Memorandum submitted by Barnardo's Scotland
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1. In Scotland today, nearly a quarter of
all children are living in poverty. This is a shameful statistic
for the fourth richest country in the world. While Barnardo's
welcomes and supports the Government's commitment to tackling
poverty, we remain concerned that the current strategy will not
reach all those in greatest need. Many people live outside the
geographical areas targeted by Government. In addition, the primary
focus on work as the main route out of poverty does not help those
families for whom work is not an option—either because the
jobs are not there, or because they have a disability, health
problems, caring duties, or difficulties with child care or transport.
We would like to see equal emphasis on supporting people who cannot
work, with a welfare and benefit system which provides an effective
and comprehensive safety net for all.
2. The way forward at Westminster:
(a) To publish as part of the 2007 Comprehensive
Spending Review a coherent, cross-departmental strategy which
sets out how the government will meet its own targets to end child
poverty and the resources it will commit to achieve this.
(b) Establish a minimum income standard necessary
to maintain the good health and well-being of children.
(c) Ensure that all initiatives aimed at
taking children out of poverty reach the most vulnerable groups
of children who are persistently and severely poor throughout
their childhoods, such as disabled children, children in large
families, children in one parent families, asylum seeking children
and some groups of black and minority ethnic children.
(d) Make changes to the benefits system so
that those young people who are living independently receive the
same income support and JSA as those aged 25 and over.
(e) Introduction of a statutory interest
rate ceiling to protect the poorest families from exploitation
by credit companies.
3. Barnardo's is also calling for a parallel
Scottish Executive strategy setting out how devolved policies
will be used to contribute to the eradication of child poverty—in
particular we call on the Scottish Executive to focus on:
(a) further investment in developing high
quality, affordable childcare;
(b) develop measures of targeted practical
support for young people not in education, training or employment;
(c) renewed focus on improving outcomes for
young people leaving care;
(d) increased scope for fuel poverty measures
to include vulnerable families; and
(e) extension to free school meal entitlement
to all children living in poverty, and to childcare settings outwith
school grounds and outwith the school calendar.
CHILD POVERTY
IN SCOTLAND
4. As a leading children's charity, Barnardo's
is primarily concerned with the impact of poverty on children.
Article 27 of the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child[1]
says that every child should have the right to "a standard
of living adequate for the child's physical, mental, spiritual,
moral and social well-being."
5. The latest Scottish Executive statistics
on households below average income state that 23% of Scottish
children are living in relative poverty today.[2]
While the numbers have improved in recent years, the figure in
1968 was just 10%.[3]
The same figures indicate that 13% of children still live in absolute
poverty. 15% of UK children are living in persistent poverty[4]—that
is living in poverty for at least three of the last four years.
6. In 2005 UNICEF published "Child
Poverty in Rich Countries 2005"[5],
which collated data from previous years to produce comparative
figures. With poverty defined as households with income below
50% of the national median income, Denmark and Finland lead the
way with 2.4% and 2.8% respectively, the UK lags at 15.4%, with
only a few countries such as Italy (16.6%), the USA (21.9%) and
Mexico (27.7%) faring worse.
7. 2005 figures from the Child Poverty Action
Group[6]
compare child poverty in Scotland compared with other parts of
the UK, suggesting that relative poverty in Scotland is slightly
less than the UK average. However the Scottish Index of Multiple
Deprivation found that over two thirds of the most deprived areas
are concentrated in Glasgow City, Inverclyde, North Lanarkshire,
Renfrewshire, South Lanarkshire and West Dunbartonshire"[7].
This presents particular challenges to policy makers.
CONTRIBUTING FACTORS
8. In our supposedly meritocratic society,
the most reliable predictor of living in poverty is to be born
into poverty. Research has shown that most people remain in the
same quarter of income distribution as their parents[8].
In fact, the chance of being better off than their parents has
reduced for people who grew up in the 1970s and '80s, compared
with people who grew up in the 1960s and '70s. Other studies show
that low family incomes can persist, with between 6% and 9% of
all children remaining in the poorest fifth of households for
five consecutive years.[9]
Even where families move out of poverty according to official
statistics, many see only a few pounds' difference in their income
each week rather than a permanent move to a higher income bracket.[10]
9. One of the most serious problems of long-term
poverty is debt: households with children are more likely than
others to have levels of expenditure above their weekly income
levels.[11]
The cumulative effect of chronic poverty is increasing social
exclusion, which can be passed from generation to generation.
10. Although our education system is in
principle free, parents still have to pay out for uniforms, activities,
school trips and classroom materials, with recent research suggesting
average costs of £948 a year for secondary and £563
a year for primary pupils.[12]
Both parents and pupils report experiencing considerable disadvantage
in school due to difficulties in covering extra costs. School
holidays represent extra challenges, with increased costs in entertaining
children and loss of free school meals.
11. There are additional costs associated
with rural living, such as increased fuel and transport costs,
lack of access to cheaper shopping and lack of access to services
(including extended or integrated school services).
