1945 and the welfare state
The nutshell
After the Second World War, Britain built the welfare state — a group of services that help people who are poor, ill, old or out of work. In 1948 this new system set up the National Health Service, which offers medical care that is free to use.
Every fact on this page comes from UK Parliament, the National Archives and other non-partisan bodies. Each source tag — like Parl — opens where a fact comes from.
The basics
An idea born in the war
During the Second World War, the government asked William Beveridge to look at how to help people in need. In 1942 the plan came out as the Beveridge Report. The report named five big problems to beat — Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor and Idleness.Parl The report is often called the blueprint, or plan, for the welfare state.
What the welfare state means
The welfare state is a group of services that help people who are poor, ill, old or out of work. Beveridge set out plans for insurance, help for families and health services for everyone.TNA The aim was to support people from birth to old age.
The 1945 election
In July 1945, just after the war in Europe ended, Britain held a general election. The Labour Party, led by Clement Attlee, won a majority of seats.HoCAttlee became Prime Minister and set about building the welfare state.
The National Health Service
In 1948 the new government set up the National Health Service, known as the NHS. The NHS began on 5 July 1948. Care was free at the point of use, which means no one paid a fee to see a doctor or go to hospital.GOV Britain was the first country in the West to offer this to everyone.
- The Beveridge Report of 1942 named five giants to beat — Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor and Idleness, according to UK Parliament
- The Labour government elected in July 1945 built much of the welfare state, including the National Health Service in 1948
- The National Health Service began on 5 July 1948 and offered medical care free at the point of use to everyone, according to the UK government history blog
- The welfare state was not built all at once — several different laws set up insurance, benefits, housing and health across the late 1940s
- The idea did not begin in 1945 — the Beveridge Report that shaped it came out in 1942, during the war
- Free at the point of use means no fee when care is given, not that the service costs nothing, because the welfare state is paid for through taxes and national insurance
The deep end6 min
The Beveridge Report and the five giants
In November 1942, during the Second World War, William Beveridge published a report called 'Social Insurance and Allied Services'. According to UK Parliament, the report named five giants blocking the road to a better society — Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor and Idleness — and set out the plan that became the blueprint for the welfare state, including a free national health service and full employment.ParlThe National Archives records that the report proposed a system of compulsory social insurance, with allowances for dependent children and comprehensive health and rehabilitation services.TNA
The 1945 election and the Attlee government
In July 1945, soon after victory in Europe, the UK held its first general election in ten years. The House of Commons Library records that the Labour Party won a majority of seats in the House of Commons, and Clement Attlee became Prime Minister.HoCOver the next few years, the new government passed a series of laws that built the welfare state, covering national insurance, help for those in need, housing and health.
The National Health Service, 1948
The most famous part of the welfare state is the National Health Service. The UK government history blog records that the NHS was established on 5 July 1948, and that Britain was the first western country to offer medical care free at the point of use to the whole population, whatever a person's ability to pay.GOV The service was funded through taxes and national insurance rather than fees charged when care was given.
What was new, and what is debated
Some support for people in need existed before 1945. What changed after the war was the scale — services that reached almost everyone, from birth to old age. How the welfare state should be funded and run remains debated today, and the topics on the history of UK democracy and Magna Carta look at how the wider system of government took shape.