HOW FAR DID BRITISH SOCIETY
CHANGE, 1939–1975?
Revision for the British Depth Study
THE PAPER
 Main
focus of the exam will be analysis
and evaluation of sources
 But you need to also use your
knowledge and understanding of the
time period to help you answer the
questions
 There will be a selection of sources and
no fewer than five and no more than
seven compulsory questions
THE SOURCES
 Written
– memoirs, newspaper articles,
extracts from history books, interviews
 Pictorial – posters, cartoons,
photographs, paintings
 Statistical – tables, graphs
TYPES OF QUESTIONS
 Content
– ‘What can you find out about
X from Source Y?’
 Purpose or message ‘What is the
message of Source Y?’
 Reliability – whether you trust a source,
‘How reliable is Source Y in
explaining….?
 Usefulness – ‘How useful is Source Y in
explaining ….?
SKILLS YOU NEED TO SHOW
 Cross-referencing
– comparing two or
more sources to see if they agree or
disagress
 Evaluation skills
HANDY HINTS
 Read
through the sources, captions and
background information before you write
anything!
 All the questions are about the sources –
NEVER write an answer that makes no use
of the sources!
 Write an appropriate amount for the
amount of marks the question holds – don’t
write 10 pages for a 6 mark question and
only a short paragraph for a 12 mark
question!
 Always make it clear what source you are
talking about
 Always support your answers with examples
and explanations.
HANDY HINTS
 Don’t
try and reach a judgement about
a source just because of the type of
source it is
 Knowing
that a source is an eyewitness
account, a photograph or a memoir does
not, in itself, mean that it is reliable or useful!
 Do not say it is unreliable because it was
written much later than the event
 Remember
there are no right answers, there are high marks for intelligent
answers – use the sources well and
support your answers = high marks!
HANDY HINTS
 Use
the sources that the question tells
you to!
 You can use sources that the question
doesn’t mention if you really think it will
help your write a better answer
 Show your knowledge by
 Explaining
the meaning of a source or the
possible purpose of a source
 Deciding if a source is accurate – check it
against what you know about the events
 Comment on authorship – you might know
something about the author which will help
you decide if you trust a source
HANDY HINTS
 The
final question
It will ask you to reach a conclusion about he
issue under investigation
 Make sure you base your answer on the sources
 Remember the sources will always support two
different viewpoints
 Make sure you explain how they support one
viewpoint and then show how other source
support the other view point.
 Comment on the reliability of some of the
sources – this will help you reach a conclusion

1. WHAT IMPACT DID THE
SECOND WORLD WAR HAVE
ON THE BRITISH PEOPLE?
WORLD WAR II 1939-1945
 It
had a far more significant impact on the
British population than WWI.
 This was mainly due to the threat of the
German bombers and the effect the
bombing raids had upon the British people.
THERE WERE FIVE MAIN AREAS IN WHICH THE
IMPACT OF THE WAR WAS MOST ACUTELY FELT…
1.
German Blitzkrieg the constant bombing
campaign of British cities until May 1941.
The aim was to demoralise the country but
it had the reverse effect on the British
people – they became more determined
to defeat Hitler. It did cause a great deal of
destruction – 40,000 civilians killed and
more than a million houses were damaged
or destroyed in London alone!
2. Rationing – it was introduced so that the
population didn’t starve because of the
restrictions on food imports. Everyone was
issued with an identity card and ration book.
The ration books contained coupons that
were signed by the shopkeeper every time
rationed goods were bought – this meant that
people could only buy the amount that they
were allowed.
3. Evacuations – because of the Blitz, large
numbers of people, mainly children, were
evacuated to safer areas of the country.
Some children were even sent abroad (e.g.
Canada, the USA, Australia). A consequence
was that many people in the countryside
discovered the poor health and hygiene of
British children. This helped pave the way for
the Beveridge report.
4. Women – women made an enormous
contribution to the war effort. The Women’s
Land Army and Women’s Voluntary Service
both played a big part in keeping Britain
working during the war years. Women also
joined the armed forces and even served as
secret agents in occupied France. Women
also worked in civil defence, munitions
factories, construction and manufacturing.
They also looked after families in the absence
of fathers.
5. Beveridge Report – a report on the
effectiveness of existing scheme of social
security. Identified the five evils in society
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
WANT
DISEASE
IGNORANCE
SQUALOR
IDLENESS
In 1945 the new Labour Govt set out to solve
these problems. The set up a series of Welfare
Reforms that would care for people from the
‘cradle to the grave’. The new reforms
included the National Health Service - 1946
2. WHAT IMMIGRANTS WERE
LIVING IN BRITAIN IN 1945?
 During
the war the Allies captured thousands
of German and Italian troops in Europe.
Consequently over 300,000 German and
Italian Prisoners of War were brought to
Britain. After the war many of these decided
to stay in Britain.
 The contribution of GI’s and Commonwealth
soldiers were hugely significant to the Allied
victory in Europe and many of these soldiers
continued their lives in Britain after the war.
 In addition, there were Italians, Poles,
Ukrainians and Austrians
3. WHY DID DIFFERENT GROUPS
MIGRATE TO BRITAIN BETWEEN
1948 AND 1972?
Causes of immigration
1.
The 1948 British Nationality Act


