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PIR-10081 - Module Specification
School of Humanities and Social Sciences
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

For academic year: 2025/26 Last Updated: 04 December 2025

PIR-10081 - British Politics: Welfare, Economy and Society 
Coordinator: Phil Catney Room: CBA1.029 Tel: +44 1782 7 33346
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 4
Credits: 15
Study Hours: 150
School Office:

Programme/Approved Electives for 2025/26

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None


Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2025/26

How did we get to the state we're in? This module introduces students to studying domestic and international dimensions of British politics, presenting an overview of the key debates that have shaped politics in post-WW2 Britain. Students will develop an understanding of key events and the importance of ideas such as welfare, decline, governability and populism. Students will enhance their critical reading and analytical skills, developing a better understanding of the past to make sense of the present.

Aims
-To introduce students to the study of domestic and international dimensions of British politics;
-To introduce students to the key debates in British politics since 1945, such as the establishment of the welfare state, de-colonisation, the management of the economy, neoliberalism and political responses to it and so forth;
-To provoke initial reflection on the complexity of political life and the approaches necessary for its comprehension;
- To develop basic skills such as contributing to tutorial discussions, using library resources, reading and annotating texts, and formulating clear essay arguments.

Intended Learning Outcomes

identify relevant basic concepts from political analysis to provoke initial reflection on the complexity of political life and the approaches necessary for its comprehension: 1,2
demonstrate a capability to understand the nature and reason for political changes in British Politics since 1945: 1,2
acquire skills in writing scholarly essays in social science and participating in informed debates about current political issues
: 1,2

Study hours

14 hours lectures
10 hours tutorials
40 hours of preparation for ten tutorials
28 hours of preparation and writing of literature review
58 hours of preparation and writing for essay

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Review weighted 30%
A 500 word review
A review of an academic journal article.  This assessment is designed to help students with induction into critical reading of journal articles.

2: Report weighted 70%
A 1,200 word essay
A characterization of how a major event or crisis (e.g. Suez, Black Wednesday, the Miners' Strike, the 2008 financial crisis) was a pivotal moment in the politics of the UK. 

The University undertakes a continuous review of its teaching and research provision to ensure programmes are of a high quality and changes may be made to modules where it is necessary and reasonable to do so. Please be aware that minor changes to modules, such as a change to an individual assessment, can occur up until enrolment, although we endeavour to give you as much notice as possible of any changes. Details about the circumstance in which changes are made to programmes can be found in the Student Agreement, available at: https://www.keele.ac.uk/legalgovernancecompliance/governance/actcharterstatutesordinancesandregulations/studenttermsconditions/

Last Updated: 04 December 2025