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Child Poverty : Are we doing enough?

Child Poverty : Are we doing enough?. Satwat Rehman One Parent Families Scotland.

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Child Poverty : Are we doing enough?

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  1. Child Poverty: Are we doing enough? Satwat RehmanOne Parent Families Scotland

  2. One Parent Families Scotland (OPFS) is Scotland’s national single parent organisation. Building on over 65 years of advocacy and service-delivery expertise, OPFS provides expert information, advice & support, along with training activities, work preparation programmes & flexible childcare.

  3. Family Finance Service Lone Parent Hubs Tel & Online Advice Outreach/Engagement/ Family Support Flexible Childcare OPFSServices One to One Mentoring Confidence Building Programmes Legal Advice Surgeries Employability Services

  4. The facts about lone parents • Over 163,000 LPs with 295,000 children (1 in 4 families) in Scotland • Projected to increase to 238,000 next 20 years • Average age is 34+ years • Around 92 per cent of lone parents are mothers. (“Lone parents with dependent children", January 2012, Office for National Statistics) • Less than 2 per cent of lone parents are teenagers • Around half of lone parents had their children within marriage – 49 per cent are separated from marriage, divorced or widowed

  5. Lone parent families and poverty • Children in lone parent families have a much higher risk of living in poverty than children in couple families • Around four in every 10 (41 per cent) of children in lone parent families are poor, compared to just over two in every 10 of children in couple families • Paid work is not a guaranteed route out of poverty for lone parents; the poverty rate for one parent families where the parent works part time is 23 per cent, and 18 per cent where the parent works full time • 43 per cent of lone parents are social housing tenants compared to 12 per cent of couples • 71 per cent of all lone parent renters receive housing benefit compared to 25 per cent of all couple renters • 38 per cent of lone parents said that money always runs out before the end of the week/month compared to 19 per cent of couples

  6. What is life like for children experiencing poverty? • Miss out on the things that many other children take for granted • More than twice as likely as their better off peers to suffer developmental difficulties as they reach school age, facing challenges with early language and communication, physical health and social skills. • Less likely to reach their potential at school • More likely to experience lower health outcomes • Less likely to reach their potential in adult life

  7. Lone parents, work and childcare • Over half of lone parents in Scotland are in work (59.2 per cent), up 14.5 percentage points since 1997 • The employment rate for lone parents varies depending on the age of their youngest child. Once their children are 12 or over, lone parents’ employment rate is similar to, or higher than, the employment rate for mothers in couples • Where lone parents are not working, this is often because there are health issues that make work difficult: 33 per cent of unemployed lone parents have a disability or longstanding illness (16) and 34 per cent have a child with a disability

  8. Lone parents, work and childcare Lone parents rely heavily on informal childcare. Of those using childcare, 46 per cent said it was informal. For lone parents working 16 hours a week or more 34 per cent had a childcare arrangement with the child’s grandparents, and 17 per cent had an arrangement with their ex-partner Working lone parents paying for childcare are much more likely than working couples paying for childcare to find it difficult to meet childcare costs (32% compared to 22% of couples where one partner is in work, and 20% of couples where both work)

  9. Developing best practice • Recognise LPs juggle work and home life single handed • Integrated support and pathways • A non-punitive benefits regime • Childcare • Advice & Support for Parents • Employer engagement

  10. Pathways To Participation Progression Model Key Success Criteria • Recognition not dependency • Holistic ,trusted services • Tailored for Lone Parents • Focus on Family Goals • Peer Mentoring Approach • Capacity to Motivate • Cross Sector Partnerships

  11. Cross-sector partnerships with Housing Providers Support and Connect - Glasgow • Lone Parent Support and Advice Network in partnership with GHA for their lone parent tenants to give lone parents information & advice on welfare reform • Peer mentoring/Local champions • Links to other OPFS services Families’ House – Dundee • HA property – subsidised rent and support services • Childcare – expert support with adaptations/developments • Family Support • Employability • Community hub

  12. How to contact us… Satwat Rehman One Parent Families Scotland 13 Gayfield Square, EDINBURGH EH1 3NX satwat.rehman@opfs.org.uk Tel: 0131 556 3899 www.opfs.org.uk @OPFS

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