Up-to-date news on the campaign to end child poverty. http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk Eradicating Child Poverty in the UK comes a step closer today with the publication of the bill to enshrine the 2020 eradicating target into law.  Hilary Fisher, the Director of End Child Poverty said:  “With 4 million children in poverty in the UK today it is important the Government focus on the real challenges facing children living in poverty.  We welcome the Child Poverty Bill as an important step forward in making tackling child poverty a priority for all Governments - ending child poverty is not a luxury, but a necessity.  It will be particularly important to be clear how Government will be held to account in the legislation.  We believe the first step to tackling child poverty in the future is tackling it today. We need to see urgent action to help hard pressed families now as well as a strong bill which carries forward that action into the future.”  -----------  Notes to editors  For additional comment, or an interview with Hilary Fisher, call 020 7278 6745, or mobile 07930804191, or email hilary@ecpc.org.uk   The Campaign to End Child Poverty is a coalition of more than 150 organisations working to eradicate child poverty in the UK. It is formed from children's and other charities, social justice groups, faith-groups, trade unions and others concerned about the unacceptably high levels of child poverty in the UK. For more information, visit www.endchildpoverty.org.uk    The comments in this release represent the views of End Child Poverty and do not necessarily reflect the views of member organisations.             http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk/news.php?id=23&nid=171  Welcoming the news that Ed Balls is to remain as Secretary of State at the Department of Children’s Schools and Families (DCSF) Hilary Fisher, Director said “With 4 million children living in poverty in the UK it is vital that a Secretary of State committed to action on this remains at the DCSF. Ed Balls has long championed the child poverty agenda and we are glad he will have a renewed opportunity to push for more funding for this crucial issue and we are excited to see what he will be doing in the next nine months.” ----------- Notes to editors • For additional comment, or an interview with Hilary Fisher, call 020 7278 6746, hilary@ecpc.org.uk • The Campaign to End Child Poverty is a coalition of more than 150 organisations working to eradicate child poverty in the UK. It is formed from children's and other charities, social justice groups, faith-groups, trade unions and others concerned about the unacceptably high levels of child poverty in the UK. For more information, visit www.endchildpoverty.org.uk • The comments in this release represent the views of End Child Poverty and do not necessarily reflect the views of member organisations.                           http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk/news.php?id=23&nid=169 The Campaign to End Child Poverty expressed disappointment at the HBAI (Homes below average income) statistics released today. The figures revealed that the number of children living in poverty remained largely unchanged from the previous year, this together with the Government’s failure to support poor children in the 2009 budget leads the Government urgently needing to prove it’s commitment to eradicating child poverty. Hilary Fisher, director of End Child Poverty said: “Ten years ago Government committed to eradicating child poverty but these figures show progress has stalled. In the previous two years child poverty actually rose. Progress has been made on child poverty but the UK is way off track on its targets and budget 2009 invested less than a pint of milk per week per child in family incomes and so did nothing to narrow the gap. These are not just statistics; they are real children and real families and poverty is damaging them. The Government must do more to help those on the lowest incomes particularly during this difficult economic time and tackling child poverty is a key part of this. What we cannot afford are the social and economic costs of continuing to fail our children.”   Notes to editors 1. The Campaign to End Child Poverty includes children's and other charities, social justice groups, faith-groups, trade unions, businesses and many others concerned about the unacceptably high levels of child poverty in the UK who are working together for change. For more information visit our website www.endchildpoverty.org.uk 2. The comments in this release represent the views of End Child Poverty and do not necessarily reflect the views of member organisations. 