Save the Children

Chris Wellings, UK Head of PolicyThe challenge of child poverty and

inequality

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Child Poverty today - An overview

- In 2010 / 11 there were 2.3 million children living in poverty before housing costs and 3.6 million children living in poverty after housing costs

- Last year 34% of pupils on free school meals achieved five good GCSEs, compared to 62% of pupils from better-off homes

- More children are likely to fall into poverty in the coming years – the Institute for Fiscal Studies has projected that child poverty is set to rise by 400,000 in the next three years and by 800,000 by 2020

Save the Children and Middlesex University

• 1,123 families have graduated from FAST over the last 2 years

• Parents reported statistically significant improvements on a huge range of measures - including family cohesion, family expressiveness and family relationships

• Teachers reported statistically significantly improvements in children’s academic competence, in teacher relationships with parents and in parent involvement with the school and their children’s education

• Overall parents rated the FAST programme 9.21 out of 10

Developing Children’s Zones

- A new report in partnership with Professor Alan Dyson from the Universityof Manchester

- Fundamental principles of Children’sZones - to help children in a sustainedway, starting as early in their lives as possible, and to create a critical mass ofadults around them who understandwhat it takes to help children succeed