Policy Press

Class and classism

As part of an intersectional approach, the role of class in perpetuating social inequality is a vital area of study and self-reflection.

Recognised the importance of listening to different voices, the books here address key issues, including social inequality in academia and the unequal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bristol University Press and Policy Press are signed up to the UN SDG Publishers Compact. In this cross-cutting theme, we aim to address the following goal:

SDG Publishers compact logoSDG 10

You may also be interested in our Global Social Challenges on equality, diversity and inclusion and poverty, inequality and social justice.

Showing 1-12 of 249 items.

101 Reasons for a Citizen's Income

Arguments for Giving Everyone Some Money

For anyone new to the subject of Citizen’s Income, or who wants to introduce friends, colleagues or relatives to the idea, this valuable guide will be essential reading, offering a convincing case for a Citizen’s Income and a much needed resource for all interested in the future of welfare in the UK.

Policy Press

Ability, Inequality and Post-Pandemic Schools

Rethinking Contemporary Myths of Meritocracy

Alice Bradbury discusses how the meritocracy myth reinforces educational inequalities and analyses how the recent educational developments of datafication and neuroscience might challenge how we classify and label children as we rebuild a post-pandemic schooling system.

Policy Press

The activation dilemma

Reconciling the fairness and effectiveness of minimum income schemes in Europe

This ambitious book explores the employment effectiveness of minimum income schemes, and provides the first comprehensive examination of its dependency on how the rights and obligations of the recipients are defined.

Policy Press

Administering welfare reform

International transformations in welfare governance

While reforms of welfare policies have been widely analysed, the reform of welfare administration has received little attention. Using empirical case studies, this book provides new insights into the way welfare administration is being internationally transformed. Particular attention is given to the effect on welfare clients, staff and agencies.

Policy Press

Affective Capitalism in Academia

Revealing Public Secrets

Drawing on affect theory and research on academic capitalism and 11 international case studies, this book examines the contemporary crisis of universities, from the coloniality of academic capitalism to performance management and the experience of being performance-managed.

Policy Press

Alienation and Wellbeing

This book offers insights into the argument that capitalist society damages human health and well-being. Drawing on and bringing Marx’s theory of alienation forward to the present day, it uniquely links it to well-being.

Bristol Uni Press

All Our Welfare

Towards Participatory Social Policy

This unique book is the first to critique the past, present and future welfare state from a participatory perspective. Peter Beresford demonstrate the value of ‘user knowledge’ by challenging orthodox social policy and the limitations of both Fabian and Neo-liberal perspectives drawing on service users ‘ own ideas and experience.

Policy Press

Alternative Societies

For a Pluralist Socialism

Bringing together a wide range of approaches and new strands of economic and social thinking from across the US, Asia, Mexico, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, this book critically assesses the alternatives to capitalism, learning lessons from them and shows the ways forward with a convincing argument of pluralist socialism.

Bristol Uni Press

'An offer you can't refuse'

Workfare in international perspective

'An offer you can't refuse' compares, in depth, international 'work-for-welfare' (workfare) policies objectively for the first time. It considers well-publicised schemes from the United States alongside more overlooked examples of workfare in Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, The Netherlands and Norway.

Policy Press

Analysing the History of British Social Welfare

Compassion, Coercion and Beyond

This book offers insights into the development of social welfare policies in Britain. By identifying continuities in welfare policy, practice and thought throughout history, it offers the potential for the development of new thinking, policy making and practice.

Policy Press

Analysing the Trust–Transparency Nexus

Multi-level Governance in the UK, France and Germany

Drawing on fieldwork from the UK, France and Germany, this volume addresses the relationship between trust and transparency in the context of multi-level governance.

Policy Press

Austerity Bites

A Journey to the Sharp End of Cuts in the UK

This timely book by award-winning journalist Mary O’Hara chronicles the true impact of austerity on people at the sharp end of the cuts, based on her 12-month journey around the country in 2012 and 2013 and fully updated for the paperback edition

Policy Press