(http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/sociology/ba/spa.html).
Traditionally students of Social Policy have gone into careers in the social work sector, with careers in the NHS for example, or social workers. However, in more recent years Social Policy graduates have gone into such industries as Law, Journalism and Retail.
The development of Social Policy in the UK has been an interesting one which has even involved a change of name from Social Administration to Social Policy. This is because it is closely linked to the development of the Fabian Society and to the influence of Fabian politics on policy development in Britain. Fabian Politics were directly linked to the establishment of the Labour Party in Britain, which some saw as a political vehicle through which policy innovation and reform could be achieved. The first and most important establishment for Social Policy was created in 1912 by relatives of Sidney Webb (a civil servant who later became a Labour MP) at the London School of Economics; a department of Social Sciences and Administration. Richard Titmuss was appointed by the LSE as the first Professor of Social Administration in the UK, a significant appointment as Titmuss had no formal academic qualifications but an established reputation for his detailed analysis of social services in wartime Britain. During his 23 years at the LSE Titmuss became a leading figure in the academic study of Social Policy throughout the developed world. Over the last fifty years, Social Policy teaching and research has spread to most other Universities in Britain, and has also been taken up much more widely in schools and colleges too. There are also major research centres in a number of Universities (Alcock, Erskine and May, p4-5).
More importantly, the phrase Social Policy can be used to refer to the policies which governments use for welfare and social protection. However the term welfare can be seen as being ambiguous, although it commonly refers to well-being.