A STATEMENT FROM THE END CHILD POVERTY CAMPAIGN
(www.endchildpoverty.org.uk)
Child poverty is as real in its effects as any cancer, eating away at the core of our society. Almost one in three children in the UK is experiencing poverty - 3.8 million children.
Child poverty happens because we all tolerate it. Many of us are unwilling to speak out about it. The rest of society looks away or denies it exists. It is easy to see why.
Other people’s situations are not our concern, we tell ourselves. It is none of our business if other children experience poverty as long as our children are all right. Perhaps their families brought it on themselves, made bad choices, wasted their money.
But why don’t families in poverty help themselves? Are they just scroungers living off society? They are not really poor. If it were so bad why don’t they get a job? They waste their money on alcohol and cigarettes. The poor have always been with us and always will…………….. The excuses roll off the tongue quicker than the reasons for why it has to end.
But poverty blights children’s lives. Poor children are excluded from participating in society. They can’t afford school trips and activities; school uniforms or warm winter clothes, are unable to go swimming, have friends round for tea or celebrate their birthdays. Many will never have a holiday.
Child poverty costs us all, not only to children’s futures and their families, but also to society at large. Children who grow up poor are more likely to leave school without qualifications, have lower employment chances, thus restrict their ability to get a good job and financially contribute to society.
Every child in poverty is a step further away from a well functioning society based on a relationship of trust and respect; children are stigmatised and bullied because they can’t afford to fit in. People experiencing poverty are the same as everyone else, but are excluded from society, because they can’t afford to participate. Many of them are in work - over half of the children in poverty today are from families with one or more parent in work. Living in poverty creates enormous pressure on families and can ruin mental and physical health. We are all diminished for looking the other way.
Child poverty is a hidden scandal but it is not inevitable. Organisations across the private and public sectors are working with others to eradicate child poverty and you can help.
We need to ensure that Governments invest the resources needed to meet the 2020 target of ending child poverty in a lifetime. This requires action not just on income poverty, but also on other areas including tackling poor education outcomes and lack of employment, health inequalities and providing affordable housing.
The campaign needs your support to raise the government’s game and pressurise ministers into taking the action necessary to ensure we end child poverty. They have to commit the resources required to tackle the causes as well as the symptoms of poverty.
We need to change hearts as well as minds.
Only when child poverty becomes everyone’s business will it really change. We want you to join with us in imagining a world where child poverty is thing of the past. And then we want you to help us achieve this end.
Organisations across the private and public sectors are campaigning to ensure the goal of eradicating child poverty becomes a reality. Our campaign gives voice to the millions of children experiencing poverty through no fault of their own, and to the thousands of people who want to stand up and speak out against it.
