Rachel O'Driscoll
DPhil in English Local History
Thesis
Specialist interventions, family strategies and the lives of London’s disabled children, 1880-1918
Research abstract
This first study of disabled children in London during the late Victorian and Edwardian period will offer new understandings of the lives of these children and their families, by setting the disabled child within the family context and paying attention to the detail of interactions within and beyond the family.
Specialist, tailored interventions directed at children with congenital or childhood-acquired disabilities in late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century London will be the focus of this study. Innovatively, it will move consideration of disability beyond the institution, so that interventions and responses can be considered in the family context. The extent to which interventions could be influenced/resisted by intended recipients or their families will be evaluated, as well as the intent behind and outcomes of interventions. Reflecting the emphasis on familial environment, the significance of family care and support will be assessed.
Methodologically, the approach will be to use a wide variety of primary sources, combining archival evidence with digitised records to reconstruct life courses of both disabled children and their families.
Supervisor(s)
Biography
I have worked as a policy professional for the civil service and for professional, educational and faith bodies. My research is in part motivated by a conviction that historical research can make a valuable contribution to contemporary policy discussions.
My intertwined identities as a mother, carer and researcher inform my doctoral studies.
Steering committee member, University of Oxford Centre for the History of Childhood.
Publications
Blog Post
'Specialist interventions, family strategies and the lives of London’s disabled children, 1880-1918', Oxford Centre for the History of Childhood (March 2024).
Papers and lectures
December 2021 - ‘”Scholarships for the afflicted”: familial care for disabled children in early twentieth century London’, Family and Disability Conference: Comparing British and Germany Histories of Care, German Historical Institute, London. (virtual due to COVID 19)
February 2022 - ‘”A stimulus to the whole class to do better work”: London County Council blind, deaf and crippled scholars, 1899-1920’, Doctoral Research Seminar, Oxford University Department of Continuing Education. (virtual due to COVID 19)
March 2022 - '"We have not left anything undone that we thought would be beneficial": familial care for disabled children in early twentieth century London', Local History Research Seminar, Oxford University Department of Continuing Education. (virtual)
June 2023 - Disability and marriage in early twentieth century London (Panel: Silo-busting: benefitting from integrating social and disability history stream), Social History Society Conference, University of Essex. (in person)
Research interests
History of disability, education, welfare and childhood in nineteenth and twentieth century Britain