12. Both Westminster and Holyrood policies
contribute to poverty reduction. It is reserved matters—Treasury
and Social Security—that have greatest potential to impact
on poverty. However there are also measures within the Scottish
Executive's remit which can significantly impact on child poverty.
THE COST
OF POVERTY
13. Child poverty is expensive, as well
as morally unjust. The Barnardo's report "Counting the Cost
of Child Poverty"[13]
outlined how investment in early intervention and support could
have made a difference to the lives of eight real people. The
sums saved through avoiding later court appearances and custodial
sentences, unemployment and ill health greatly exceed the costs
of early intervention and support.
IMPACT OF
GOVERNMENT POLICY—RECOMMENDATIONS
TO WESTMINSTER
14. The Government has concentrated on employment
as the primary way out of poverty for families with children.
Measures such as the Child Tax Credit are intended to make work
pay for those on low incomes and have had significant success.
However, it is estimated that finding paid work for all families
with school-age children would involve a major expansion of UK
employment by 1.5 million jobs.[14]
And while tax credits have helped, they do not reach children
in families where the parents are unable to work through sickness
or disability, or lack of affordable child care.
15. Those families without a working adult
are receiving very low levels of benefit. League tables on child
poverty show that countries which have a high rate of social expenditure
have correspondingly low rates of child poverty[15].
Eradicating poverty in the UK will involve increases to key benefits,
and we must be prepared to fund these if we are committed to achieving
that goal.
16. Recent research from the Joseph Rowntree
Foundation[16]
shows that to meet the target of eradicating child poverty by
2020 the Government will need to continue and increase support
through tax credits, but also raise the level of key social security
benefits, provide education and training to disadvantaged groups,
improve childcare and promote equal pay for women. The report
states that it would cost £4bn, that is 0.3% of GDP to halve
child poverty by 2010, with a further1.6% of GDP to reach the
2020 target. Although this sounds like a huge investment it means
sacrificing one year's economic growth out of 14.
17. There are 33,000 disabled children in
Scotland.[17]
The increased costs of supporting a disabled child, along with
the reduced ability for parents to go out to work, means that
these families suffer increased likelihood of poverty.[18]
Capability Scotland report that "one in five families with
a disabled child live on under £200 per week income".[19]
Only measures to address benefit levels can be sure to reach this
population.
18. Barnardo's is supporting the Child Poverty
Action Group campaign[20]
to tackle poverty by increasing the rate of child benefit and
ensuring that second and subsequent children do not generate a
smaller payment than the first. Barnardo's Scotland also supports
the Scottish Campaign on Welfare Reform, which has expressed concern
that the proposed Welfare Reform Bill does not provide either
enough support for those wanting to move into work or enough protection
for those who are unable to work. This latter point is crucial—welfare
to work has so far been successful in reducing numbers in poverty,
but this alone will not be sufficient to meet the poverty targets
and must be complemented by other measures.
19. The national minimum wage is lower for
those under 22, although prices in shops are not. Furthermore
young people have been singled out for especially severe benefit
cuts, including reduced housing benefit entitlement. The universal
entitlement to welfare benefits for 16 and 17 year olds was withdrawn
in 1988 and replaced with the guarantee of an offer of suitable
youth training for all. Only young people who could prove that
they were estranged from their families and in "severe hardship"
were eligible for short-term payments of income support.
20. While there have been some changes in
this system to allow easier access, many young people still find
it difficult to obtain benefits when they are unable to live with
their families. It is particularly important that such young people
have an adequate income and are able to afford somewhere decent
to live. The government places great emphasis on getting young
people into work, but it is difficult to think about further education
or employment when you do not have a settled home or sufficient
money for basic needs. Young people who are living independently
should get the same rates of income support and JSA as those aged
over 25.
21. We suggest that the Government should
set up an independent commission to conduct research into what
constitutes an adequate level of income so that it can make informed
decisions as to the level at which benefits, tax credits and the
minimum wage should be set. It is difficult to see how poverty
can be ended without knowing how much money a family needs to
live on.
22. We also recommend the introduction of
a statutory interest rate ceiling in the UK, in line with most
other European countries, to protect the poorest families from
exploitation by credit companies.
23. Finally, the Westminster Government
should publish, as part of the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review,
a coherent cross-departmental strategy which sets out how the
Government will meet its own targets to end child povertyand the
resources needed.
IMPACT OF
GOVERNMENT POLICY—RECOMMENDATIONS
TO HOLYROOD
24. Following the Comprehensive Spending Review
the Executive should set out their own comprehensive strategy
setting out how devolved policies will be used to contribute to
the eradication of child poverty. The Welsh Assembly has already
produced a poverty strategy which looks at all departmental policies.
25. The widespread availability of good
quality child care is crucial, both in enabling parents to work
or train for jobs, and in giving children a head start in life.
Early years care and education is known to improve children's
future educational achievement and health, but almost all child
care services for children under three are commercial arrangements
for those whose parents can pay. Programmes such as Sure Start
fulfil an important role but are still a long way from providing
the numbers of child care places needed and further development
of this support is essential.
