The Birth of the NHS
How Britain built the welfare state: the poverty studies of Booth and Rowntree, the Liberal reforms, the Beveridge Report of 1942 and its five giant problems, and the creation of the National Health Service in 1948, free to all.
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From charity to a right
For centuries the poor relied on charity or the Poor Law for medical help, and many simply went without. In the twentieth century that changed. Careful studies proved poverty was real, war made a fairer country seem possible, and in 1948 the National Health Service gave everyone care free when they needed it. This module works through the chain of steps that built the welfare state.
Welfare words to know
Learn these before you trace the reforms.
Before against after 1948
The National Health Service changed who could get medical care.
Tell it as a chain of causes
In the exam, tell the welfare state as a chain of causes. Booth and Rowntree used careful street surveys to show that many were poor through no fault of their own; the poor health of army recruits alarmed the government; the Liberals brought in early reforms; the Second World War pulled people together and made change expected; Beveridge named five giant problems to defeat, including want and disease; and in 1948 a free national service was set up for all, led by the minister Bevan. Name the step and the person, and weigh war as a factor.
Match the term
- Booth and Rowntree
- Beveridge Report
- the NHS
- welfare state
- showed by survey that many were genuinely poor
- the 1942 plan for the welfare state
- medical care free when you need it
- the state looking after people throughout life
Match the event
- the Boer War
- the Liberal reforms
- the Second World War
- the year 1948
- revealed how unhealthy many recruits were
- brought in early help like pensions and school meals
- made people expect a fairer society
- the year the NHS began
When did the NHS begin?
In which year did the National Health Service begin?
- 1948
- 1918
- 1942
- 1900
True about the welfare state
Select the TWO true statements about the birth of the welfare state.
- The Beveridge Report set out the plan for the welfare state
- The NHS gave health care free at the point of use
- Before the NHS everyone already got free hospital care
- Booth and Rowntree proved that poverty did not exist
Read the poverty survey
Imagine a survey finds that 1 in 4 people in a street of 80 are living in poverty. Divide 80 by 4 to find how many people that would be. What is the answer?
Order the road to the NHS
Put the steps towards the welfare state in order, earliest first.
- Booth and Rowntree study poverty around 1900
- The Liberal government brings in early reforms
- The Beveridge Report sets out a plan in 1942
- The NHS is created in 1948
Complete the story
Booth and Rowntree used surveys to show that _____ was real. The 1942 _____ Report set out the plan. The system where the state looks after people is the _____ state. Medical care free at the point of use is the _____.
Spot what the NHS did
Tap the TWO things the NHS did when it began in 1948.
- gave health care free at the point of use
- paid for that care through taxes
- charged the poor more than the rich
- treated only soldiers and no one else
Name it
Read each case and choose the best answer.
- Two researchers use careful surveys to prove that many people are poor through no fault of their own. Who are they?
- A 1942 report names five giant problems such as want and disease and plans to defeat them. What is it?
- From 1948 a service gives everyone medical care free when they need it. What is it?
Explain the birth of the NHS
Explain how and why the welfare state and the NHS were created.
- Explain what Booth, Rowntree and the Liberal reforms showed and did
- Explain the Beveridge Report and the creation of the NHS in 1948
- Explain how the two world wars helped bring about change