News and blogs

News

161,000 families now affected by the two-child limit

31 July 2019

News UK

CPAG named best team at LALY awards

11 July 2019

CPAG's legal team was honoured in the Legal Aid Firm/Not for profit agency category at the annual Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year (LALY) awards yesterday (10 July). The award recognised the team's "vital role in challenging welfare benefits unfairness in the highest courts, and for providing direct help to those in direst need".

Legal News UK

CPAG has been shortlisted in the 2019 Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year awards

23 May 2019

Legal News UK

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Press releases

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MORE FAMILIES FALL INTO TWO–CHILD LIMIT NET

31 July 2019

Press release Two child limit UK

Universal credit claimants blocked from challenging DWP decisions

19 July 2019

Universal credit (UC) claimants who suspect the DWP has made a mistake in their award and ask for a review are too often blocked by DWP error and failures in the system, a new report from Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) shows.

Legal Mandatory reconsideration and appeals Press release UK Universal credit

Survey finds two-child limit is taking heavy toll on family life

26 June 2019

The first detailed research on the impact of the two-child limit in tax credits and universal credit, All Kids Count: the impact of the two-child limit after two years, reveals the scale of suffering in families affected by the policy with parents reporting that they are being forced to cut back on fresh food for children, unable to cover essential utility bills, accruing debt and being forced to withdraw older children from activities like swimming lessons and school trips.

Press release Two child limit UK

Blogs

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Bringing a motion at the Youth Parliament

08 August 2019

Ben Lomas is the Member of Youth Parliament for St Helens. He lives in St Helens, and will begin year ten at Rainford High in September. Earlier this month, Ben brought a motion on child poverty to the Annual Conference of the Youth Parliament. We asked him about his experience.

Blog Child poverty strategies Ending child poverty UK

The art of ignoring ‘the poor’

01 August 2019

I was recently asked to speak to the theme of ‘the art of ignoring the poor’ at an OECD/ATD Fourth World conference to launch the report of a cross-national study of the hidden dimensions of poverty. ATD’s work to enable the voices of people in poverty to be heard has helped me understand the importance of the psycho-social and the relational in understanding how poverty is experienced. That is not to understate the importance of the material – the lack of resources sufficient to participate fully in society, which is what defines poverty, and the economic insecurity or precarité and powerlessness typically associated with it. But the material has psychological effects and poverty is given meaning through relationships with others at both the interpersonal and societal level (including through interactions with professionals and officials).

Blog Talking about poverty UK

The ‘Other Britain’

12 July 2019

A little over a century ago, the cry among social reformers concerned about the plight of the poor was for a safety net to be stitched together by the state, to catch any of our fellow citizens who were falling into the clutches of destitution. Had those same reformers witnessed what we have picked up during the past six months – from visits to food banks in Poplar, Waterloo, Leicester, Morecambe, Chester, and Glasgow – they would be appalled by the extent of hunger, homelessness, and insecurity afflicting so many families and vulnerable individuals in our country.

Benefit levels Blog Disability benefits Sanctions UK Universal credit Welfare reform

Contact us

Child Poverty Action Group is a centre of expertise and campaigning on child poverty, welfare rights, and related issues such as fair pay, childcare, benefits and tax credits. Our spokespeople regularly feature on television, radio and in print media.

Contact

Journalists can contact our press officer, Jane Ahrends, or the out-of-hours duty contact on:

020 7812 5216 (office hours)

07816 909302 (24 hour)

email: jahrends@cpag.org.uk

Looking for a contact in Scotland? Visit our Scotland media page.

Press releases

CPAG regularly puts out press statements on the publication of its own policy and research, and in reaction to other events and news stories related to our work. See our press releases.

Expert information

CPAG can help journalists find information for child poverty related stories. See some key facts and figures.

We may also be able to arrange for you to speak with one of our policy or welfare rights experts for more detailed enquiries.

Case study advice

CPAG can provide advice to journalists on finding case studies, but is rarely able to directly provide case studies.

We encourage journalists in their use of case studies to show sensitivity towards parents who wish to protect their children from the stigma of being labelled as in ‘poverty’ and associated risks such as bullying.

End Child Poverty

CPAG is the host organisation for the campaign to End Child Poverty - a coalition of 150 organisations from civic society including children’s charities, child welfare organisations, social justice groups, faith groups, trade unions and others, united in our vision of a UK free of child poverty.

Our press officer also handles queries on behalf of End Child Poverty and we can provide End Child Poverty spokespeople. Visit the End Child Poverty website.