Literacy news

Iain Duncan Smith reveals Government’s child poverty strategy

6 Apr 2011

Following the announcement of the Government’s social mobility strategy, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Rt Hon Iain Duncan Smith MP, has launched the coalition’s first child poverty strategy, setting out how the Government plans to eliminate child poverty.

The main focus of the report is on changes to the benefits system that the Government has said will lift 350,000 children out of poverty by 2017. However, the report also focuses on policies designed to enact a cultural change, and move the child poverty debate beyond financial factors. ‘The Fairness Premium’ is a £7.2bn fund aimed at reducing disadvantage at aged 2, during school years, and when moving into higher education.

One key recommendation focuses on the differences in vocabulary development between children from low and middle income households, and the negative effects this produces. To combat this, the report calls for; “a culture change towards recognising the importance of parenting.” This will be supported by a number of grant allocations for local voluntary and community organisations, as “promoting good parenting is not primarily a job for the Government.”

Speaking at the launch of the report, Iain Duncan Smith, said "Through our expanded network of health visitors, relationship education and other positive initiatives, such as our national families with multiple problems campaign, we will ensure a vulnerable child’s desire to be raised by their parents in a loving safe home has more chance of being a reality in 2020 than it does today."

Read the full report on the Department for Work and Pensions Website

Read an article on the release at Children and Young People Now

Tags: Children, Communities and local areas, Early Years, England, Talk To Your Baby, Young People

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