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  3. Schools and school staff

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  1. Home
  2. Education
  3. Schools and school staff

Talking about poverty

How to talk to pupils and families about poverty and its effects.

In this section

  • Talking about costs
  • Supporting families

    Child Poverty Action Group

    We work to understand what causes poverty, the impact it has on children’s lives, and how it can be prevented and solved – for good.

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    • Child poverty in the UK
      • Poverty: facts and figures
      • What is poverty?
      • Causes of poverty
      • Effects of poverty
      • Ending child poverty
    • What we do
      • Our objectives
      • Our impact
        • Our impact in previous years
      • Our work
      • CPAG in Scotland
      • Our campaigns
        • Imagine
        • End child poverty
        • End child poverty in Scotland
        • Scottish Campaign on Rights to Social Security
        • Past campaigns
      • The CPAG team
        • CPAG staff
        • CPAG trustees
        • CPAG's patron and ambassadors
        • CPAG trainers
    • Policy & research
      • Our position
        • The two-child limit: our position
        • The benefit cap: our position
        • Education and income: our position
      • Early Warning System
        • About the Early Warning System
        • Contact the Early Warning System team
        • EWS research, findings and updates
      • Policy briefings and reports
        • The Cost of a Child reports
        • Managed migration research project findings
        • Strengthening Social Security: research into the five family payments
        • Your Work Your Way - findings from the project
        • Secure Futures for Children and Families
        • Universal credit, digitalisation and the rule of law
        • David Webster briefings on benefit sanctions
      • CPAG's Poverty journal
      • Policy books from CPAG
    • Education
      • Schools and school staff
        • Tools
          • Cost of the School Day calendar
            • Cost of the School Day calendar - Autumn term 2026
            • Cost of the School Day calendar - Spring term 2027
            • Cost of the School Day calendar - Summer term 2027
          • England toolkit
          • Wales toolkit / Cymru pecyn cymorth
          • Governors poverty toolkit
          • eLearning
        • Ideas from schools
          • Ideas Bank
            • Awareness, values and ethos
              • Understanding poverty in your area
              • Cost of the School Day Information Booklet for Families
              • Nurturing approaches
              • Rebranding support to boost uptake
            • Entitlements and financial support
              • Boosting free school meal uptake
              • Family support staff
              • Offering support and referrals
              • Promoting support
            • School uniform
              • Simple, affordable and inclusive uniform policies
              • School and cluster run uniform banks
              • Providing new uniform and clothing
              • Parent-led uniform stall
            • Eating at school
              • Breakfast clubs
              • Breakfast, breaktimes and lunch
              • Boosting free school meal uptake
            • Consulting and planning
              • Listening to families
              • Parents leading consultation
              • Children consulting their school community
              • Whole school approaches
              • Creating a Cost of the School Day policy with learners
              • Cost of the School Day calendar, created by learners
            • Events, celebrations and fundraising
              • Pre-loved prom initiative
              • Supporting attendance and easing pressure
              • World Book Week in Dundee
              • Non-stigmatising online fundraising
              • Stress-free Halloween celebrations at school
              • Blether Cafe: a pupil led approach to inclusive community fundraising
            • Learners in the lead
              • Cost of the School Day pupil groups
              • Pupils asking parents and carers about costs
              • Young people sharing their views about uniform at the Scottish Parliament
              • Learners take universal free school meal call to the Scottish Parliament
              • Talking directly to politicians about cost barriers at school
              • Cost of the School Day pupil group interview their Headteacher
            • Communicating with families
              • Building relationships and keeping in touch
              • Open and clear written communication about support
              • Communicating commitment to equity
              • Letting everyone know
              • Engaging with partners in the community to share information with families
              • Improved attendance through support and communication
            • Trips, clubs and experiences
              • Funding trips
              • Offering support for trips
            • Learning and resources
              • Digital devices, connectivity and curriculum costs
              • Preparation station
              • After school study cafes
              • Creating a digital lending library
            • Local authority approaches
              • Equity in South Lanarkshire
              • Kit for all, Dundee
              • Financial inclusion support officers in Glasgow
              • Dundee City Council's Cost of the School Day
              • Involving young people in financial inclusion in East Ayrshire schools
              • Cost of the School Day in West Lothian
            • Parental involvement
              • Parents in partnership
              • Parent equality groups
              • Working with parent groups on costs
          • Practice videos
        • Boosting family incomes
          • Income maximisation
          • Referring families for money advice
        • School costs
          • Festivities at school
          • Celebrations and fun at school
          • School attendance
          • Secondary school food
          • Further guidance on tackling child poverty
          • Local authority support
          • School uniform
