Our response to the Government’s child poverty strategy
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A key part of our work is campaigning and calling for changes to the systems and policies that affect people experiencing poverty, homelessness and disadvantage.
One of the ways we do this is through engaging with policymakers such as MPs and councillors to highlight the changes we believe would help improve the lives of people we work with across Greater Manchester and Lancashire.
In recent months, we’ve met with local MPs to share about our child poverty report and discuss with them our recommendations for change ahead of the Government’s child poverty strategy.
We were grateful that, following our meetings, a number of MPs advocated on behalf of our charity and the children and families we work with by writing to the Government Ministers responsible for the strategy, highlighting our work and the need for tangible change.
The Government has since published its child poverty strategy, which it says is a first step towards ending child poverty. We’re pleased that the Government has committed to a strategy and to monitor and evaluate the impact of its policy measures.
We believe it is unacceptable that 330,000 children are growing up in poverty in the areas of Greater Manchester and Lancashire we work in.
We’re encouraged to see this step forward from the Government in terms of addressing child poverty.
We were also pleased that the child poverty taskforce engaged with families experiencing poverty during their development of the strategy – it’s crucial that people with lived experience of an issue can meaningfully contribute towards policy change.
We’re part of the End Child Poverty Coalition, which produced ‘Eight Tests’ for the child poverty strategy, the first of which was that it must contain legally binding targets to eradicate child poverty over the next 20 years. While there is a framework in place for monitoring and evaluating, the strategy does not contain ambitious targets to which they can be held to account.
Some of the key measures that we welcome in the child poverty strategy include:
- An end to the two-child benefit limit which will see 450,000 children lifted out of poverty by the end of this Parliament. This was one of our key campaigning asks, and is the most cost-effective way to immediately reduce child poverty.
- Expansion of free school meals to all children who live in a household receiving Universal Credit, as announced earlier this year.
- Expanding Government-funded childcare for families where a parent is working, as well as increasing childcare support for families claiming Universal Credit. There will also be a review of childcare provision, aiming to simplify the system for providers and families.
- An end to the unlawful use of bed and breakfasts for more than six weeks as temporary accommodation for families, and a notification system for local authorities to notify schools and GPs when a child is placed in temporary accommodation.
Changes we were disappointed not to see in the strategy and will continue to call for include:
- An end to the benefit cap, which will keep many families in poverty and mean that over 20 per cent of those currently affected by the two-child limit will see either no gain or just a partial gain when the two-child limit is lifted.
- Unfreezing of Local Housing Allowance rates and uprating in line with local rents, to make homes affordable for more people receiving housing-related benefits. Crisis has found that less than three per cent of privately rented homes in England are affordable for people impacted by this policy, which is a significant driver of homelessness.
- Free school meals for all, so that all children can have at least one warm, nutritious meal each school day, and bringing an end to stigma around free school meals.
- Further action for children whose families have No Recourse to Public Funds attached to their immigration status. The action the strategy does set out is likely to be undermined by recent changes announced by the Home Office which will mean more children will have No Recourse to Public Funds, and therefore be more likely to experience poverty.
Overall, while this strategy is likely to stop child poverty from increasing, it will not be enough to ensure significant reductions in child poverty rates, let alone see a much-needed end to child poverty.
As we head into 2026, we’re committed to continuing to work alongside children and families across Greater Manchester and Lancashire and calling for changes to bring an end to poverty and help people transform their lives with dignity.
Thank you to everyone who joined us in campaigning for change ahead of the child poverty strategy and continues to support us in our work.
It truly makes a difference when we join together to call for justice.
Read more about our child poverty work here and find out how you can help.
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