There was very little in this Budget for children and families living in poverty. The Chancellor said yesterday that this government does not pass on its bills to the next generation, but the 4.2 million children living in poverty today are the next generation. Child poverty is scarring, and the decisions taken yesterday will leave a legacy of cold homes, empty tummies and crumbling classrooms. We are in urgent need of a plan to tackle child poverty.
Last week, the House of Commons’ Education Committee published a report on persistent absence and support for disadvantaged pupils. There is growing concern about rising levels of pupil absence following the pandemic. Attendance data highlights that children from lower-income households have lower attendance rates than their peers. Children eligible for free school meals are more than twice as likely as their peers to be persistently absent from school.
This briefing draws on our research with schools and families in London and makes suggestions for how schools can remove some of the barriers faced by secondary pupils in receipt of free shcool meals, and those in low-income families who do not currently qualify.
Researchers have found that going to school in the UK costs families of primary school children at least £864.87 a year, or £18.69 a week. This is before childcare costs are accounted for. For families of secondary school children, the cost of sending a child to school is at least £1,755.97 a year.
Schools work really hard to provide enriching experiences for their pupils, from trips and clubs to leavers’ celebrations. However, parents and children have told us through our UK Cost of the School Day project that fun activities at school often have hidden and unrecognised costs. This can mean children from low-income families miss out.
What impact is the cost of living crisis having on families' abilities to keep warm this winter? Parents and carers on a low income who are part of Changing Realities have shared their experiences.
At a time of sharply increasing costs and stretched family budgets, ensuring that children have all they need to take part in school is another worry for families. The guide will help schools consider how they’re already supporting families and how they can make small changes to policies, practices and communications to help families through times of economic difficulty.
'Educational inequalities cannot be solved by the education system alone.’ The concluding words of the latest IFS Deaton Review report into inequalities in education came as absolutely no surprise to us here at CPAG, and no doubt to those working on the frontline within our education system either. Despite decades of initiatives, strategies and hard work being undertaken by schools, the disadvantage gap has been stubbornly persistent over the past 20 years. It’s yet more evidence that the work of our schools is being held back by the levels of poverty children are facing.