The wider political context within which this study is set is one of radical reform of the welfare state in the UK. This chapter discusses and highlights key elements of the current policy context, especially the welfare reforms, and reflects on these in light of some of the key findings. It also uses the circumstances reported to reflect on the type of policy approach that is necessary to respond to the complex individual and family circumstances that are revealed by the research.

At the outset, it is helpful to set the broader context by highlighting, following Horgan and Monteith (2009) and McCormick (2013), some of Northern Ireland's distinctive features relevant to poverty and policy reform:

• • persistent child poverty is double the rate for Great Britain and is especially high among lone-parent families; • there is a serious lack of affordable childcare, especially in poorer areas;

• • there is, compared with Great Britain, a very high rate of worklessness and long-term unemployment, lower wages and a greater share of jobs in the public sector;

• • there are significantly higher claims for Disability Living Allowance due to mental health problems than in Great Britain;

• • disadvantage is underpinned by ‘deep social distress’ if not ‘community trauma’ in the aftermath of conflict;

• • child poverty is substantially concentrated in areas most affected by conflict.

Welfare and family policy reform

Almost from the moment it took office in 2010, the Conservative/ Liberal Democrat coalition government started to reform the benefit system, largely undoing the relatively generous, family-focused provisions of the preceding Labour governments (Churchill, 2013). This was for the purpose of cutting back on public expenditure, but it was motivated also by a desire to simplify and streamline the UK's benefit system. A whole host of reforms has been introduced. Tax Credits – which emerged as so important to the families in this study – were reduced in number and generosity. In 2011, the Child Tax Credit was withdrawn from families with annual incomes over £40,000 (but increased slightly for those on less than £15,000). The extra payments to families for infants were withdrawn completely. In regard to the Working Tax Credit, the rates for lone and couple parents were frozen and all payments were to be uprated in line with the consumer price index.