Sympathy for classes
- many members of the uppercases, maintaining a sympathy for the lower, translated into more egalitarian political benefits- decline in deference in which member of the lower classes no longer held an automatic respect
Decline in upper class
- death toll among British upper class was disproportionately high- 1914; 6 peerage, 16 baronets, 6 knights and 261 sons of aristocrats lost their lives- families forced to pay death duties for those killed- Elder sons often had to seek their land or stately homes to pay for this
Greater Equality
- 1918 Representation of people act - trade union had managed to gain important concession from the government terms of working conditions, pay and hours- the provision of holidays pay in 1939- could improve their living standards interwar years- prices fell faster than wages, many people felt less disadvantaged- surplus income and could, aspire to a more affluent lifestyle than their parents
Housing
- 1937, 275k homes were built - number of owner occupiers 1920s from 750k to 3.25million in 1938- evident in growing suburbs - increased car ownership and the extension of the railway network made it possible for more people to travel longer distances to work
Impact
- government mobilised all sections of society in order to win a war of national survival - owning a home became more attainable- 1945 Britain's class system remained lare1g