Our aims for the session

1. Child Poverty Is Everyone’s Business:Understanding, recognising and responding to child povertyWelcome

2. Our aims for the session • To work together to reduce the impact of child poverty on children and families • To make sure we are all aware of the causes of poverty and also the routes out of poverty • We can make a difference!

3. Introduce yourselves one thing that would make you think – yes that was worth coming to!

4. The Scale of the Child Poverty Challenge 22% of children live in poverty In the UK more than 2.4 million children grow up in households in poverty. Growing up in poverty has a significant impact on children and young people during childhood and beyond.

5. What is Child Poverty ? In the UK a child is officially in poverty if he or she: Lives in a home of relative low income. i.e. the family’s income is not keeping pace with the incomes in the economy as a whole and income is below 60% of median household income Grows up in persistent poverty: i.e net income for the year at less than 60% of median household income for the past 3 years

6. What is Child Poverty in practice? The Institute for Fiscal Studies shows poverty lines for weekly amounts of household income in the UK in 2009-10 Before housing costs measure, captures income without adjusting for housing costs (and includes any housing benefit received as income). The after housing cost measure is the same but deducts mortgage or rent payments. According to combined HMRC and DWP data from 2010, 17,360 aged 0-19 in the City are living in poverty[but, if we use the combined total of children in workless households together with those whose family is in receipt of working tax credit, the number may nearly double to over 30,000

7. At its heart poverty is very simple – the family does not have enough money for a decent standard of living or for the child to experience an enriched childhood. Put simply child poverty is family poverty.

8. The Main Determinants of Health Dahlgren and Whitehead (1991)

9. Impact of Poverty on Parent(s) Increased risk of: Depression Low Self Esteem Marital Conflict Higher rates of smoking and other addictions Lower Emotional Well Being Reduced capacity to parent 9

10. Impact of Poverty on Life Chances of Children Poverty blights the life chances of children from low income families, putting them at higher risk of a range of poor outcomes when compared to their more affluent peers. Frank Field: The Foundation Years 2011

11. Early Signs of DisadvantageStrategic Review of Health Inequalities in England Marmot Review (2010)

12. Government Reports

13. Wolverhampton Group Exercise Poverty Mapping 10 minutes

14. Wolverhampton has: 17,360 children living in poverty • 15,570 (33.4%) of Wolverhampton poor children live in families claiming out of work benefits • 1,790 (10.3%) of Wolverhampton poor children live in families claiming in work benefits • Every ward and neighbourhood has an area within it with significant numbers of children living in poverty. • Child Poverty costs the City over £31 million a year in additional costs to the Council and its partners

15. 2010

16. West Midlands

17. What does child poverty in these areas look like? Why do you think these problems exist? Group Exercise “Beyond the Threshold” 15 minutes

18. Households Below Average Income (HBAI) 2009/10

19. Groups at most risk of Poverty Workless households: Children in workless households have a 59% chance of living in poverty Children of lone parents: children have a 34% risk of poverty in a lone parent family More than 3 children: families with 3 or more children have a 31% chance of poverty Disability: Children with one or more disabled adult have a 29% chance of being in poverty and particular ethnic groups, children of asylum seekers, prisoners, multiple risk factors

20. Making a difference! Look at the case studies How could local agencies have helped? What role could you have played? Group Exercise Case Studies 15 minutes

21. What we know works - reshaping our services? • Services which allow parents to feel in control • Practical useful services that meet parents’ self-defined needs • Timely services • Local Feedback – parents want us to reduce signposting and for agencies to take more responsibility

22. Some steps towards supporting families out of poverty • Key worker/mentor with the ability to listen and have belief • Support to families to enable them to take up volunteering, training or employment • Accessible benefit and debt advice • Joined up services at the front line level • Family friendly employment opportunities

23. The Child Poverty Building Blocks The national Child Poverty Unit has suggested a strategy model based on four “building blocks”. This model is designed to enable us to tackle both the causes and consequences of child poverty in the City. 23

24. Some Actions • Training & awareness raising • Supporting lone parents into employment • Reducing debt and increasing financial inclusion • Reducing fuel poverty • Increased number of children attending early years education ( Terrific for Two’s) What can you do ?

25. Wolverhampton Child Poverty Strategy Guiding Principles

26. 4We will help parents and their children to work with us as partners 1We can only add value by working together 2 We will do all we can to maximize outcomes as funding reduces 3We will strengthen our area based approach:

27. Where to get information • Child Poverty Strategy and Needs Assessment ( including local data) • The Children's Plan • City Strategy • Child Poverty Challenge Group www.wton-partnership.org.uk/wfipn/childpoverty

28. Final Reflections & Next steps • Your comments and ideas will feed into the development and delivery of the Child Poverty Strategy for Wolverhampton and we’ll come back to you with any further info and support you might need • Don’t wait! – start noticing, supporting and sign-posting families where to go for help, start talking with colleagues and raise it at team meetings etc….. • Thanks for participating today..