ECPN Manifesto 2026

The End Child Poverty Network Cymru (ECPN Cymru) has published its manifesto ahead of the next Senedd term, setting out key priorities to address child poverty in Wales.

Child poverty levels in Wales remain unacceptably high and are expected to rise during the coming years. Being born into and growing up in poverty can have profound, lifelong impacts on children, and the longer a child remains in poverty, the harder it is to break that cycle.

ECPN Cymru is a network of third sector organisations working to end child poverty in Wales. The manifesto is grounded in children’s rights and references the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

It sets out 10 priority actions for the next Welsh Government. These include developing a Child Poverty Delivery Plan, extending Free School Meals to secondary school children, improving access to high-quality childcare, and strengthening children’s rights in policy and decision-making.

Read the ECPN Cymru manifesto to find out more about the actions needed from the next Welsh Government to reduce child poverty in Wales.