Early years action needed by the Welsh Government to end child poverty warn charities

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Two of Wales’ leading charities, Barnardo’s Cymru and the Bevan Foundation, have joined forces to call for greater action to support families with young children.

New research by Barnardo’s Cymru and the Bevan Foundation has revealed that more than half of all children living in poverty in Wales live in a family where there is at least one child aged 0–4. The charities are calling for action to reduce poverty at this critical time in a child’s life.

Barnardo’s Cymru and the Bevan Foundation found that the birth of a baby often leads to a drop in household income at the same time that household costs increase. This, combined with low maternity pay, the low value of social security benefits and the rising costs of essentials, can push families with young children into poverty. The impact on children can be devastating.

Sarah Rowe is a children’s services manager who has worked for Barnardo’s for almost a decade and is familiar seeing families struggling to make ends meet. But in recent months she has been shocked by the scale of poverty, poor housing and mental health issues affecting the lives of children and their parents.

Working in some of South Wales’ poorest communities, she has come across examples of young children sleeping on mattresses black with mould and others sleeping on the floor. Sarah said:

“I have never seen things this bad. Parents are often reluctant to admit just how bad things are as they feel ashamed, they cannot feed and clothe their children or keep them warm. Only when we visit the home do we discover just how much they are struggling.

“We see families with children sleeping in cots that are too small because their parents cannot afford to buy a bed. We see broken beds and children sleeping on mattresses on the floor, even on the floor itself. We are also seeing a lot of overcrowding.

“One family were sharing one plate and one fork between them.  They had nowhere to keep milk or fresh food cool and no sterilising equipment to keep their baby healthy.  The house was bare, and we had to provide them with absolute basics like crockery and cutlery.”

The Welsh Government is committed to ‘eradicating’ child poverty, and action such as extending the provision of free school meals to primary school pupils is helping to reduce poverty amongst families with school-age children.  However, very little is targeted at younger children:  there is no Welsh Government-funded childcare for children under the age of 2 and there’s been no progress introducing the Baby Bundle for new parents on low incomes.

Dr Victoria Winckler, Director at the Bevan Foundation stated:

“If the Welsh Government wants to end child poverty it needs to reach families with young children. Help for school-age pupils like free school meals is making a difference, but it’s time to do more for babies and toddlers. The UK Government is undertaking a review of child poverty, and we recommend that it should increase maternity pay and scrap the two-child benefit cap.  The Welsh Government has a part to play too, by providing affordable childcare for under-2s, developing a new baby grant, and seeking powers to provide a child payment as in Scotland. ” 

Ending poverty in early years


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