Causes Of Child Poverty In The Uk Social Work Essay Essays

Causes Of Child Poverty In The Uk Social Work Essay Essays Causes Of Child Poverty In The Uk Social Work Essay Essay Causes Of Child Poverty In The Uk Social Work Essay Essay a ) What are the chief causes of child poorness in the UK today? The United Kingdom is widely regarded as holding one of the worst rates of child poorness in the industrialized universe. This sentiment was echoed by the findings of the 2007 UNICEF Innocenti Report a comprehensive appraisal of the lives and wellbeing of kids and striplings in economically advanced states which finally concluded that of the 21 states involved, the UK boasted the most alarming kid poorness statistics. The End Child Poverty survey conducted in 2008 revealed that about four million kids were populating in poorness in the UK. Tess Ridge ( 2004 ) points out that there are several cardinal factors that serve to do kids peculiarly vulnerable to sing poorness. Near to three million kids live in lone-parent households and they are peculiarly at hazard of sing poorness during their childhood ( Rowlingson and McKay, 2002 ) . Children brought up in such an environment are likely to be portion of the means-tested benefits system. This in bend increases the opportunities of a kid being subjected to degrees of poorness for a long period of clip. J. Miller ( 1989 ) notes that the fact the bulk of lone parents are female and in low paid employment is brooding of gender disagreements within matrimony and within the labour force. Bradbury et Al ( 2001 ) farther supports this statement by claiming kids in lone-mother households display higher degrees of poorness than kids portion of two parent families. Surveies concentrating on cultural minority kids and poorness are sparse. However, Adelman and Bradshaw s ( 1998 ) rating of the Family Resources Study revealed that Pakistani and Bangladeshi kids are victims of improbably high poorness rates with about 80 % of kids populating below 50 % of average income poorness line after lodging costs. Ridge ( 2004 ) explains that racial favoritism besides contributes to a great extent to childhood poorness amongst cultural groups. Prejudice in the workplace leave cultural minority groups susceptible to low wage and unemployment ; the hazard of unemployment for people from cultural communities is three or four times greater than that of white people ( Howard et al, 2001 ) . The links between child poorness and disablement are obviously evident. Harmonizing to Gordon and Heslop ( 1999 ) , households with a handicapped kid are among some of the poorest of the hapless . Poverty besides affects those kids populating in households where there are grownups with disablements and long-run illness. A study undertaken by the Department of Work and Pensions in 2002 showed 76 % of kids in families where unwellness or disablement was present were having a cardinal benefit ( be it Incapacity Benefit, Severe Disablement Allowance, or Income Support ) for two or more old ages ( DWP, 2002 ) . Household employment position has besides proved to be a major factor of poorness impacting kids. In 1995/96, 54 % of all kids in poorness were populating in workless families ( Gregg et al, 1999 ) . Unemployment within households non merely brings economic disadvantage but can besides hold negative deductions on a kid s aspirations and societal development. In amount, it is clear by careful consideration of the above factors, that these are non stray hazards but hazards that are per se linked and in many instances underpinned. Any policies intended to forestall child poorness must undertake these hazard factors head on, concentrating specifically on the milieus and fortunes in which poorness stricken kids inhabit. B ) What has the authorities done to relieve kid poorness? The Labour authoritiess lift to power in 1997 brought a displacement in policy towards turn toing kid poorness. In 1999, Tony Blair pledged to eliminate kid poorness within 20 old ages. Consequently, degrees of policy activity dramatically increased and an expansive programme of public assistance reform was introduced in order to control kid poorness. Harmonizing to Ridge ( 2004 ) these policies fell into three wide countries: support for kids, predominately through educational agencies support for parents, predominately aimed at doing work wage, child care and parenting strategies alterations in fiscal support for kids and households via the revenue enhancement and benefit system. In order to maintain up to rush with such policies, the authorities committed itself to bring forthing one-year poorness reappraisals entitled Opportunity for All. These studies outlined actions that would be put into topographic point to help in the battle against poorness looking in peculiar at bettering literacy and numeracy accomplishments whilst cut downing degrees of hooky, school exclusions and teenage gestations. Schemes such as Certain Start in England and Wales were introduced. This