The ‘bank of mum and dad’ is a crucial source of welfare for people on low incomes, and those not able to access it are at greater risk of isolation and poverty, according to a new report from the Social Market Foundation think tank.
The report focuses on the prevalence and impact of familial welfare in low-income families, specifically the financial and practical assistance parents give to adult children. It draws in part on polling by ComRes – an online survey of 2,055 adults, boosted by computer-assisted telephone interviews with 510 people from low-income households. Polling took place in June-July 2013.
Some of the UK’s most vulnerable families are struggling to afford essential household items such as fridges and beds due to a ‘poverty penalty’, says a new report from the campaign group Family Action.
The report is based on online polling by YouGov, designed to find out what people consider to be the main spending pressures and unexpected costs of moving to and setting up a new home or maintaining an existing one. 2,338 adults were surveyed between 28 and 30 August 2013.
The overall level of relative poverty in Northern Ireland increased between 2010-11 and 2011-12, according to the latest edition of the Northern Ireland Poverty Bulletin. The bulletin contains headline poverty figures drawn from the latest Households Below Average Income datasets for the period April 2011 up to the end of March 2012.
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has said he finds it 'hard to talk' about modern-day poverty when he comes across families on low incomes who live on junk food but spend money on expensive TV sets.
Oliver was being interviewed by the Radio Times magazine about his forthcoming television project, which he hopes will encourage healthy eating by people on modest incomes.
Oliver said: 'I'm not judgmental, but I've spent a lot of time in poor communities, and I find it quite hard to talk about modern-day poverty. You might remember that scene in Ministry of Food [a previous series], with the mum and the kid eating chips and cheese out of Styrofoam containers, and behind them is a massive fucking TV. It just didn't weigh up'.
As many as 12 per cent of households are finding it difficult to manage financially, and a further 27 per cent are 'just about getting by', according to the first in a series of five annual reports on financial inclusion from Birmingham University researchers.
Some of the poorest families in England are at risk from changes to the Social Fund for people in financial crisis, says a report from the Children's Society charity. Key parts of the Social Fund have now been devolved to local authorities: but researchers found that the money given to local authorities to replace the Fund is less than half of what used to be allocated to it.
Even a very modest rented home is beyond the reach of low-income households in 33 per cent of all local authority areas, says a new report from the Resolution Foundation think tank. It described the results of its research as 'alarming'.
The report uses independent housing market data to examine the situation of a couple with one child, and an annual net income of £22,000, to see where they can afford to live if they spend no more than 35 per cent of their net income on housing – a widely accepted definition of affordability.
This working paper provides a review of the qualitative evidence base relating to the experience of poverty and social exclusion in the UK for which to date few systematic reviews exist. Its principal objective is to identify gaps in the current evidence base in order to inform the design and conduct of the Phase II Qualitative Research of the PSE 2011, ‘Understanding Experiences of Low Income During Recession’. It is also intended that the review will act as a resource for further aspects of PSE UK research.
Key markets for utilities and financial services are failing those on the lowest incomes, says a new report. It calculates that higher prices for utilities and credit – the 'poverty premium' – can raise the cost of a minimum household budget by around 10 per cent.
The PSE linked up with Poverty Alliance Scotland to highlight key findings from their ‘EPIC’ project. This project brings together people directly affected by poverty with policy and decision-makers to achieve change. A key issue experienced by people on low-income is the stigma of poverty.