We say: Benefits uplift in April must match inflation

We all know the cost of living is going up, and this is going to hardest hit those already living in poverty in the North East. Children North East is joining with partners across the country to ask the government to ensure the benefits system protects the poorest in our communities by introducing a benefits uplift in line with inflation.

The UK is facing the fastest rising cost of living in decades, and many of us are feeling the pinch, or noticing the increase in the cost of a weekly shop. Some of us might be cutting back on treats, not getting that takeaway, or considering cancelling Netflix to make our budget stretch further.

However, with 37% of children in the North East already growing up in families living below the poverty line[i], for many of us, those choices are much harder.

The removal of the £20 per week Universal Credit uplift in October means thousands of families have already had to shave a significant amount off their budgets, and now face yet another real-terms cut, with government’s proposed 3.1% uprating of benefits in April falling well below the actual inflation rate of 7%. This is the equivalent difference of families losing £570 per year in income[ii].

If all babies, children and young people are to be able to grow up happy and healthy, we need to ensure families can afford the basics so they are warm, well fed and have the chance to thrive. However, we know that already this is not the case:

• Figures published earlier this year show that 1.8 million children are living in families in “Very Deep Poverty”, meaning they struggle to afford the basics[iii]
• 22% of these households live with ‘food insecurity’, meaning they struggle to regularly access the right amount and type of food for a balanced diet[iv]
• One million adults in the UK went an entire day without food last month because they could not afford to eat or access food[v]
• The number of people relying on food banks is at a record high[vi].

In practice, this means babies living in cold homes because families cannot afford to heat their houses properly, leading to an increased risk of complications from respiratory illness[vii], and it means children have an inadequate diet, leading to obesity and oral health problems because of eating more low-cost, high-sugar food[viii]. If families cannot afford to meet their basic needs, their children’s health is at risk, and this increases pressure on our health system.

We see this impact in education too, as the experience of growing up in poverty impacts on children’s ability to engage fully with school and the opportunities on offer. Our recent joint report with Child Poverty Action Group[ix], which involved speaking to 4,500 pupils in primary and secondary schools in England, has highlighted children living in poverty experience exclusion and stigma because of poverty:

“You don’t know they will have a cost when you choose your GCSEs” (Year 10 pupil on cost of materials for Design and Technology courses)

“I don’t want to make my mum feel bad cos she can’t buy lots of stuff, so I don’t ask her” (Year 4 pupil)

“I beg my mum to get new things, but I know how stressed she is, then I get stressed” (Year 6 pupil)

In the light of this wealth of evidence, it is utterly unthinkable that the government would now consider hitting these same families with further real terms cut to their income, the second in 6 months. That is why Children North East is standing alongside a collective of organisations from across the country; including the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Trussell Trust and Child Poverty Action Group to call for immediate action to ensure from April families get a fair settlement reflective of the reality of inflation.

You can support us by sharing this campaign on social media – watch out for our content over the coming days, which you can re-share. You can also write to your MP through the website www.writetothem.com your own message or using our handy template.

In these difficult times, we need to come together, and we need to hold our leaders to account to ensure that everyone is able to afford the basics, to ensure babies, children and young people are able to grow up happy and healthy.

 

[i] Facts & figures – North East Child Poverty Commission | Every child deserves an equal chance in life. (nechildpoverty.org.uk)

[ii] Nothing left to cut back: rising living costs and universal credit | CPAG

[iii] Rising energy bills to ‘devastate’ poorest families, adding to harmful legacy for millions of children sinking deeper into poverty | JRF

[iv] UK Poverty 2022: The essential guide to understanding poverty in the UK | JRF

[v] New data shows food insecurity major challenge to levelling up agenda | Food Foundation

[vi] Impact-Report-2021-final-web.pdf (trusselltrust.org)

[vii] the-health-impacts-of-cold-homes-and-fuel-poverty.pdf (instituteofhealthequity.org)

[viii] Reducing Social and Health Inequalities.pdf (bradford.gov.uk)

[ix] Cost of the School Day England: Pupil’s Perspectives (children-ne.org.uk)