, < Regeneration, < New Start editorial index page Discuss or Comment on this article - Join in the discussion and add your comment to this article's discussion page - your comments may be considered for publication in New Start David Blunkett’s description of the welfare state as a safety net into which people fall and remain conjures up images of the state as the hand that rocks a hammock for the indolent. The social fund, a hardship fund that mostly provides loans for people who can’t afford expensive one-off items from their social security benefits, is part of the problem.