Policy Brief: Measuring severe child poverty in the UK

Published

January 2010

We're outraged that children and families in the UK are living in severe poverty.

This briefing reveals that 1.7 million children across the UK live in severe poverty — around 13% of all UK children.

The number of children living in severe poverty has risen over the period 2004/05—2007/08, from 11% to 13% of all children.

This increase has occurred against a backdrop of rising levels of overall child poverty.

We're calling on the UK government to refocus its efforts on the poorest children in the UK.

• Download Policy Brief: Measuring severe child poverty in the UK (PDF 102KB)
• Read our press release on child poverty in the UK

Related reading

• Why Money Matters: Family income, poverty and children’s lives
• A Child’s Portion: An analysis of public expenditure on children in the UK
• Britain’s Poorest Children: Severe and persistent poverty and social exclusion