The Child Poverty Task Force aims to “give all children the best start in life”

• Child Poverty Task Force co-chairs Liz Kendall and Bridget Phillipson speak to parents and the CEO of Barnardo’s at the charity’s center in Brent.

• The new framework outlines how the Child Poverty Task Force will develop a bold strategy to break down barriers to opportunity and give all children the best start in life.

• Ministers will hold events and travel around the UK to hear the views and experiences of local leaders, charities and those living in poverty.

Today the Working Group is publishing a framework for the strategy, which will be released in the spring.

Over the coming months, the Task Force will focus on reducing the number of children living in relative poverty due to housing costs, reducing the number of children left without basic necessities and giving all children the best start in life.

The publication describes how the Task Force will work with key anti-poverty organizations on goals such as reducing costs, increasing income and improving access to early-year support for families in need.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall MP and Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson MP kicked off the event by visiting the Barnardo’s Family Center in Brent along with Barnardo’s CEO Lynn Perry MBE. They joined a children’s class on healthy eating and heard how parents, including single parents, struggle with the prices of basic necessities.

Later today, ministers will meet with Ofgem, The Food Foundation, Water UK and other leading organizations on the topic of cutting household costs.

The new document outlines how ministers will engage across countries and regions of the UK, bringing together diverse voices and experiences to tackle the systemic causes of poverty – from employment to housing – as it creates an ambitious agenda. The strategy will be outlined in the spring.

Task force co-chair and Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall MP will visit Scotland next month to bring together local leaders, key charities and organizations, as well as parents, children and frontline workers.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall MP said:

Children cannot reach their potential without food in their bellies and a roof over their heads. And the UK cannot realize its potential when the talents of so many children are denied.

It is unacceptable that more than 4 million children are now growing up in poverty. Under the new government the situation will change.

We will work with campaigners and experts, and struggling families across the country, to develop a bold and ambitious strategy that will reduce poverty and increase opportunity in every corner of the country.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson MP said:

The stain of child poverty in this country has jeopardized the life chances of too many children for too long.

Ending child poverty is complex and difficult, but our defining mission is to break the unfair connection between background and success so that every child believes opportunity can be theirs.

Today’s framework provides clear direction to this mission, ensuring we come together across government and stakeholders to reduce household costs.

A new forum for parents and carers across the UK will be established to ensure the experiences of children living in poverty, including those with special educational needs and disabilities, are included in the final strategy.

Leading organizations such as Barnardo’s, Citizens Advice, the National Children’s Bureau and Save the Children will share their knowledge with ministers, and a new council of leading academics and anti-poverty experts will inform, review and scrutinize the work being done on the Strategy.

Barnardo’s chief executive Lynne Perry MBE said:

We are seeing epidemic levels of child poverty in the UK. This winter, families across the country are facing a desperate struggle to put food on the table, turn on the lights and heat their homes. More than 4.3 million children are growing up in poverty, with one in four families saying they have struggled to afford food in the past 12 months alone.

Growing up in poverty can have devastating consequences on a child’s life, affecting their learning, mental and physical health throughout adulthood while limiting their life chances.

We are grateful to the Work, Pensions and Education Ministers for visiting to meet children and families at our Brent service, which supports those struggling with the high cost of living. We look forward to working with ministers to find long-term solutions to these problems, while recognizing that families will also need immediate help this winter.

Dame Claire Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said:

The cost of living crisis has squeezed household finances and put many of them in serious difficulty. Our counselors continue to see families doing everything they can but not being able to afford the basic necessities for their children.

A clear strategy to combat child poverty is urgently needed. It must be ambitious to ensure that people facing acute difficulties get the help they need as quickly as possible, while also delivering long-term change.

Anna Feuchtwang, executive director of the National Children’s Bureau, said:

The 4.3 million children living in poverty in the UK is an unacceptable scourge on our society and children deserve better.

NCB welcomes the government’s willingness to consult with a wide range of stakeholders to understand how to achieve this. It is vital that the voices of children and families experiencing poverty play a central role not only in the development of the strategy, but also in its implementation.

We desperately need to see children progress 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 UK Government’s recognition today that tackling it is a moral imperative.

The root causes of poverty are complex and can only be addressed by listening and working with those most affected. We are therefore very pleased to be working with the UK Government to facilitate hearings from the Child Poverty Task Force directly from children, their families and our partners in communities across the UK.

We look forward to working with the UK Government, organizations across the sector and across UK regions and countries to develop a child poverty strategy that ensures all children have the guaranteed support they desperately need and deserve.

The development of this ambitious strategy will be based on the internationally recognized indicator “Relative poverty after housing costs”.

To support families in need, we have already increased 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 remains committed to its commitment to protecting those most at risk this winter. .

It comes alongside government plans to deliver quality jobs and better pay through the Employment Rights Act, create 3,000 new nurseries and lower energy bills through Great British Energy.

• There are currently 4.3 million children living in relative poverty after housing costs in the UK as of 2022/2023.

• Relative poverty after housing costs takes into account the share of families whose average income is less than 60% after subtracting housing costs.

• Barnardo’s Family Center in Brent offers families a range of free advice, as well as providing crisis funding through vouchers, cookery classes and activity days for children to give them the best start in life and ease the burden of those living in poverty.

• The document ‘Tackling child poverty: developing our strategy’ is available here: Tackling child poverty: developing our strategy – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

• Following the extension of the Household Support Fund, approximately £79 million will be made available to devolved governments to support their citizens as they see fit.