This book draws on the latest and best social science to explain how and why policy change occurs. Focusing on the policy making process as the key to change, it uses core concepts of policy analysis, one in each chapter, to build up a fully worked explanation of policy change and to equip readers with knowledge that can be applied to any aspect of welfare policy, and public and social policy more generally.Understanding the policy process introduces the main themes of the policy analysis literature; demonstrates the centrality of the policy making process to an understanding of the operational possibilities and limits of social policy; takes account of macro-, meso- and micro-level approaches to social policy analysis; uses clear explanations of key concepts, up-to-date illustrative case studies and examples to increase students' understanding of the theory and practice of policy analysis and is comparative in approach.