Volume 16 , Issue 8

Walking With Sadie

We were looking back to February, 1948, and found a news article that stated: Why 1948 babies are the luckiest: Their generation saw free schooling, free healthcare . . . and an end to National Service in 1960. I think it was concerning the United Kingdom 1948ers, though.

The 1948ers were born as Britain was getting back on its feet after World War II. The 1948ers would go on to enjoy a lifetime of help from the state. The year of their birth saw the founding of the National Health Service, and within 12 months the first comprehensive school had opened its gates. It seems that a family allowance introduced in 1945 bought the 1948ers clothes and shoes.

In the United Kingdom there was a 11-plus test that made higher education more accessible for some and the introduction of means-tested student grants in 1962 ensured the taxpayer funded their university years.

It was also thought (and believed) that being born in 1948 also meant being able to live a life free from the fears of generations before them.

The 1948ers teen years in the 1960s saw the abolition of National Service in 1960, which meant their teenage years were free from worries of joining the military. They also entered adulthood in time to enjoy the swinging sixties and the arrival of the Beatles to America. The 1960s delivered what the 1948ers were looking for. They did things their parents never did, and along came the flower power.

Economists also point out how fortunate 1948ers had been when it came to housing. The 1970s housing boom made it possible for home ownership as it rocketed.

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