Nursery World - Opinion: To the point - The cost of child poverty

It's time to seek a different solution to raising children out of poverty, says Helen Penn.

Britain is one of the richest countries in the world. So why do we have so many children living in poverty - well over 3 million? And why are we failing to do anything about it?

Children from poor families tend to have low aspirations, to be less successful at school, to fall more easily into crime, and to suffer from chronic long-term illnesses. To put those things right later on is expensive for the taxpayer.

We know that child poverty can be avoided. Other very similar countries do not have nearly as many poor children. But doing something about it is complicated. This Government has made all kinds of stabs at it, including Sure Start, but nothing seems to be working. Targets for reducing child poverty will not be met. The latest plan is to increase child benefit by 48p a week and create an administrative unit across Whitehall - a working party - to deal with it! Campaigners like Child Poverty Action Group are rightly scathing about it.

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included