Front Cover
Welfare that Works for Women?: Mothers' Experiences of the Conditionality within Universal Credit
Copyright information
Dedication
Table of contents
List of tables and figure
List of abbreviations
About the author
Acknowledgments
ONE Introduction
Austerity context
Motivation for the book
Researching mothers' experiences
Structure of the book
TWO The social security system and gender: unpaid care, paid work and agency
Introduction
Gender social security and changing demographics
Women's dilemma: sameness or difference?

Potential policies for creating a more gender-inclusive citizenship framework
A potential way forward: valuing unpaid care, promoting paid work and enlarging agency
Conclusion
THREE Universal Credit and the new conditionality regime for mothers
Introduction
History of Universal Credit
Re-orientating the benefits system around paid work
History of welfare conditionality in the UK
Universal Credit conditionality regime for lead carers
Gender concerns
Conclusion
FOUR Universal Credit and unpaid care: "we're doing a massive job anyway"
Introduction

Overview of the participants' caring responsibilities
Extent to which caring responsibilities were taken into account
Forming the Claimant Commitment
Ongoing interactions with work coaches
The extensiveness of work-related requirements
Effects of work-related requirements and paid work on caring responsibilities
Effects on time and interactions
Challenges of taking children to the Jobcentre Plus
Mismatched views: the valuing of unpaid care
Participants' valuing of unpaid care
Views on whether unpaid care is valued within the Universal Credit system
Conclusion

FIVE Universal Credit and paid work: "you can job search and job search and not get anywhere"
Introduction
Paid work aspirations and barriers
Universal Credit childcare provision
Employment-related support
Work coach relationships and support
Support for long-term paid work aspirations
Experiences of meeting work-related requirements
Effects of conditionality on employment and earnings
Conclusion
SIX Universal Credit and agency: "there's no element of choice"
Introduction
Participants' work-care choices

Extent to which the Claimant Commitments were negotiated
Experiences of compulsion over time
Views on the compulsion within Universal Credit
Views on choice in the Universal Credit system
Views on sanctioning mothers
Responses over time to the compulsion within Universal Credit
Overall impacts on participants' agency
Conclusion
SEVEN Conclusion
Introduction
Effects on mothers' caring roles and responsibilities, employment trajectories and agency
Implications for the UK citizenship framework and social security system
Policy recommendations
Conclusion