Confirmed the right of Commonwealth
citizens to come and settle in Britain.
All citizens of the Commonwealth could
freely come to Britain regardless of their
race, religion or colour.
2. Likelihood of finding work



Severe labour shortages in Britain after WW2
so jobs were readily available.
Recruiting campaigns were run in the West
Indies to attract workers to take up
employment with expanding organisations
such as London Transport and the NHS.
Immigrants could earn up to 30x more than
they could in their country of origin.
3. Romantic vision of Britain



Many potential immigrant groups had a
romantic and glamourized image of Britain.
They had been taught at school to regard
Britain as the ‘Mother Country.’
In schools they learned about English
literature and history, which sparked a
natural curiosity to come here.
4. Economic problems at home



Most immigrants came from poor countries
There were often significant economic
problems including poverty, unemployment,
and a high birth rate.
Though economic factors were a big cause
of immigration, typical migrants were not
unemployed and had above-average skills.
5. Violence at home



Fear was another reason why immigrants
came to Britain in the 1950s.
Many left India because they wanted to
escape from the disruption and violence
during the partition of India
Many others left because of violence at
home also
6. Other factors

Expulsion from their own countries e.g.
Ugandan President Idi Amin expelled 50,000
Asian Ugandans.
4. WHAT WERE THE EXPERIENCES
OF IMMIGRANTS IN BRITAIN?
Stage 1 – A gradual
uneasy welcome
Immigrants usually
settles in a relatively
small number of
towns and cities
because they were
discriminated
against in housing.
Stage 2 – Increased
tension (riots in 1958)
Unrest between
Teddy Boys and
immigrants during
the Summer of
Violence. Violence
occurred between
30th August and 5th
September.
Stage 3 –
Conservative govt
gets tougher on
immigration laws
(Commonwealth
Immigrants Act 1962)
The era of
unrestricted entry to
the UK was over
Stage 4 – Labour
Govt attempts to
protect immigrants
(Race Relations act
1965 & 1968 – made it
illegal to discriminate
on grounds of race in
public places but the
legislations did not
fully succeed in
changing attitudes
Stage 5 – Enoch
Powell and the ‘Rivers
of Blood’ speech
1968. Showed that
anti-immigration
feelings certainly
existed in Britain.
Stage 6 – the
Establishment of the
National Front 1967.
Extremely right wing,
its purpose was to
oppose immigration
and multicultural
policies in Britain.
5. WHAT CONTRIBUTION HAD
IMMIGRANTS MADE TO BRITISH
SOCIETY BY THE EARLY 1970S?
Establishment of permanent communities
Certain areas of cities became associated with particular
immigrant groups e.g. Limehouse in London - Chinese
Economic impact
There are many examples of where immigrants have added
huge value to the British economy, textiles was one major
area.
Festivals and celebrations
The carnival was a notable contribution of West Indian
immigration to British society. It was in effect a demonstration
by which migrants asserted their right to be in the UK.
Music
Throughout the 1960s migrants music attracted and inspired
a generation of white working-class youths, in particular, the
arrival of reggae music.
6. WHAT WAS THE IMPACT OF
THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE
ON PEOPLE’S LIVES?
WHAT WAS THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE?
 1946
National Health Service Act –
provided medical treatment – either in
hospital or from a GP.
 Dental and optical treatment was also
included
 Hospitals were now all controlled by the
government
 Came into operation in July 1948
 Aneurin Bevan was the health minister at
the time and was the person responsible for
the Act – but much of it stemmed from the
Beveridge Report.
PROBLEMS
 Proved
to be extremely popular!
 187 million prescriptions were written and 8
million pairs of glasses were dispensed!
 Spending on the NHS became much higher
than predicted
 From its earliest days the NHS seemed to be
short of money

