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28/05/2014
Five Million Children Could Be In Poverty By 2020
A record five million children in the UK could be trapped in poverty by 2020, according to new research by Save the Children.
The new report, A Fair Start for Every Child, reveals that children have paid the highest price in the recession, with families having been hit by a triple whammy of years of flat wages, cuts to benefits and the rising cost of living. They have been squeezed by food prices rising by 19% more than the general price level of other goods between 2007 and 2011. Childcare costs have also soared with a nursery place for a child under two rising by 77% between 2003 and 2013.
Despite a cross party commitment to end child poverty by 2020, new projections show that the numbers living in poverty could increase by 1.4 million in the same period, a rise of 41% on the 3.5 million children currently living in poverty.
Justin Forsyth, Save the Children's CEO said: "We're increasingly worried that unless there is a dramatic change of course we're at risk of writing off the future of millions of British children, giving them an unfair start in life.
"This isn't just a question of statistics; we see families through our programmes around the UK who are really struggling. Millions of children in the UK are being left behind - sentenced to a lifetime of poverty. Far too many of our children are living in cold and damp homes, without healthy food, with parents who can see no end to their situation. If we ignore the rising toll of poverty we are blighting the future of a further 1.4million children. In one of the world's richest countries there is simply no excuse."
Save the Children's new estimate is based on work by Landman Economics adding projected future social security cuts, as committed to by all three major parties, to existing Institute for Fiscal Studies estimates.
(CVS/CD)
The new report, A Fair Start for Every Child, reveals that children have paid the highest price in the recession, with families having been hit by a triple whammy of years of flat wages, cuts to benefits and the rising cost of living. They have been squeezed by food prices rising by 19% more than the general price level of other goods between 2007 and 2011. Childcare costs have also soared with a nursery place for a child under two rising by 77% between 2003 and 2013.
Despite a cross party commitment to end child poverty by 2020, new projections show that the numbers living in poverty could increase by 1.4 million in the same period, a rise of 41% on the 3.5 million children currently living in poverty.
Justin Forsyth, Save the Children's CEO said: "We're increasingly worried that unless there is a dramatic change of course we're at risk of writing off the future of millions of British children, giving them an unfair start in life.
"This isn't just a question of statistics; we see families through our programmes around the UK who are really struggling. Millions of children in the UK are being left behind - sentenced to a lifetime of poverty. Far too many of our children are living in cold and damp homes, without healthy food, with parents who can see no end to their situation. If we ignore the rising toll of poverty we are blighting the future of a further 1.4million children. In one of the world's richest countries there is simply no excuse."
Save the Children's new estimate is based on work by Landman Economics adding projected future social security cuts, as committed to by all three major parties, to existing Institute for Fiscal Studies estimates.
(CVS/CD)
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19 June 2007
More than a million children affected by 'severe poverty'
Nearly 1.3 million children are living in severe poverty in the UK, a report by Save the Children has revealed. The charity said that around one in ten children in the UK are now living in families where the income is so low that children are living without essentials like a proper diet or heating in the home.
More than a million children affected by 'severe poverty'
Nearly 1.3 million children are living in severe poverty in the UK, a report by Save the Children has revealed. The charity said that around one in ten children in the UK are now living in families where the income is so low that children are living without essentials like a proper diet or heating in the home.
15 October 2003
Government 'on course' to meet short-term poverty goals
The government is on course to meet its short-term target for reducing child poverty, according to projections for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. The foundation has said that around one million children will have been taken out of poverty by the spring of 2004, compared with 1997.
Government 'on course' to meet short-term poverty goals
The government is on course to meet its short-term target for reducing child poverty, according to projections for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. The foundation has said that around one million children will have been taken out of poverty by the spring of 2004, compared with 1997.
11 February 2004
Child poverty group calls for plans to revise figures to be dropped
A children's campaign group has claimed that the government is planning to introduce an accounting method which could see up to one million children in poverty wiped off official statistics. The group, End Child Poverty, issued its call as Secretary of State Andrew Smith appears before a Commons Work and Pensions select committee today.
Child poverty group calls for plans to revise figures to be dropped
A children's campaign group has claimed that the government is planning to introduce an accounting method which could see up to one million children in poverty wiped off official statistics. The group, End Child Poverty, issued its call as Secretary of State Andrew Smith appears before a Commons Work and Pensions select committee today.
14 June 2012
2% Fall In Child Poverty Figures
New official figures have revealed that the number of children living in poverty in the UK fell by 300,000 last year. Figures for 2010/11, show that 2.3 million children (18%) lived in households classed as below the poverty line, a 2% decrease on the previous year. The numbers are based on median incomes, which also went down in the same period.
2% Fall In Child Poverty Figures
New official figures have revealed that the number of children living in poverty in the UK fell by 300,000 last year. Figures for 2010/11, show that 2.3 million children (18%) lived in households classed as below the poverty line, a 2% decrease on the previous year. The numbers are based on median incomes, which also went down in the same period.
19 November 2008
Ministers Attend London Child Poverty Summit
There's to be a combined effort to tackle the issue of child poverty today as Children's Minister, Beverley Hughes; Financial Secretary, Stephen Timms; Minister for London, Tony McNulty; Mayor of London, Boris Johnson and London Councils' Chairman Councillor Merrick Cockell meet to discuss London's child poverty problems and to announce a joint tar
Ministers Attend London Child Poverty Summit
There's to be a combined effort to tackle the issue of child poverty today as Children's Minister, Beverley Hughes; Financial Secretary, Stephen Timms; Minister for London, Tony McNulty; Mayor of London, Boris Johnson and London Councils' Chairman Councillor Merrick Cockell meet to discuss London's child poverty problems and to announce a joint tar
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