Child poverty evidence given to UK Commission

The Welsh Government has given evidence to a UK wide commission setting out its unique approach to tackling child poverty and raising the educational performance of children from the poorest households (Mon 2nd Sept).

The UK Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, led by Alan Milburn, monitors the progress of the UK Government and others in improving social mobility and reducing child poverty in the United Kingdom.

Evidence submitted to the commission by the Deputy Minister for Tackling Poverty Vaughan Gething explains what steps the Welsh Government is taking to address the issue by targeting resources to help the poorest in Wales.

These include measures to improve the skills of young people in low income households, reducing the number of homes where no one works, raising the educational attainment of those from the poorest backgrounds and investing in services that help children being brought up in deprived communities. Public bodies also have a legal duty to have child poverty strategies in place.

Vaughan Gething said:

“We cannot understate the importance of taking effective steps to tackle poverty. Our evidence to this important commission sets out the Welsh approach. We believe that children from our least well off communities should have the same opportunities as others to thrive and reach their full potential.

“These are not just good intentions. We are matching our ambition with action by taking a whole government approach. This means using our resources across the different Welsh Government departments, from health through to education, to improve the life chances of the poorest in our society.

“We have a clear focus and I believe we are doing more and going further than the UK Government or any of the other devolved administrations in our efforts to tackle poverty. Look at our work to close the educational gap between the poorest children and their more affluent peers, look at our plans to focus help for households where no one has a job. We are expanding our Flying Start programme to help young children living in the most deprived areas.

“We are under no illusions that we are doing this against a tough backdrop. Recent years of economic stagnation are combining with the cuts to welfare which will push people further into poverty. However, we are unwavering in our commitment to address child poverty, as shown by the unique actions we are taking. I hope to meet with Alan Milburn later this year to further set out our approach.”