The £2 million that was put aside for glasses in the
first 9 months was used up in 6 weeks!
 Some
charges were introduced e.g. false
teeth and glasses.
7. WHAT WAS LIFE LIKE FOR
MOST WOMEN IN THE 1950S?
CHANGES DURING WW2
 Women
had played a huge part in
fighting the war on the home front.
 There were some positive changes



School meals were available for children –
allowing women to work all day
1943 Equal Pay Commission – however this
proved in efficient
1945 Butler Education Act – guaranteed all
females the right to a secondary education.
THE 1950S
 The
cult of domesticity –encouraged the
traditional role of women as home-makers,
this was encouraged by much commercial
advertising.
 Changes in education – 1944 Education
Act- outlawed the sacking of women
teachers who were married, while the
provision of good-quality education
widened women’s horizons. By the early
1960s a third of university undergraduates
were women.
 Wages – between the 1920s and 1970s
women earned on average 50% of what
men did!
8. HOW WERE WOMEN
DISCRIMINATED AGAINST IN THE
1960S AND EARLY 1970S?
9. WHAT FACTORS LED TO CHANGES
IN THE ROLES OF WOMEN?
THE FEMINIST MOVEMENT OF THE 1960S AND
1970S
 The
slow pace of change in women’s
lives after WW2 frustrated many women
 A feminist movement to campaign for
women's rights and interests emerged.
DISCRIMINATION
 Equal
pay – women were paid on
average ¾ of the salary paid to a man
doing the same job.
 A deeply held belief that a woman’s job
was marriage, home-making and
children
 Action – women held strikes, set up
organisations, held rallies, lobbied MPs

In 1970 the Equal Pay Act was approved and
came into full effect in 1975
DISCRIMINATION
 Sex
Discrimination Act 1975 – this
established the Equal Opportunities
Commission – its main duties were to
eliminate discrimination, promote
equality and keep an eye on the
workings of the Equal Pay Act
WOMEN’S LIBERATION MOVEMENT
 By
the end of 1969 there were about 70
‘women’s lib’ groups in Britain
 It really got underway in the 1970s

