Contemporary social policy has never been more vigorously contested. Issues range from single-issue campaigns over housing, social care, hospital closures through to organised movements around disability, environment, health and education. However, the historical and contemporary role played by social movements in shaping social welfare has too often been neglected in standard social policy texts. Understanding social welfare movements is the first text to bring together social policy and social movement studies. Using actual case studies and written in an accessible and engaging style, it will attract a wide readership of undergraduate and postgraduate students, higher education teachers and researchers, stakeholders and activists. Introductory chapters examine the historical and theoretical relationship between state welfare and social movements. Subsequent chapters outline the historical contribution of various social movements to the creation of the welfare state relating to Beveridge's 'five giants' of idleness, ignorance, squalor, illness and want. The book then examines the contemporary challenge posed by 'new social movements' in relation to the family, discrimination, environment, and global social justice. The book provides a timely and much needed overview of the changing nature of social welfare as it has been shaped by the demands of social movements.

Jason Annetts is Sociology division leader at the University of Abertay and has published on sexuality, sexual health and the family.

Alex Law is Senior Lecturer in sociology at the University of Abertay Dundee. He is author of "Key concepts in classical social theory" (Sage, 2009) and co-editor with Gerry Mooney of "New Labour/Hard Labour?" (The Policy Press, 2007).

Wallace McNeish lectures in sociology at the University of Abertay Dundee. He is Programme Tutor for the Sociology and Behavioural Science degree programmes. He has a long-standing research interest in social movements, environmentalism and the dynamics of social and political change.

Gerry Mooney is Senior Lecturer in social policy and Staff Tutor in the Faculty of Social Sciences at The Open University. He is co-editor with Alex Law of "New Labour/Hard Labour?" (The Policy Press, 2007) and with Sarah Neal of "Community: Welfare, crime and society" (Open University Press, 2009).

Introduction; Part one: Social movements and welfare: ideology, history and theory: Protest and principle in state welfare; The making of modern social welfare movements; Theorising social welfare movements and social welfare; Part two: Social movements and the classical welfare state: Fighting idleness and want: movements of the unemployed; Fighting sickness: the women's health movement; Fighting squalor: urban social movements; Fighting ignorance: social movements and the making of modern education; Part three: Contemporary social movements and social welfare: Contesting the family: LGBT and conservative counter-movements; Contesting discrimination: anti-racist movements; Contesting the environment: eco-welfare movements; Contesting neoliberalism: global social justice movements; Conclusion.