3. In March 1999 Tony Blair promised to eradicate child poverty ‘within a generation’. This has been defined as by 2020, with targets towards this of reducing child income poverty by a quarter between 1998/99 and 2004/05, and by half by 2010/11. For further information: Contact Hilary Fisher 020 7278 6745 http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk/news.php?id=23&nid=168 Gordon Brown said “serious people are needed for serious times”. In its new Keep the Promise publication, launched today, End Child Poverty, the country’s largest coalition of children’s charities and other organisations, has brought together seven leading thinkers from its member organisations to talk about the particular challenges facing the UK’s poorest families in these most serious of times. On Child Poverty and Disability, Brian Lamb Chair of the Special Educational Needs Consortium says, “It costs three times as much to bring up a disabled child as it does a non-disabled child. These extra costs associated with disability drive high levels of poverty among disabled children and their families …In the recent Carers UK survey, more than one in five families said they had to cut back on food as a result of the costs of bringing up their disabled child.” On Child Poverty and education, Christine Blower, Acting General Secretary, National Union of Teachers, says, “Children from low-income families… tend to be physically weaker and have less energy for learning, and may have a range of emotional, social and behavioural difficulties… Children and young people living in poverty regularly arrive at school without having had anything to eat or drink. Teachers will testify this leads to poor levels of concentration and can also affect pupil behaviour.” On Child Poverty and housing, Adam Sampson, Chief Executive, Shelter, says, “A survey of families… found that, due to their housing situation, children miss on average 55 days of school per year, which is usually due to disruption caused by moves to, and between, temporary accommodation.”   On Child Poverty and health, Nick Spencer, Professor Emeritus of Child Health, School of Health and Social Studies, University of Warwick, says, “Among three-year-old children... 4.2% suffered from chronic illnesses …compared to just 1.7% among well-off families…Adults who faced financial hardship during childhood are more likely to suffer from a variety of illnesses including high blood pressure and heart disease and symptoms of mental ill-health.” On Child Poverty and children’s rights, David Bull, UK Executive Director, Unicef says, “When we talk about child poverty, we are thinking about the impact poverty has on children’s rights; rights to health, to education, to protection and to develop as an individual. Poverty is a barrier to the rights to which all children are entitled.” On Child Poverty and childcare, Alison Garnham, Joint-Chief Executive, Daycare Trust, says, “Parents, in particular mothers, cannot engage in paid work and help improve family incomes without comprehensive, accessible and affordable childcare services…In short, government efforts to increase the proportion of mothers in work...cannot take place without the necessary national service infrastructure in place along with the reassurance that their children are well cared for in high quality settings.” The publication comes ahead of the budget, in which End Child Poverty is calling on the Government to invest at least £3 billion in tax credits and benefits to meet its target to halve child poverty by 2010 and eradicate it by 2020. For more information, or to arrange an interview, please contact Chloë Bryan-Brown 020 7278 3405, media@ecpc.org.uk http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk/news.php?id=23&nid=163 The Campaign to End Child Poverty says today’s budget will not improve the lives of 3.9 million UK children living in poverty. The Campaign, which is the UK’s largest cross-sector coalition of children’s charities and other organisations, expressed disappointment that more has not been done for children. It said increased benefit and tax credits to help struggling families buy food and basic items are a better way to help the UK’s 3.9 million children living in poverty, and also provide fiscal stimulus. It said today’s budget shows the Government is not committed to children and lacks the will to put back on track the historic promise it made in 1997 to halve child poverty by 2010 and eradicate it by 2020. Hilary Fisher, Director of the Campaign, said, “While we recognise that it is vital to get the unemployed back into work, we are disappointed the government has not prioritised the urgent needs of the 3.9 million children living in poverty. Some families in poverty will be helped by the support for Job Centre Plus and for those under 25 unemployed for over a year, but putting money into the hands of parents is the key way to lift children out of poverty and the shamefully small increase in child tax credit will not be enough.  The Government is unlikely now to meet its own target to halve child poverty by 2010. Without the £3 billion invested in family incomes that we called for in this budget, children across the UK will continue to face the costs of social disadvantage, exclusion and poor health and nutrition. ” The Campaign, whose members include Barnardo’s, Save The Children, Shelter, the TUC and Unicef, is spearheading a drive for public and political commitment to ending child poverty. It says that failure to reach the 2010 target means the future of millions of children hangs in the balance, and that every day they spend in poverty – a long time for a child - damages their health, education and overall life chances.   Notes to editors: For more information, help with case studies, or an interview with Hilary Fisher, please contact Chloë Bryan-Brown, 020 7278 3405, media@ecpc.org.uk   The comments in this release represent the views of the Campaign to End Child Poverty and do not necessarily reflect the views of member organisations. Find out more about the Campaign to End Child Poverty on our website, www.ecpc.org.uk http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk/news.php?id=23&nid=165