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Care, welfare and community are three key concepts in contemporary social policy. This reader covers a wide range of topics associated with them and relevant to the delivery of care and support to adults. It includes a wide-ranging collection of articles by leading writers and researchers, some previously published, some newly commissioned. It also has first-hand accounts by users and providers of care and welfare in the community. Groups covered include people with mental health problems, homeless people, older people, people with learning difficulties and people with impairments. The focus throughout is on how policies and practice can be developed appropriately and sensitively through an understanding of current issues. The 40 chapters are grouped into four sections, each with an introduction. Five of the chapters are made up of extracts from a wide range of documents and testimonies. * Power and inequality * Difference and identity * Rights and risk *Territories and boundaries Most of the material relates to a diverse turn-of-the-century Britain, but this is set in a wider context enabling the student to explore the alternative realities of other countries and other times. Understanding Care, Welfare and Community provides an integrated, multidisciplinary overview of the many different aspects of community care. It is appropriate for students and professionals following a wide range of courses in social work, nursing, care, health, social policy, medicine, voluntary work and welfare services. It will also be a valuable resource for carers and practitioners, teachers and policy makers.