The End Child Poverty Network Cymru is marking the day by calling on the UK and Assembly Governments to extend their efforts to achieve the affordable goal of eradicating child poverty in Wales.  The End Child Poverty Network is a coalition of concern focused on child poverty made up of representatives of Barnardo’s Cymru, Children in Wales, Save the Children Cymru, NCH Cymru, NSPCC Cymru, Communities that Care, Fairbridge de Cymru, Citizens Advice Bureau, the Buttle Trust, Shelter Cymru, and the Office of the Children’s Commissioner for Wales (Observer status).

The UK is the fourth largest economy in the world but conversely has one of the highest levels of child poverty of all industrialised countries.  According to the National Assembly for Wales Annual Report on Social Inclusion in Wales (2003):

“Wales is a country that suffers in places from pronounced deprivation.  Such areas suffer from poor standards in health, low educational attainment, substance misuse, benefit dependency and a dearth of employment prospects.  Too many families experience the effects of poverty”

Chair of the End Child Poverty Network Cymru Mike Lewis said

“Agency partners in the Network work directly with communities across Wales and have first hand experience of the problems highlighted in the Annual Report on Social Inclusion in Wales.  We welcome the annual focus on poverty, which the UN Eradication of Poverty Day brings.  We hope it will draw attention to the real plight of families in Wales who experience the daily grind of making ends meet often with inadequate support from public services and little voice in decision making.”

Recently published figures (Household Below Average Income Figures (HBAI)) show that 30 per cent of children in Wales are living in poverty, which is higher than the British average.

With the imminent launch of the Assembly’s Child Poverty Strategy Mike Lewis said

“The task of tackling child poverty in Wales is a considerable one that calls for an inclusive and holistic approach across all functions of the Assembly and its partners and links with the UK Government’s strategy.  The End Child Poverty Network Cymru commends the Assembly Government’s commitment to ending child poverty in Wales but believes that the key to success in tackling child poverty in Wales will be the effective implementation and monitoring of those strategies that already exist and of the child poverty strategy.”

Dafydd – The face of poverty in Wales 2004

Dafydd’s* story illustrates the reality many children living in poverty in Wales face.  Dafydd is seven.  He lives with his mother and two siblings aged 10 and 11 years old.  They live in a private rented house in north Wales. Dafydd suffers from asthma, which is made worse by the damp in the property. Mould grows on the carpets and the clothes - which consequently always need washing. Dafydd is having problems at school.  He is often absent from school because of his health problems and suffers from stigmatisation. The kitchen units are rotting due to the conditions and this makes hygiene and cooking difficult.  His mother is on income support and has to spend much more of the household income on heating the property than she should due to the disrepair. This has an effect on her ability to feed the family properly and for other essential items.  These poor housing conditions and other financial pressures are causing emotional and mental strain on the family.

Thousands of children in Wales are suffering as a result of poverty.  Dafydd’s family is just one of them. 

Notes:

1.         For more information contact: Lucy Akhtar, Coordinator of the End Child Poverty Network Cymru on 029 20342434, email: lucy.akhtar@childreninwales.org.uk

2.         * Dafydd’s story is based on recent real life case evidence provided by Shelter Cymru.

3.         Income poverty is examined using the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) statistics and adopting a 60% of median income as a proxy for the poverty line.  Household Below Average Income Figures (HBAI) are recognised as the key indicators of child poverty in the UK.  Figures for 2002/03 (published in March 2004) show, that after housing costs, 30 per cent of children in Wales lived in households with incomes below 60% of the median, higher than the British average.

4.         National Assembly for Wales, A Statistical Focus on Children in Wales 2003 shows that 20.5 % of pupils in primary schools and 17.7% of pupils in secondary schools were entitled to free school meals.

5.         National Assembly for Wales, Homelessness Statistics, Statistical Bulletin 36/2004, June 2004 show that between October and December 2003 there were 2,149 households in Wales accepted as homeless 45 per cent were households with dependent children or someone in the household was pregnant.  Of the 572 households in Bed and Breakfast accommodation, 142 were families with children

6.            Although the relative low-income measure receives most attention, it has some drawbacks as an exclusive long-term measure of child poverty. A Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation was commissioned by the Welsh Office in 1999, at the electoral division level.  It maps the extent of multiple deprivation in Wales and covers income, employment, health, education, housing, and geographic access to services.  According to the Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation: Child Poverty Index there were pockets of 'income' deprivation throughout Wales and the most deprived authorities were those in the South Wales valleys.

7.         In January last year a Child Poverty Task Group was set up to advise the Assembly Government on developing a strategy for combating child poverty in Wales.  The Task Group published a report in June this year, which was out for consultation until September 2004.  The results of the consultation will inform the final strategy.

Poverty in the 21st Century: the Facts and Figures

• Growing up in poverty can affect a child’s physical and cognitive development, health and well-being.  
• Children born into poverty are more likely to have a lower birth weight, high infant mortality 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. 
• 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. 
• The correlations between poverty, social class and poor educational experience and attainment have been clearly established.  
• Although education is free, there are a lot of ‘extras’ that families are expected to pay for.  Research carried out in Wales suggests that poor children and young people miss out and are stigmatised because they cannot afford proper school uniform, and have free school meals.  Children and young people from poorer families often also miss out on school trips and social activities in school.
• People on low incomes often experience debt.  Costs of debt repayments often result in families going without essential items.  Other costs of debt are those incurred on health, relationships and quality of life. 
• Conditions such as homelessness and chronic over-crowding significantly impact upon a child’s physical, mental and social development and well being.
• In March 1999 the UK Government pledged to end child poverty within a generation, to halve it by 2010 and quarter it by 2004.  The End Child Poverty Network Cymru welcomes recent figures which show that the government are broadly on course to meet this target.  
• The share of total income received by those in the top and bottom tenths of the income distribution reflects a pattern of rising inequality in Great Britain  which needs urgent attention.  Between 1994/95 and 2001/02, the richest tenth gained 2 per cent more of the total income (29 per cent) while the poorest tenth’s share remained unaltered at 2 per cent.
• The End Child Poverty Network Cymru hopes that the issue of child poverty will remain a major priority for the next General Election.