Welfare Reform on the Web (November 2010): Social security - overseas

Income support policy in Canada and the UK: different, but much the same

C. Malacrida

Disability and Society, vol. 25, 2010, p. 673-686

This article explores the barriers faced by disabled women in accessing information about income support policy in Canada and the UK. In both countries, income policy is hard to learn about, guidelines are often confusing, and sometimes women are not told what their entitlements are. In the UK, there are too many different programmes relating to income support, but all relevant information can be found through the DirectGov website and there is independent help from Citizens' Advice Bureaux. In Canada, the policy seems simpler, but people must be very poor to access services. There is no good website for information and no Citizens' Advice Bureaux to help with problems.