Abby is a Principal Policy Adviser at JRF and is leading on our programme of work on care, family and relationships. Her areas of expertise include energy policy and regulation, destitution, household debt and social security. Abby previously worked at Citizens Advice, leading a team of policy researchers and campaigners to stand up for consumers as energy companies failed and costs increased. Before that, she had oversight of policy and research at anti-poverty charity Trussell. She is a trustee of Quaker Social Action.
X: @abbyabhaya
Email: abby.jitendra@jrf.org.uk
To close the gap between the support many of us think will be available and the reality of high costs and long waiting lists, care must be more available, efficient and affordable.
Work is not a route out of poverty for many in the UK, even though wages for people on low pay have increased. The Employment Rights Bill is a chance to change that.
Exploring how our capabilities and funding could speed up the transition to a more just care system, with workers at its heart.
This new approach brings together action to improve paid care with support for unpaid carers and social networks.
Low wages in care work are a false economy causing recruitment and retention issues, and lost capacity. We urgently need a new pay settlement for care workers.
Driving up standards through ambitious new conditions on public funding for childcare.
Unpaid carers provide an invaluable service to society, but they shoulder a financial penalty in doing so. This report looks at the financial impact of unpaid care, and how policies can help mitigate it.
Against a backdrop of a cost of living crisis squeezing incomes, together with declining workforce participation, getting early years childcare and education right would spill over with benefits for the whole of society.
A key part of solving poverty is fixing the broken relationship between care, work and pay. Abby Jitendra’s new role is putting that firmly in focus - looking at why society undervalues care, what are the consequences, and the solutions.