBI Lab Network

In 2016, he became one of the co-founders of the UBI Lab Network, a global political movement campaigning for Universal Basic Income. [27] [28] [29]

Duffy co-founded Citizen Network in 2016, an international cooperative which "connects people together, from all around the world, to create a world where everyone matters". [30]

As president of Citizen Network, Duffy has called for constitutional reform and an 'End Westminster Rule' charter inspired by the Chartist movement. [31]

Publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welfare state in the United Kingdom</span> Welfare Programs in the United Kingdom

The welfare state of the United Kingdom began to evolve in the 1900s and early 1910s, and comprises expenditures by the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland intended to improve health, education, employment and social security. The British system has been classified as a liberal welfare state system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welfare spending</span> Means-oriented social benefit

Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance programs which provide support only to those who have previously contributed, as opposed to social assistance programs which provide support on the basis of need alone. The International Labour Organization defines social security as covering support for those in old age, support for the maintenance of children, medical treatment, parental and sick leave, unemployment and disability benefits, and support for sufferers of occupational injury.

Welfare reforms are changes in the operation of a given welfare system aimed at improving the efficiency, equity and administration of government assistance programs. Reform programs may have a various aims, sometimes the focus is on reducing the number of individuals receiving government assistance and welfare system expenditure, at other times reforms may aim to ensure greater fairness, effectiveness and allocation of welfare for those in need. Classical liberals, libertarians, and conservatives generally argue that welfare and other tax-funded services reduce incentives to work, exacerbate the free-rider problem, and intensify poverty. On the other hand social democrats and socialists generally criticize welfare reforms that minimize the public safety net and strengthens the capitalist economic system. Welfare reform is constantly debated because of the varying opinions on a government's need to balance providing guaranteed welfare benefits and promoting self-sufficiency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Department for Work and Pensions</span> Ministerial department of the UK Government

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy. As the UK's biggest public service department it administers the State Pension and a range of working age, disability and ill health benefits to around 20 million claimants and customers. It is the second-largest governmental department in terms of employees, and the second largest in terms of expenditure.

Maximus Inc. is an American government services company, with global operations in countries including the United States, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The company contracts with government agencies to provide services to manage and administer government-sponsored programs. Maximus provides administration and other services for Medicaid, Medicare, health care reform, welfare-to-work, and student loan servicing among other government programs. The company is based in Tysons, Virginia, has 39,600 employees and a reported annual revenue of $4.9 billion in fiscal year 2023.

<i>Crippled</i> 2019 book by Frances Ryan

Crippled: Austerity and the Demonization of Disabled People is a 2019 book by Frances Ryan about disability in the United Kingdom under the 2010s austerity programme. It explores the effects of welfare cuts, local council cuts, social care cuts, increased taxes for disabled people and means testing for remaining welfare provisions. Between research about the prevalence of each issue, Ryan interviews disabled people affected by the issue. She finds people who have died from having financial support withdrawn, people who cannot afford food, heating or prescriptions, and people unable to wash or get dressed due to removal of social care. Ryan researches into disabled people who live in inaccessible housing, who cannot afford visits to the hospital, who cannot leave violent partners for financial reasons and who rely on young children to look after them.

Person-centred planning (PCP) is a set of approaches designed to assist an individual to plan their life and supports. It is most often used for life planning with people with learning and developmental disabilities, though recently it has been advocated as a method of planning personalised support with many other sections of society who find themselves disempowered by traditional methods of service delivery, including children, people with physical disabilities, people with mental health issues and older people. PCP is accepted as evidence based practice in many countries throughout the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian Council of Social Service</span> Australian organization

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Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) is a United Kingdom welfare payment for adults younger than the State Pension age who are having difficulty finding work because of their long-term medical condition or a disability. It is a basic income-replacement benefit paid in lieu of wages. It is currently being phased out and replaced with Universal Credit for claimants on low incomes, although the contribution-based element remains available.

Special educational needs (SEN), also known as special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in the United Kingdom refers to the education of children who require different education provision to the mainstream system.

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References

  1. ↑ "Transcript of interview with Simon Duffy". Community Care. 2005-02-11. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  2. ↑ "Personal budgets: how the government can learn from past mistakes | Peter Beresford". the Guardian. 2014-02-26. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  3. ↑ "Social care pioneer Simon Duffy quits as head of In Control". the Guardian. 2009-06-30. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  4. ↑ "Interview: Simon Duffy, the man leading a revolution in social care". the Guardian. 2008-01-30. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  5. ↑ Ferguson, Iain (October 2011). "Personalisation, social justice and social work: a reply to Simon Duffy". Journal of Social Work Practice: Psychotherapeutic Approaches in Health, Welfare and the Community. 26 (1): 55–73. doi:10.1080/02650533.2011.623771.
  6. ↑ "The Albert Medal". The RSA. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  7. ↑ "Social Policy Association Awards 2011". Citizen Network. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  8. ↑ Duffy, Simon (2015-09-07). "Social work is losing its identity – how can it be saved?". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  9. ↑ Duffy, Simon (2014-01-30). "Personalisation was supposed to empower vulnerable citizens. It failed". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  10. ↑ "It's the cumulative impact of benefit cuts that is shocking | Zoe Williams". the Guardian. 2014-02-19. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  11. ↑ "UN launches investigation into 'grave' violations of disabled people's human rights over welfare reforms". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  12. ↑ Duffy, Simon (2013-01-29). "Social care is bearing the brunt of council cuts". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  13. ↑ "Benefits reforms: a 'deeply immoral' smokescreen?". Channel 4 News. 2014-02-19. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  14. ↑ "Let's Close Down the DWP". Huffington Post. 22 October 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
  15. ↑ "Here's why I'll be marching against austerity – and why you should ignore the right-wing critics". Independent. 20 June 2015. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
  16. ↑ "Centre for Welfare Reform: On Being a Think Tank in the North". Now Then Sheffield. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  17. ↑ Duffy, Simon (2013-01-29). "Social care is bearing the brunt of council cuts". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  18. ↑ Jones, Kitty S. (2018-02-16). "Government quietly scraps plans to introduce softer approach to benefit sanctions". Politics and Insights. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  19. ↑ Duffy, Simon (2012-06-19). "Reforming crisis-driven social care through local area co-ordination". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  20. ↑ "Disability care in the UK". ABC Radio National. 2013-06-28. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  21. ↑ "Are we NDIS ready?". ABC Radio National. 2016-05-20. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  22. ↑ Andy McNicoll (2015-02-25). "Learning disability survey paints damning picture of coalition's track record". Community Care. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  23. ↑ "'People with chronic illness face hostility and isolation', says pioneering report". Disability News Service. 2020-04-30. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  24. ↑ "Project offers new bridge between chronic illness community and disability movement". Disability News Service. 2018-07-05. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  25. ↑ "Project aims for inclusion and a collective voice for 'spoonies'". Disability News Service. 2017-07-13. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  26. ↑ "Social work is losing its identity – how can it be saved?". Guardian. 7 September 2015. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
  27. ↑ "Shaun Bailey: Tory mayoral candidate says universal income would be used for drugs". BBC News. 2021-03-03. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  28. ↑ "Tory London mayor hopeful says basic income would be used for 'lots of drugs'". the Guardian. 2021-03-02. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  29. ↑ "'Go to a food bank and tell them that': Tory MEP Dan Hannan challenged". inews.co.uk. 2019-05-13. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  30. ↑ "Citizen Network". Citizen Network. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  31. ↑ "Fresh bid for a change in the Union sees charter aim to 'end Westminster rule'". The National. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
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