Social reform in Russia

The term "social work and social reform" is used to convey the fundamental link between social work and social reform. 

When we use the term "social reform," we mean the process by which people's existing values, beliefs, ideologies, attitudes, and opinions are altered in response to a specific issue or group of concerns. According to webster's encyclopedic dictionary, "reform, «refers   to   "the   improvement   or   amendment   of   something   that   is   wrong, corrupt, or unsatisfactory, among other things." social reform is broadly characterized as the abolition of   immoral, unhealthy, corrupt, and   erroneous   practices   that block   human and   social progress.   "Social   reform"   is   defined   as   "a   deliberate   effort to   change people’s   social attitudes, culturally defined role expectations, and actual patterns of behavior in a desired direction through a process of persuasion and public education." It is feasible to explain its a process of change that begins with the participants' minds.

In recent years, the Russian government has adopted major social policy reforms that incorporate contemporary state-of-the-art international principles and practices. New legislation has mandated deinstitutionalization, that is, closing Russia’s large network of residential facilities for children ‘without parental supervision’ and people with disabilities. Programmes of foster care and adoption are emptying orphanages, while efforts have been made to reorient efforts of social workers and family courts towards preserving families. Children with disabilities are being moved out of institutions and integrated into public schools, while adults now have possibilities to live and work in communities that have been made more accessible. ‘Active ageing’ policies are designed to enhance the agency and self-determination of older people. Schools have begun to integrate the children of migrant workers. Some social service provision has been outsourced to socially-oriented non-governmental organizations in order to allow a choice of providers and services. While the progress of these reforms has been uneven, collectively they reflect the Russian government’s efforts towards integrating into mainstream society groups that have for decades been marginalized or institutionalized.

Reforms in each policy area were first considered between 2005 and 2010, with legislation passed between 2012 and 2015.

Reforming disability policy

Attitudes towards people with disabilities began to change slowly in post-soviet times, but the Russian government retained its established practices until 1995. The first significant reform legislation, the 1995 federal law ‘on social protection of people with disabilities in the Russian federation’ mandated measures for the integration of those with disabilities into communities with the purpose of guaranteeing them equal opportunities. Its approval marked important progress, as emphasis was put on the improvement of the ‘social conditions’ of this group. Some urban social service centers began providing therapies and other resources on a modest scale, but for more than a decade there was no more significant change.

Then-president Dmitriy Medvedev promoted Russia’s 2012 ratification of the unconvention on rights of people with disabilities within the context of his modernization programme. The government proceeded with broad changes to bring Russian policy into compliance with the convention. Significant improvements in accessibility of public spaces for people with physical disabilities were made through the programme ‘accessible environment 2011–2015’. New laws on ‘inclusive education’ required that children with disabilities be integrated into mainstream schools. The ministry of labour mandated that workplaces be specially equipped for adults with mobility limitations, visual and hearing impairments, and other disabilities. Discrimination against people with disabilities was legally prohibited. Their rights to live, work and receive social services in communities, form families, foster and adopt children were enshrined in legislation.

Reforms of child welfare: family services and foster care

The second major area of reform addressed in our special issue is child welfare, including deinstitutionalization, creating a system of foster care and changing the orientation of family services to support and preserve families. By the end of 2020, the total number of children (0–18 years) in Russia was 31,913,558 the number of children orphaned or left without parental care was 406,138, about 1.3% of all children. Part of the reason for such a high rate was the lack of child protection and family reconciliation services. Most of these children remained in institutions throughout their childhoods. Volunteers from child welfare sonpos who worked in Russia’s understaffed children’s homes testified to the social and emotional deprivation of child-residents.

The 2010s witnessed increasing political and public concern over child- and family-related issues in Russia, with child welfare and family policy being elevated to the top of the state’s political agenda. Russia’s conservative government has prioritized the protection of traditional family values and family as the mainstay of Russian society. On that basis the Putin administration introduced major policy and welfare reform programmes including those that work towards deinstitutionalizing the country’s entire child welfare system.

‘Active ageing’—reform of policy towards the elderly

In soviet and post-soviet policies towards elderly people, the emphasis has been on social protection, pensions, benefits and other socio-economic support instruments. Aspects of social development, in particular, the socio-psychological problems of ageing, were not articulated. Recent social policies, largely initiated and supported by non-governmental organizations, are aimed at filling that gap. Since the 1990s significant progress has been made in increasing the level of social activity of the older generation, including their engagement in volunteering. However, these experiences are confined mainly to the middle and upper classes. Overall, studies show a high risk of deprivation amongst older people in Russia, including non-monetary deprivations. Their involvement in various spheres of life is limited by persisting myths and stereotypes about ageing, and their access to socially significant resources and programmes of culture, health care, social services and labour markets varies in time and space, from region to region. Active ageing as a regulatory framework becomes exclusively top-down, despite the declared commitment to the values of participation. Policies are adopted taking little account of diversity of needs and inequalities among older people. In the situation of the covid-19 pandemic, new risks of social exclusion, deprivation, vulnerability and ageism have arisen