‘TACKLING CHILD POVERTY

Child poverty is essentially a result of poverty in families.

Child poverty matters because it means children suffer now and their future lives can be blighted.

Income is central to the lives of all families in poverty. This reflects the current national measurewhich classes families earning less than £251 per week as living in poverty. In Plymouth this equates to 11,560 children, of which 10,190 are aged under 16[1].

Amidst the deepening economic crisis, it is an opportune time to develop our local plan to tackle child poverty. Falling incomes, unemployment, rising cost of living, reduced economic activity and major changes to the way that welfare assistance is provided are having a real impact on Plymouth families both in the short and long term. For example, stressors such as job loss, home foreclosure, or loss in family savings can place strain on parental relationships and on the family as a whole. It can affect educational achievement of children by reducing families’ abilities to provide a supportive learning environment or adequate nutrition, or by forcing a delay or abandonment of higher education plans.

Plymouth has shaped its response to child poverty based on its understanding of child poverty as the outcome of economic, environmental and social factors that can damage a child’s development and limit or prevent children and young people from having many of the experiences and opportunities that others take for granted[2].

Our three year strategy presents how Plymouth aims to tackle the causes and impact of child poverty, while also acknowledging the limits and challenges presented by the current economic and social environment.

Council therefore:

(1)

commends the Cross Party Working Group on Child Poverty, our partners, officers, Youth Council, the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board and Cabinet for their cooperation in developing a new Child Poverty Strategy for the city;

(2)

commits to encourage partners to work with us to deliver the Child Poverty Strategy and action plan;

(3)

will actively support and promote the work of the new Standing Conference on Child Poverty;

(4)

instructs officers to share all background information, consultation responses and thinking from the last two years of work in developing the Child Poverty Strategy and action plan with the Plymouth Fairness Commission;

(5)

encourages members to act as Child Poverty Champions within their wards; working to mitigate the impact of child poverty now and take action to stop future generations lives being blighted by child poverty.’

(a)

the DVD viewed by councillors before the council meeting, which had been made by young people and showed what living in child poverty meant for them. The DVD and the action plan would be available on the website, the following day;

(b)

actions which could be taken to minimise the impact of child poverty including –

?

the review of retail and shopping provision in areas of child poverty as part of the Plymouth plan; 

?

budgeting sessions at schools;

?

encouraging self-confidence, particularly at schools;

?

promoting inclusiveness at schools having regard to affordability (for example with proms);

?

tackling poverty in families;

(c)

the potential crime and social problems arising from poverty;

(d)

that a report on the living wage paper would be considered at the next meeting of the City Council on 22 July 2013;

(e)

in some wards, young people in poverty were concentrated in particular sectors and in some cases were hidden.

(1)

commends the Cross Party Working Group on Child Poverty, the council’s partners, officers, Youth Council, the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board and Cabinet for their cooperation in developing a new Child Poverty Strategy for the city;

(2)

commits to encourage partners to work with the City Council to deliver the Child Poverty Strategy and action plan;

(3)

will actively support and promote the work of the new Standing Conference on Child Poverty;

(4)

instructs officers to share all background information, consultation responses and thinking from the last two years of work in developing the Child Poverty Strategy and action plan with the Plymouth Fairness Commission;

(5)

encourages members to act as Child Poverty Champions within their wards; working to mitigate the impact of child poverty now and take action to stop future generations lives being blighted by child poverty.