WIREDGOV

Approximately 21% of children in are living in poverty, according to a report released today (29 May) by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Despite earlier progress over the last decade in reducing child poverty – reductions were greater in Scotland than in other UK regions – levels have stalled since 2004/05 and are now fairly similar to the rest of the UK.

Today's report, Child poverty in Scotland: taking the next steps, discusses progress made to end child poverty in . It states that the Scottish government could do more to reduce child poverty in . A wide range of policy measures are recommended to get progress back on track, from increasing the availability of affordable childcare to encouraging the Scottish government to look seriously at defining and paying a living wage.

Joint author, Stephen Sinclair from the Scottish Poverty Information Unit at Glasgow Caledonian University , said: "The political opportunities to end child poverty in are potentially greater than in many other parts of the . This places a huge responsibility on the Scottish government to do all it can to achieve the target of eradicating child poverty by 2020."

Specific measures that authors suggest the Scottish government should implement include:  

• encouraging employers to create more flexible jobs which allow parents to combine work and care responsibilities;  
• increasing access to affordable, flexible childcare;  
• providing in-work support and advice to help parents remain in employment;
  giving serious consideration to the concept of a Scottish living wage and what more public sector employers can do to tackle poverty among their employees.
   

However, the authors acknowledge that some measures required to reduce child poverty in are beyond the current devolved powers of the Scottish Government. The report highlights the following areas where the and Scottish governments could work more closely together to improve anti-poverty interventions:  

• reduce the benefits trap by allowing greater overlap between employment and benefit entitlement;  
• explore opportunities to adapt UK Government welfare reforms to local labour market conditions.

Joint author, John McKendrick from the Scottish Poverty Information Unit at Glasgow Caledonian University , said: "These are challenging times for everyone. More than ever, there is a need for all levels of government to focus on what must be done to eradicate child poverty in . Children already living in poverty must be protected and households with child poverty must be enabled to move beyond a quality of life unbecoming for 21st-century ."

Notes for editors

1. Child poverty is measured using three ‘tiers’:
   (i) Absolute low income poverty: number and proportion of children in households whose equivalised income before housing costs (BHC) is less than 60% of the median in 1998/99 – uprated to the current year's prices.
   (ii) Relative low income poverty: number and proportion of children in households whose equivalised income before housing costs (BHC) is less than 60% of the median in the current year.
   (iii) Combined material deprivation and low income: number and proportion of children that are both materially deprived and are in households whose equivalised income before housing costs (BHC) is less than 70% of the median in the current year. See also this page.
2. Later this year, to mark ten years of devolution, the JRF will publish research into whether devolution has helped the poorest in society.
3. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) is one of largest social policy research and development charities in the . Working with the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust (JRHT) it aims to influence policy and practice by searching for evidence and demonstrating solutions to help overcome the causes of poverty, disadvantage and social evil.
4. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust are completely separate from the other two Trusts set up by Joseph Rowntree in 1904; the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust (JRCT) and the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust Ltd (JRRT). Further information about each organisation can be found at www.josephrowntree.org.
   
   Issued by Charlotte Morris, Acting Head of Media: 07800 615 105 / 01904 615 919 / 020 7278 9665