Stef Benstead is a Christian passionate about social justice and God’s love for the poor. She carries out research on disability and sickness policy, and in 2019 published Second Class Citizens, a book which considers the history of the UK’s treatment of disabled people and the creation and subsequent stead dismantling of the welfare state. She has worked with the Spartacus Network, joining with other sick and disabled people to critique the government’s approach to sick and disabled people, and has been commissioned for research by both Ekklesia and the Chronic Illness Inclusion Project.