Child poverty (four boys playing in a street)

Child poverty

What can we do to end child poverty?

Latest: Over 30% of children in Wales live in poverty.

Contacts

Helen Barnard

Policy and Research Manager

Louise Ross

Research Administrator
Tel: 01904 615942

What is needed to eradicate child poverty by 2020.

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation's child poverty programme focuses on four key questions:

  • What will it take to end child poverty?
  • What will policies to end child poverty cost?
  • Will current policies eradicate child poverty by 2020?
  • What will happen if we don't end child poverty?

Key issues

  • The proportion of children living in poverty has doubled in the past generation.
  • The UK has proportionally more children in poverty than most rich countries.
  • In 1999, Tony Blair committed to ending child poverty by 2020.
  • In 2006/7, 2.9 million children were living in poverty.
  • 600,000 children were lifted out of poverty between 1998 and 2006.
  • This compares with a government target of 850,000 to be lifted out of poverty by 2004 and 1.7 million by 2010.
  • In addition to the human cost to families and children of allowing high levels of poverty to continue, our research estimates that child poverty costs £25 billion each year in costs to the Exchequer and reduced GDP.
  • Eradicating child poverty requires action in a wide range of policy areas including childcare; skills; the availabilty, quality and flexibilty of jobs; and benefits and tax credits.

Key links