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Child Poverty Taskforce co-chairs Liz Kendall and Bridget Phillipson speak to parents and Barnardo’s CEO at a charity centre in Brent
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Comes as new framework sets out how Child Poverty Taskforce will build a bold strategy to break down barriers to opportunity and give all children the best start in life
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Ministers to host events and travel across the United Kingdom to hear views and experiences of local leaders, charities and those living in poverty
The Taskforce today publishes a framework for the strategy that will come out in the Spring.
Over the coming months the Taskforce will focus on reducing the number of children in relative poverty after housing costs, reducing the number of children who are going without essentials, and giving all children the best start in life.
The publication outlines how the Taskforce will work with key anti-poverty organisations around targets such as reducing costs, increasing incomes and improving access to early year’s support for struggling families.
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall MP and Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson MP kicked off this engagement by visiting a Barnardo’s Family Centre in Brent alongside Barnardo’s CEO Lynn Perry MBE. They joined a children’s session focused on healthy eating and heard how parents – including single parents – are struggling with the cost of essentials.
Later today, ministers will meet with the likes of Ofgem, The Food Foundation, Water UK and other leading organisations on the theme of reducing household costs.
The new document sets out how ministers will take part in events across the nations and regions of the United Kingdom, bringing together a diverse range of voices and expertise to address the systemic drivers of poverty – ranging from employment to housing – as it creates an ambitious strategy to be set out in the Spring.
Taskforce co-chair and Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall MP will visit Scotland next month to bring together local leaders, key charities and organisations as well as parents, children and frontline workers.
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall MP said
Children can’t fulfil their potential without food in their bellies or a roof over their head. And Britain cannot fulfil its potential when the talents of so many children are being denied.
It is unacceptable that more than 4m children are now growing up in poverty. Under our new government, this will change.
We will work with campaigners and experts – and struggling families across the country to deliver a bold and ambitious strategy that drives down poverty and drives up opportunity in every corner of the land.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson MP said
The stain of poverty of child poverty in this country has jeopardised the life chances of too many children for too long.
Ending child poverty is a complex and difficult task, but our defining mission is to break down the unfair link between background and success – so every child believes that opportunity can belong to them.
Today’s framework sets the clear direction on this mission, ensuring we are united across government and with stakeholders to drive down household costs.
A new forum of parents and carers living across the UK will be set up to ensure the experiences of children in poverty, including those with special educational needs and disabilities, feed into the final strategy.
Leading organisations such as Barnardo’s, Citizens Advice, the National Children’s Bureau and Save the Children will share their knowledge with Ministers, and a new board of leading academics and experts on tackling poverty will inform, test and scrutinise the work being done on the Strategy.
Barnardo’s Chief Executive, Lynn Perry MBE, said
We are seeing epidemic levels of poverty amongst children in the UK. Across the country, families are facing a desperate struggle to put food on the table, keep the lights on and heat their homes this winter. More than 4.3 million children are growing up in poverty, with one in four families saying they’ve struggled to afford food in the last 12 months alone.
Growing up in poverty can have a devastating impact on a child’s life, affecting their learning, mental and physical health long into adulthood, while limiting their life chances.
We’re grateful to the Secretaries of State for Work and Pensions and Education for their visit to meet children and families at our Brent service which supports those struggling with the cost-of-living. We look forward to working with ministers to find long-term solutions to these issues whilst recognising families also need immediate help this winter.
Dame Clare Moriarty, Chief Executive at Citizens Advice, said
The cost-of-living crisis has squeezed household finances and tipped many into significant hardship. Our frontline advisors are still seeing families doing all they can but unable to afford essentials for their children.
A clear strategy to combat child poverty is urgently needed. It must be ambitious and ensure that people facing acute pressures get the help they need soon, while also delivering change that will last.
Anna Feuchtwang, Chief Executive of the National Children’s Bureau, said
4.3 million children living in poverty in the UK is an unacceptable blight on our society and children deserve better.
NCB welcomes the Government’s commitment to consulting with a broad range of stakeholders to understand how to make this happen. It is crucial that the voices of children and families with lived experience of poverty are central not just to the development of the strategy, but to implementing it as well.
We desperately need to see progress for children in this area – asking the right questions is a good start.
Dan Paskins, Executive Director of Policy, Advocacy and Campaigns at Save the Children UK, said
For too long child poverty has been shamefully high, so we welcome the recognition from the UK Government today that tackling it is a moral imperative.
The root causes of poverty are complex and can only be solved by listening to and working with those most affected. We are therefore really pleased to be working with the UK Government to facilitate the Child Poverty Taskforce hearing directly from children, their families, and our partners in communities across the UK.
We look forward to working with UK Government, with organisations across the sector, and across the regions and nations of the UK, to develop a Child Poverty Strategy that ensures all children have the guaranteed support that they desperately need and deserve.
The development of this ambitious strategy will be guided by the internationally recognised measure ‘Relative Poverty After Housing Costs’.
To support struggling families, we have already boosted the Household Support Fund by a further £421 million in England while the Warm Home Discount remains in place for low-income households as the Government stands firms on its commitment to protect those most at risk this winter.
This comes alongside Government plans to deliver quality work and better pay through the Employment Rights Bill, create 3,000 new nurseries, and lower energy bills through Great British Energy.
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There are currently 4.3m children in relative poverty after housing costs in the United Kingdom as of 2022/23.
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Relative Poverty After Housing Costs takes into account the proportion of families with below 60% of the median income after housing costs are deducted.
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The Barnardo’s Family Centre in Brent offers a wide range of free advice to families while providing crisis funding through vouchers, hosts cooking sessions and holds activity days for children to give them the best start in life and ease the burden on those living in poverty.
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The ’Tackling Child Poverty Developing our Strategy’ document is available here Tackling Child Poverty Developing Our Strategy – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
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Following the Household Support Fund extension, an estimated £79million will be made available to the Devolved Governments to support their citizens as they see fit.
