Leisure as an object of governmental policy in UK Elections: 1945 to 1983

Following the Second World War, most working people, saw a substantial change in both the amount of leisure time they had available and how it could be enjoyed. During the 1950s the amount of paid leave that could be taken had risen substantially which, coupled with a general increase in basic disposable income, resulted in a growing demand for leisure resources. It is in this period that we find the emergence of party political interest in addressing concerns associated with leisure, with recognition of it as a legitimate arena for governmental policy. Using a lexical frequency analysis this paper will consider how leisure was construed as an object of governmental policy between 1945 and 1983. It concludes that such an approach affords us an opportunity to view policy in general, and leisure policy in particular, in new ways, enabling us to approach familiar topics from an alternative perspective.