25 March 2010 – Commitment to eradicate child poverty enshrined in law: Further proposals announced to reduce poverty

Today, the Government’s historic commitment to end the blight of child poverty has been enshrined in legislation. The Child Poverty Act, which commits this and future governments to eradicating child poverty by 2020 has received Royal Assent.  The Act comes at the same time as the Government announces plans to further reduce child poverty.

Since 1997 radical reforms have brought about major improvements lifting 500,000 children out of poverty and cutting absolute poverty by half.  Today’s Act will redouble this and future governments’ efforts to eradicating child poverty.

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Yvette Cooper said:

"We know this goal is extremely challenging, but we won’t back down. This Bill is about the world we want to live and raise our children in, to make sure no children are left behind. We've lifted 500,000 children out of poverty already, but there is much more to be done."

Children's Secretary Ed Balls said:

"The passing of today’s historic Child Poverty Act reaffirms our promise to giving all children the best possible start in life. As part of this commitment, I’m pleased to be announcing today new plans to extend free school meals to primary school children whose families are on working tax credit. This will give thousands more families the confidence and financial security they need to help lift them out of poverty."

Financial Secretary to the Treasury Stephen Timms said:

"This is a landmark moment in our fight to eradicate child poverty by 2020.  Every child in the UK has the right to the best start in life and the opportunities to reach their full potential. This Bill demonstrates our commitment to ending child poverty especially as we move forward from the economic difficulties of the past year.

"We won't lose sight of the importance of our goal and this legally binding commitment will ensure we achieve it."

Child poverty will only be eradicated if everyone works together to achieve it. It requires local authorities and their local partners, employers, the voluntary sector, and families themselves to help meet this pledge and ensure that ending child poverty is everybody’s business.

As part of this commitment, the Government has published further proposals;

• Today new plans have been published for consultation, to extend the eligibility of Free School Meals to an additional 600,000 children. From September, primary school children from low-income families, who are receiving Working Tax Credit, will be able to access free school meals. Extending the eligibility will help to lift an estimated 50,000 children out of poverty and will support parents returning to work.
• New guidance, published tomorrow for consultation, will help local authorities understand the new duties outlined in the Child Poverty Act. Local authorities must work to reduce the effects of child poverty in their local areas – including producing local child poverty strategies. The final version of the statutory guidance is due for publication in the summer.
• In the Budget yesterday the Chancellor announced that families earning less than £50,000 a year who have children under three years old will get an extra £200 a year in a new Toddler Tax Credit.  This new measure will provide more support for 885,000 families with toddlers when costs can be high and when many parents want to stay at home or work part-time.
• From April 12 Child Maintenance will be fully disregarded when calculating entitlement to income based benefits. This and earlier changes to Child Maintenance will lift 100,000 more children out of poverty.
• The Government has published a Strategic Directions paper which charts the course we must follow to build on the strong foundations already laid. The Paper sets out the scale of the challenge we face, looks at the various ways we might meet the challenge and lists the priorities for ending child poverty once and for all. Key priorities over the coming year are:
  • promoting paid parental employment – which is the single biggest factor  in determining whether families are out of poverty. 
  • taking the action needed to transform the life chances of children from disadvantaged backgrounds –  only by minimising early disadvantage can the child poverty strategy be fully sustainable.
  • achieving excellence in delivery – ensuring services are personalised to support families in greatest need.

Notes to Editors

The DCSF today published a consultation on extending eligibility for free school meals to primary school children whose parents are on Working Tax Credit and have a household income up to £16,190. The consultation is available here:www.dcsf.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?action=consultationDetails&consultationId=1707&external=no&menu=1

Draft statutory guidance for local authorities on new duties in the Child Poverty Act is being consulted on. The guidance will be available on the consultation’s website:  www.dcsf.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm

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