Feb 1970 the first Women’s National
Conference was held and it was attended
by over 500 women. They demanded equal
pay, free contraception, abortion on
demand and 24hr nurseries.
BIG CHANGES!
 The
Pill 1961 – gave women more control
over their lives – they married and started
families later. This increased women’s
opportunities in education and
employment.
 Abortion Act 1967 – came into effect 1968.
Made abortion legal in the UK.
 Divorce Reform Act 1969 – allowed divorce
on the grounds of adultery, cruelty,
desertion for at least 2 years, or by mutual
consent after 2 years – or 5 years if only one
party wants a divorce
10. HOW MUCH CHANGE HAD
TAKEN PLACE FOR WOMEN BY
1975?
I am as capable of
running a company as
any man! The Law says I
cant be discriminated
because I’m a woman!
Mothers need
reliable childcare
I was afraid of getting
pregnant before I got
married and now I'm
worried about having
too many!
My husband is the
wage earner
Reliable
contraception
and access to
abortion mean
that we have
more choices and
control.
I run the home an
look after children.
If you do the
same work you
should get the
same money
I want a career as
well as a marriage
and family –why
cant we have both
– men do!
Men should hold
important
managerial jobs – I
wouldn’t feel
comfortable telling
a man what to do.
I would never
expect to earn
the same as a
man
My husband is the
wage earner
I run the home an
look after children.
Men should hold
important
managerial jobs – I
wouldn’t feel
comfortable telling
a man what to do.
I would never
expect to earn
the same as a
man
I was afraid of getting
pregnant before I got
married and now I'm
worried about having
too many!
Reliable
contraception
and access to
abortion mean
that we have
more choices and
control.
I want a career as
well as a marriage
and family –why
cant we have both
– men do!
I am as capable of
running a company as
any man! The Law says I
cant be discriminated
because I’m a woman!
If you do the
same work you
should get the
same money
Mothers need
reliable childcare
11. WHAT WAS IT LIKE GROWING
UP IN THE 1950S?
TEENAGERS IN THE 1950S
 The
term ‘teenagers’ was not used until
1950
 Often people would get married an move
out of their parents home by the time they
were 21
 Teenagers of this period changed this –
they began to reject the seemingly dull,
timid, old-fashioned and uninspired British
culture around them
 They sought new pleasures and activities
that were often totally at odds to what their
parents thought was acceptable!
12. WHY WERE THERE CHANGES
IN THE LIVES OF TEENAGERS IN
THE 1960S?
TEENAGERS IN THE 1960S - INFLUENCES
1. Cultural influences
•
•
•
Film, television, magazines, rock music.
In particular American influences on
European teenagers – Rock and Roll (Elvis),
Film stars (James Dean)
Impacted fashion, language and activities
TEENAGERS IN THE 1960S - INFLUENCES
2. Consumer goods
•
•
Provided teenagers with the tools to
cultivate their own styles in clothes, haircuts,
and even travel.
This spearheaded a generation gap
between parents and their children
TEENAGERS IN THE 1960S - INFLUENCES
3. Financial power

They had cash to spend on self-indulgent
purchases e.g. they soon had their own
fashions, music, cafes and by the end of the
decade their own transport – scooters!
13. HOW DID TEENAGERS AND
STUDENTS BEHAVE IN THE 1960S
AND EARLY 1970S?
CHANGING BEHAVIOUR
1. They worshipped their idols
•
Bands like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones
came to be leaders of youth culture and
were worshipped almost as gods by
teenagers
CHANGING BEHAVIOUR
2. They became more daring when it
came to expressing themselves
•
•
Teenagers adopted trend setting behaviour
whereas before trends had been set for
them
The mini skirt – a controversial fashion trend
of the 1960s
CHANGING BEHAVIOUR
3. Emergence of youth subculture
•
Youth based subcultures became more
visible e.g. Mods and Rockers
•
•
•
•
Mods – viewed as sophisticated with their scooters
Rockers – a more macho image on their
motorcycles
1964 – several well publicised battles
between the two groups at seaside resorts
Later subcultures included hippies, skinheads
and punk rockers
CHANGING BEHAVIOUR
4. More violent and criminal behaviour
•
•
Teddy boys – played a role in attacking
black people during Notting Hill riots.
Teenage drug use – cannabis in particular
CHANGING BEHAVIOUR
5. Public Protest
•
•
1858 the Campaign for Nuclear
Disarmament was formed and organised
well publicised protest marches
1960s political demonstrations which
sometimes led to violence – the Vietnam
War
14. HOW FAR DID THE LIVES OF
ALL TEENAGERS CHANGE IN THE
1960S AND EARLY 1970S?
EDUCATION
 Free
to all up to the age of 14
 Managed under the Tripartite System



Grammar schools – entry exam, academic
focus
Secondary technical schools – very few of
these were built, focused on mechanical,
scientific and engineering skills to serve
industry and science
Secondary Moderns - designed for the
majority of pupils - those who did not
achieve the grade needed for grammar
schools
SECONDARY MODERNS
 Criticised
from the late 1940s for their
perceived low standards
 Replaced with comprehensive schools
in the 1960s
 Comprehensives provided free
education from 11 to 16 years
 Prevented children who failed the 11plus exam feeling like second class
citizens
EXPANSION OF UNIVERSITY EDUCATION
 Post
WW2 many new universities were
founded (Warwick, Norwich, Kent, York)
 30 new Polytechnics also set up
 1960s and early 1970s witnessed an
enormous expansion in the number of
full-time university students.
 Grants and fees were also paid by Local
Education Authorities – gave those from
poorer backgrounds the opportunity to
go to university.