enterprise was designed with the purpose of giving kids the best possible start in life. Gordon Brown ( 2000 ) proclaimed the initial end was to hold 250 local programmes in topographic point by 2002. This figure was reached and to day of the month, there are over 500 Centres in operation. For adolescents aged 16-18, Education Maintenance Allowances were launched in 2004 in order to promote kids from low income households to remain on in instruction after the school go forthing age. As of 2008, kids whose households earned less than ?20, 817 per annum were entitled to ?30 per hebdomad to cover the cost of their tuition. ( hypertext transfer protocol: //ema.direct.gov.uk ) . Another scheme used by the authorities to cut down kid poorness was the debut in 2003 of working revenue enhancement recognition ( WTC ) and child revenue enhancement recognition ( CTC ) . WTC is aimed at low-income working households but besides designed to lure adult females such as lone parents into the workplace. Basically, it is a payment to exceed up the net incomes of low-paid workers, including those who do nt hold kids. In the bulk of instances, the employer pays it alongside rewards or salary and the sum received is dependent on your income. In 2006, low paid workers could claim up to ?1410 for a individual worker aged 25 and over and up to ?3005 for a twosome gaining less than ?8,000 a twelvemonth. CTC offers fiscal support to households irrespective of their province of employment. It is besides paid in add-on to WTC and any child benefit financess the household may have. The sum a household are entitled excessively is based on their income. In 2006, the sum for one kid was ?545 a twelvemonth for high earners, up to ?2420 for those on low incomes, with excess money for immature kids and handicapped kids. Harmonizing to Sloman ( 2007 ) , apart from aiming support at poorer households, both the WTC and CTC are intended to better inducements to work, by cut downing the poorness trap. In simple footings, households are no longer to a great extent penalised through lost benefits and revenue enhancements by working. In amount, the Labour authorities has actively attempted to carry through its promise to turn to the issue of child poorness in the UK. This is farther supported by Miller and Ridge s ( 2002 ) appraisal that kids and immature people in general have become much more seeable in the policy procedure under Labour s leading and this in itself is a important development. degree Celsiuss ) How successful have they been in turn toing kid poorness? In the last 10 old ages, a overplus of constabularies has been sanctioned by the Labour authorities in the hope of cut downing child poorness. Economic stableness and paid employment were the focal point of the scheme designed to work out the job. By swerving clear of a benefits strategy and researching an of all time turning labour market, it was widely felt households could lift their kids from under the poorness line and sit the states wave of economic prosperity. The rhetoric has changed: in return for a kid benefit and revenue enhancement recognition system, the debut of Certain Start and betterments in the instruction system, benefit claimants now portion a corporate duty to the province to work. Possibly the most of import success of the last 10 old ages is the fact that concerns about kid poorness and now widely shared. This has lead to the three major parties within the UK political system recognizing the issue and later vowing to undertake it. However, beneath the surface there exists a troubled tenseness between apprehensiveness over child poorness and an apparent neglect for high degrees of inequality within the state. In bend, this has threatened to undo all the authorities s difficult work of the past decennary. Consequently, if the authorities fails to turn to these insufficiencies, they will everlastingly be running the hazard of taking two stairss frontward and one measure back with any advancement being made at a slow and painstaking gait. In amount, its clip for the authorities to step up and face the issue of child poorness. The last decennary has yielded consequences and shows the UK has the resources to turn to poorness. Tony Blair made a committedness to stop kid poorness and his predecessors must follow through on that promise. As the Treasury Select Committee late argued: The Chancellor has told us that the Government remains strongly committed to run intoing the kid poorness marks, but this needs to be demonstrated through steadfast action on undertaking child poorness in the 2009 Budget, including the deployment of extra resources ( Treasury Select Committee, 2008 ) While there is a political consensus that child poorness is a job and that it needs to be ended, the authorities has merely over 10 old ages to present on a promise that could radically change kids s lives and chances. To set it bluffly, if politicians are serious about eliminating child poorness, much more demands to be done.