From the CEO: Finally a Step in the Right Direction

Children North East welcomes today’s announcement from Rachel Reeves that the two-child limit benefit scheme will be scrapped from April 2026.

This is a moment worth celebrating. After years of tireless campaigning, today’s decision represents hope, fairness, and progress for families across the country. It is a testament to the power of collective action and the voices of those who have stood together to challenge injustice. We celebrate alongside the families who will finally see change, and with our partners who have worked relentlessly to make this possible including those from End Child Poverty and North East Child Poverty Commission.

This is a significant step forward that will lift 350,000 children out of poverty, including around 19,500 families in the North East. For over a decade, this policy has forced families into hardship, and we have campaigned endlessly alongside End Child Poverty and the North East Child Poverty Commission to bring it to an end.

Removing the limit means families will finally have more money in their pockets – enabling them to provide fairer opportunities for their babies, children and young people, it will enable them to spend more time together, and access experiences such as after-school clubs that were previously out of reach. We know too well how poverty contributes to long-term health problems, stress, relationship breakdowns, and mental health challenges. Ensuring families receive this for each of their children will help level the playing field and allow all children to thrive.

This decision offers a moment of relief and hope, but our fight to end child poverty continues. We now look to the forthcoming National Child Poverty Strategy to set out the government’s long-term plan to ensure that every baby, child, and young person can grow up happy, healthy, and free from the barriers of poverty.