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Issue Description
What does it mean to be British, and what makes a good citizen? This title covers what citizenship is, the rights and responsibilities of a citizen, our national identity and whether the concept of “Britishness” still has relevance in a modern society. It also looks at social participation and what it means to live in a democracy, including information on voting and government.
The information comes from a wide range of sources and includes government reports and statistics, newspaper reports, features, magazine articles and surveys, literature from lobby groups and charitable organisations.
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Key Facts
- In its simplest meaning, ‘citizenship’ is used to refer to the status of being a citizen – that is, to being a member of a particular political community or state. (page 1)
- 76 per cent of people feel that they strongly belong to their neighbourhood with 81 per cent of people satisfied with their local area as a place to live. (page 6)
- 39 per cent of people feel they can influence decisions affecting their local area. 22 per cent feel they could influence decisions affecting Great Britain. (page 6)
- In the last decades of the twentieth century, there was a decline in the proportion of people in Great Britain who thought of themselves as primarily or exclusively British and a growing proportion of people who thought of themselves as Scottish, Welsh or English (or none of these) rather than British. (page 9)
- The 16- to 24-year-old focus group participants in the YouthNet study Britain and beyond were fairly ambivalent about being described as British and did not readily relate to a shared British identity. They were, however, conscious of the nations which made up the UK, both culturally and in terms of personal identity. (page 12)
- A review published by the former attorney general Lord Goldsmith said that more than a third of young black Britons feel no sense of attachment to Britain, while a further one in ten people said they rejected all four identities of British, English, Scottish or Welsh. (page 13)
- Since 1 November 2005 everyone that wants to permanently live in the UK has to take a test or attend citizenship and language classes to prove that they know about life in the UK. (page 15)
- The Parliament of the United Kingdom consists of the House of Commons (646 elected Members of Parliament or MPs), the House of Lords (approximately 720 unelected members, most of them appointed for life and the Queen (our hereditary monarch). (page 17)
- The Government is chosen by the leader of the political party which has the majority of seats in the House of Commons. It is made up of about 100 MPs and members of the House of Lords who become government ministers. (page 20)
- Voting turnout has dropped to record lows in recent general elections. (page 21)
- 61% of people surveyed by YouGov said it was very important that everyone votes in general elections, and 25% felt that it was fairly important. Only 3% felt it was not very or not at all important. (page 27)
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Table of Contents
Chapter One: Identity and Belonging
What does citizenship mean?, National ceremonies and symbols, ‘Moaning, drinking and queuing’ make us British, A more United Kingdom, Citizens feel a strong sense of belonging, Citizenship: our common bond, British identity, Britishness and social cohesion, A question of identity, Britain and beyond, Just who do we think we are?, Citizenship tests.
Chapter Two: Democracy in Action
Parliament and the public, Discover Parliament, Modern Britain ‘needs Parliamentary reform’, Parliamentary elections, Election jargon buster, Tackling voter disengagement, Compulsory voting.
Chapter Three: Youth Participation
Are young people allergic to politics?, Political outsiders?, Got a taste for it?, The case for votes at 16, New evidence finds majority in favour of votes at 16, Votes at 16?, Since citizenship education arrived.
Key Facts
Glossary
Index
Additional Resources
Acknowledgements
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The Study Guide for: Citizenship and Participation - Volume 175
Each book in the Issues series has a study guide. These four-page guides provide a variety of discussion points and other activities to suit a wide range of ability levels and interests.
Publisher: Independence Educational Publishers
Price: £1.95
ISBN: Coming September 2009