Assembly Members and staff will take part in the launch on 2 February of the All Party Healthy Living Group.

The End Child Poverty Network Cymru (and members of the Network: NCH Cymru and Barnardos Cymru) will provide Assembly Members and staff with information on the links between health outcomes and child poverty and the struggle faced by some families of eating healthily on a low income.

A review by the End Child Poverty Network in Wales has highlighted the risks to health and well-being of being poor in twenty-first century Britain.

Recent figures show that 30 per cent of children in Wales are living in poverty, higher than the British average. Children born into poverty are more likely to be born early, have a lower birth weight, and poorer health than better off children.

The diets of people on low incomes are often nutritionally poor, relying on ‘cheap calories’ from processed low-cost food. Last year, an NCH study, “Going Hungry”, found that mothers sometimes went without food to meet the needs of their children.

Barnardo’s found that this was especially true in the school holidays when families were managing without free school meals. Access to affordable, healthy food is a major issue for families living in rural areas says the pressure group.

One of the key messages from Save the Children's Listen Up report was the impact of poverty on children's diets and how difficult it can be to get to hospitals and other treatment centres if you didn't have a car or enough money for a taxi.

"What if you can't afford the taxi to get to the hospital' Otherwise it's three buses - it would take you all day to get there." 13 year old boy

Alarmingly, poor children are 15 times more likely to die in a fire at home than better-off children and three times more likely to be hit by a car.

Overcrowding in houses increases the risk of infectious or respiratory disease. Damp, mould and condensation can cause a range of illnesses such as asthma and allergies.

Chair of the End Child Poverty Network Cymru, Mike Lewis (Policy Director at Children in Wales) said:

“There is a pattern of rising inequality in Britain. Between 1994/95 and 2001/02 the richest tenth gained two percent more of the total income (twenty-nine percent) while the poorest tenth’s share remained unaltered at two per cent. A report by the National Public Health Service for Wales ‘Deprivation and Health’ found that over the past two decades health inequalities have widened and health improvements in the most disadvantaged groups have been relatively small.”

What needs to be done?

 Reducing the effects of poverty on child health directly is a complex issue.

End Child Poverty Network Cymru is seeking an inclusive and holistic approach across all functions of the Assembly, its partners and the UK Government.

Improving the health and quality of life for children now and in the future means better leisure facilities; more play areas, the conditions, which will enable children to walk safely to school (e.g. traffic calming) and access to good quality food at home and at school. More resources need to be invested in the determinants of health such as housing and transport.

(Spokesperson, Mike Lewis) of the End Child Poverty Network Cymru added:

“Government-thinking on the issue of poverty reduction and prevention is more joined up than ever before, but more needs to be done to ensure that anti-poverty policies are firmly entrenched in long-term planning over decades, and not simply until the end of the life of any particular initiative or partnership.”

The Healthy Living Day will take place all day on Wednesday 2nd February 2005 in the National Assembly for Wales, Cardiff Bay. The launch of the All Party Group will be at 5.30pm in the Milling Area of the Assembly.

Notes to Editor

1. Members of the media are invited to attend Healthy Living Day for interviews and photographs. For further details contact Leighton Jenkins on 029 20 898 027 or (m) 07717747845.

2. For more information about poverty and health contact Lucy Akhtar, Co-ordinator End Child Poverty Network, Tel: 02920 342434 or 07800 822624

3. The End Child Poverty Network Cymru is a coalition of concern focused on child poverty whose Steering Group Members include Barnardo’s Cymru, Children in Wales, Save the Children Cymru, NCH Cymru, NSPCC Cymru, Communities that Care, Fairbridge Cymru, Citizens Advice Bureau, the Frank Buttle Trust, Shelter Cymru, and the Office of the Children’s Commissioner for Wales. We also have a growing number of Supporter Members who support our vision that no child in Wales should be living in poverty by 2020. These members come from a broad cross-section of voluntary and statutory organisations.