        • Talking about poverty
          • Talking about costs
            • Create poverty aware school communities
            • Show leadership and take action
            • Communicate about costs and money
            • Offer confidential and supportive conversations
          • Supporting families
        • Hearing from young people
          • The Young People's Poverty and Education Manifesto 2026-31
          • The Big Question
          • Youth Voice in England
          • Voice network in Scotland
      • Working with young people
        • Youth Voice in England
        • Voice network in Scotland
        • Voice network highlights 2025/26
        • The Young People's Poverty and Education Manifesto 2026-31
        • Cost of the School Day Manifesto for Wales | Maniffesto Cost y Diwrnod Ysgol ar gyfer Cymru
      • Education policy and research
    • Welfare rights
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              • Guide to using CPAG's judicial review pre-action letter templates
              • Universal credit and migration to universal credit
              • Other benefits and payments
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              • Decisions, delays and challenging decisions
            • Pursuing to court and finding a solicitor
          • Support with an Upper Tribunal case
        • Support for advisers in Scotland
          • Advising low-income families in Scotland
          • Advising disabled people and carers in Scotland
          • Advising migrant groups in Scotland
          • Advising students in Scotland
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          • Advising care-experienced young people in Scotland
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      • Key topics
        • PIP appeals
          • Introduction
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          • Submitting your appeal
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          • Your appeal hearing
          • What to do when you get the tribunal's decision
        • Universal credit
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        • Migration to universal credit
        • Survivors of domestic abuse
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          • Unwanted payments of abuser’s benefit into your account
          • Pre-April 2026 exceptions to the two-child limit
          • Work-related requirements if you have recently experienced domestic abuse
          • Separated but living in the same property
          • Value of property and its effect on means-tested benefits
        • Benefits for migrants
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        • Housing costs
        • Personal independence payment
        • Sanctions and work-related requirements
        • Work capability assessment
      • Tools & templates
        • About our tools and templates
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      • Benefits in Scotland
        • Scottish benefits
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            • Getting a best start grant if you are not getting a qualifying benefit
            • How to challenge a Social Security Scotland decision
          • Disability benefits
            • Child disability payment
            • Supporting information for child disability payment claims: suggestions for education staff
            • Child winter heating payment
            • Adult disability payment
            • Adult disability payment assessment
            • Scottish adult disability living allowance
            • Pension age disability payment
            • How to challenge a disability benefit or carer support decision
          • Help with council tax
            • Council tax reduction
            • Council tax reduction if you live with an adult who is not your partner
            • Council tax reduction if you live in a band E to H property
            • Calculating the working age Scottish council tax reduction
            • Challenging a council tax reduction decision
            • When your council tax reduction starts
            • If you get council tax reduction and your circumstances change
            • Other ways to reduce your council tax bill
          • Benefits for carers
            • Carer support payment
            • Scottish carer supplement
            • Carer additional person payment
            • Young carer grant
          • Help with heating costs
            • Child winter heating payment
            • Winter heating payment
            • Pension age winter heating payment
          • Scottish welfare fund
          • Other Scottish benefits
            • Universal credit Scottish choices
            • Funeral support payment
            • Discretionary housing payments in Scotland
            • Job start payment
        • Benefits for people in Scotland
          • Universal credit
            • Universal credit - the basics
            • Universal credit and students
            • Benefits for lone parent students
            • Kinship carers and universal credit
          • Parents
            • Financial help in the early years
            • Financial help in the school years
            • Financial help for young parents
            • Parents claiming for young people in further education or training
            • Childcare costs: getting support
            • Children looked after by the local authority - impact on family benefits
            • Financial help for families fleeing domestic abuse
            • Universal credit for lone parent students
            • Financial help for families affected by imprisonment
          • Disabled children
            • Benefits for disabled children and their families - a checklist
            • Benefits for disabled students
          • Migrants and refugees
            • Rights to benefits for European nationals
            • EU citizen guide to claiming benefits in the UK
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            • Kinship care and benefits – the essentials
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          • Students and young people
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            • Parents claiming for young people in further education or training
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