PRESS RELEASE : Ministers hear from local leaders on impact of Child Poverty across the country [September 2024]

The press release issued by the Department for Work and Pensions on 19 September 2024.

Local leaders laid bare the stark challenges that must be overcome to tackle child poverty in their communities when they met with the new Child Poverty Taskforce today.

• Regional leaders from across the country join cross-government effort to tackle child poverty
• Ministers hear from North East Mayor’s bold and wide-ranging plans to ensure every child has the best start in life
• Meeting kicks off series of UK-wide engagement events for people to share their experiences with the Taskforce

Co-chairs Liz Kendall, Work & Pensions Secretary, and Bridget Phillipson, the Education Secretary, heard powerful testimony from representatives from some of the worst affected areas in the country, including the North East Mayor Kim McGuinness, to ensure regional experiences are at the heart of the Taskforce’s work.

With almost one in three children living in poverty in the North East, the Taskforce learnt of wide-ranging and bold measures being rolled out in the region – including grants to help parents with childcare and welfare advisors in schools that have so far saved £2.3 million for 730 vulnerable families.

Mayor McGuinness shared valuable insight from her North East Child Poverty Reduction Unit – the first of its kind in the country – as ministers consider every available lever across government to give children the best start in life.

The meeting was also made up of the Chair of the Local Government Association Louise Gittins, President of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services Andy Smith and Fred Rattley from the Church of England and Thrive Together Birmingham.

They spoke of how the group can best work with Mayors, local authorities and other bodies to develop innovative solutions to tackle child poverty, as the government breaks down barriers to opportunity for every child.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall MP said:

This government will not rest until we have driven down child poverty in every part of our country, using all the levers at our disposal. Local leaders are at the front line in tackling this issue, with bold ideas and new approaches.

We are determined to learn from their experience about what works in delivering the changes our country needs. Together, we will confront the scar of child poverty and give every child the best start in life.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson MP said:

Poverty constrains every part of a child’s life and blights our communities. Tackling it is crucial if we are to break down the barriers to opportunity and improve the life chances of every child.

This task cannot be achieved alone and I’m grateful to local leaders on the frontline for their invaluable insight on the challenges families are facing, and the innovative approaches they’re using to tackle them.

North East Mayor, Kim McGuinness, commented:

We want to create real opportunity and prosperity for families across the North East and the country – tackling child poverty is the most important thing we can do to deliver that ambition. In the North East, we’ve established the country’s first regional Child Poverty Unit, so we can work with the government’s Taskforce to address the root causes of poverty.

Mayors know their communities and the challenges we face on the ground, and we all believe child poverty is unacceptable and has no place in our society. That’s why it’s so important and welcome that we are working with the Government’s Taskforce to ensure we have the powers at our disposal to eliminate poverty from our society, and break down the barriers which hold families back.

This meeting marked the first of a series of engagement sessions with key organisations, charities and experts that will help to shape the Taskforce’s ambitious Strategy, to be set out in the Spring.

The vital work of the Taskforce comes alongside our commitments to roll out free breakfast clubs at all primary schools, create 3,000 additional nurseries, as well as deliver our plan to make work pay to turn the minimum wage into a real living wage.

Councillor Louise Gittins, Chair of the Local Government Association, said:

No child should ever grow up in poverty. Councils play an essential role in supporting the most vulnerable in their communities and are central to tackling the underlying causes and consequences of poverty.

We are pleased the taskforce is taking an integrated, holistic approach to the role of key services including housing, employment, health and social care, which needs to be considered alongside the vital, community-based services that provide targeted advice and support.

We look forward to working with the new taskforce and ensuring every child has the best start in life.

Further Information

• The North East Combined Authority has drawn upon the expertise of businesses, charities and local authorities to support families through its Child Poverty Prevention Programme.
• While providing funding for after school clubs and working with employers to better support their employees, the scheme has also delivered ‘baby boxes’, consisting of essential items, to over 350 families to give children the best start in life from day one.