In this chapter, we take stock of a wide array of welfare policy changes in Europe in the immediate aftermath of the Great Recession (2008–2014). Based on a qualitative comparative assessment of national legislation, we study the direction of welfare reform in twelve European countries, and examine whether identified changes were regressive or progressive, and inclusive or exclusionary in design. We do this for policies in five domains across the individual life-course: childhood, work–family reconciliation, education, employment, and retirement. We find that the direction of welfare reform to a large extent reflected countries’ relative vulnerability to the crisis and the institutional capacities to push through reforms under duress. Yet, not all countries enacted austerity reforms; some found opportunities to expand social investment policy portfolios towards activating policies and capacitating social services. The spectrum of policy change revealed in this chapter indicates that political choices beyond crisis vulnerability remained relevant.