26. The recent Scottish Executive strategy
to reduce the proportion of young people not in education, employment
or training[21]
claimed a headline figure of 35,000 (13.5%) young people in Scotland
between the ages of 16 and 19 who are in this situation. The strategy
identified "care leavers; carers; young offenders; young
parents; low attainers; persistent truants; young people with
physical/mental disabilities; young people misusing drugs or alcohol"
as most likely to form this group. Barnardo's Youthbuild service
assists people from the most deprived areas of Renfrewshire into
sustainable employment through the provision of comprehensive
personal support, relevant industry training, quality work experience
and guaranteed employment. We suggest that replicating this model
would provide a targeted response to the needs of the NEET group.
27. The process of leaving care has a major
impact on young people. Government policies on social security
and housing are based on the assumption that young people are
able to remain at home with their families, but many young people
leaving the care system have no choice but to live independently.
Furthermore young people leaving care generally do so with poorer
education and health outcomes than their peers. Regulations are
in place to guide support for young people leaving care. However
further action is needed to ensure compliance and good practice
across the country.
28. Figures from the Scottish House Condition
Survey in 2002[22]
found 286,000 households in fuel poverty in Scotland. In over
10% of these households there were children, suggesting a total
of 46,000 Scottish children living in fuel poverty. The Scottish
House Condition Survey estimated that for every 5% rise in average
annual fuel price, an estimated 30,000 more households would go
into fuel poverty. Gas and electricity prices are both rising
and Energywatch reports that since 2003 average domestic energy
bills have risen by 63% for gas and 44% for electricity[23]—suggesting
that the number of Scottish children living in fuel poverty may
have reached 100,000. Eligibility for the Scottish Executive's
central heating programme, the key mechanism for tackling fuel
poverty, should be extended to vulnerable families.
29. As indicated above the proportion of
Scottish children considered to live in poverty is now 23%. Yet
only 19% of school children are eligible for free school meals.
A recent Barnardo's report "Food Poverty in the School Holidays"[24]
reported on interviews with Scottish families living in poverty
and found that they experience additional financial pressures
when children are out of school. The lack of free school meals
was one contributing factor in this. Consequently free school
meal entitlement should be extended to all children living in
poverty, and to childcare settings outwith school grounds and
outwith the school calendar, which would allow for new provision
to support families when free school meals are not available.
John Waterson
Parliamentary Policy Officer
October 2006
1 Available from http://www.ohchr.org/english/law/pdf/crc.pdf Back
2
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/95793/0023203.pdf Back
3
Child Poverty in Social Inclusion Partnerships, Scottish Executive
Central Research Unit 2002 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2002/10/15233/9819 Back
4
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/hbai.asp Back
5
UNICEF, Innocenti Research Centre (2000) A league table of
child poverty in rich nations. UNICEF. See http://www.unicef.ca/press/childpoverty/ Back
6
http://www.cpag.org.uk/campaigns/media/CPAG_HBAI_2006_Media_Briefing.pdf Back
7
See http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/09/2792129/21311 Back
8
Research review: the persistence of poverty over time.
Poverty, the Journal of Child Poverty Action Group (2002) Issue
112, p 18. Back
9
UNICEF, Innocenti Research Centre (2000) A league table of
child poverty in rich nations. UNICEF. Back
10
Piachaud, D and Sutherland, H (1999) How effective is the British
government's attempt to reduce child poverty? CASE/ESRC. Back
11
Howarth, C et al (1998) Monitoring poverty and social
exclusion. York Publishing Services for the Joseph Rowntree
Foundation. Back
12
http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/schools_leaflet_5_final.pdf Back
13
http://www.barnardos.org.uk/countg.pdf Back
14
Piachaud, D and Sutherland, H (1999) How effective is the British
government's attempt to reduce child poverty? CASE/ESRC. Back
15
UNICEF, Innocenti Research Centre (2000) A league table of
child poverty in rich nations. UNICEF. See http://www.unicef.ca/press/childpoverty/ Back
16
See http://www.jrf.org.uk/knowledge/findings/socialpolicy/0366.asp Back
17
Disability in Scotland 2005-20: A state of the nation report.
Disability Rights Commission. June 2006 http://www.scottishcouncilfoundation.org/pubs_more.php?p=55 Back
18
Woolley, M (2004) How Do They Manage? Income and Expenditure
of Families with Severely Disabled Children. York: Family Fund. Back
19
Key Facts About Disability, Capability Scotland. http://www.capability-scotland.org.uk/about_us.asp?pageId=1.1 Back
20
See http://www.makechildbenefitcount.org/ Back
21
More Choices, More Chances: A Strategy to Reduce the Proportion
of Young People not in Education, Employment or Training in Scotland.
Scottish Executive, June 2006. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/06/13100205/0 Back
22
See http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2003/11/4517 Back
23
See http://www.energywatch.org.uk/uploads/Energy_Brief_Volume_1_2006.pdf Back
24
http://www.barnardos.org.uk/foodpovertyreportv3.qxd.pdf Back
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