Child poverty
Children are said to be living in relative poverty if their household’s income is less than 60 per cent of the median national income. Using this measure, there are currently 2.8million children living in poverty in this country.
Over half of these children actually live in working households.1 Often, a woman in the household is a potential second earner, but needs to find part time work that fits around their family, and cannot get employment support because their partner is in work.
The Child Poverty Act 2010 set a goal to eradicate child poverty by 2020. The coalition Government published its first national Child Poverty Strategy in April 2011.
Women Like Us recommendations
- Policy and strategy to bring families out of poverty must recognise that quality part time and flexible jobs are essential.
- Consider provision for stimulating the quality part time job market, in order to maximise the number of women who can get back to work and be lifted out of poverty.
- Employment support to be made available to potential second earners.
1 Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, December 2010