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Report
Political mindsets

How to build lasting support to solve UK poverty

This summary explores public attitudes towards poverty in the UK. It recommends a set of tested strategies to build a deeper understanding of how poverty happens and the changes needed to address it.

Written by:
The Frameworks Institute
Date published:

This research by the FrameWorks Institute shows that we can help people see that poverty exists and understand its impact. We can build support for a robust welfare system. We can inspire widespread belief that change is possible and that poverty can be solved. And we can mobilise action to do so.

It recommends telling a new story that:

  • starts with poverty, not politics or ideology
  • says why tackling poverty matters by relating to shared values of compassion and justice
  • is brought to life by messengers who embody these values
  • explains how the economy locks people in poverty
  • explains how poverty can be solved by positioning the economy as a designed system that can be redesigned; and benefits as helping to loosen poverty’s grip
  • uses examples, rather than statistics, to show that poverty exists and to demonstrate its characteristics and impacts
  • shows how we rely on public systems, painting a clear picture of what they look like
  • counters fatalism with clear solutions that make a tangible difference.
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