Peter Bryson, head of Save the Children NI, said: “The UK Government’s newly released poverty data lays bare once again that large numbers of children here remain locked in poverty. While there have been behind the scenes changes to how this is all calculated the figures don’t tell the full story. We know that in some of our communities 1 in 3 children live in poverty.
“The burden on families in Northern Ireland is higher than the headline data because we don’t have universal early years childcare, universal free school meals and rents have rocketed 50% in some areas in the last 6 years.”
“There remain big questions for Stormont about what it plans to do to tackle the widening inequality in terms of the support offered to children and families here, compared to the rest of these islands. Northern Ireland is becoming an outlier when it comes to the help it provides to children in poverty; we can’t just sit back and watch.
“For example, the UK Government funds universal free school meals for all years 1 and 2 in England, as well 30 hours per week of childcare from the age of 9 months.
“Six months on from the public consultation on the Anti-Poverty Strategy we are still waiting for answers and solutions. The Stormont Executive must bring forward targeted actions, with specific budget attached, to directly offer help to the growing number of struggling families.
“The lifting of the two-child limit is only the start of meaningfully addressing child poverty. Ministers must continue to build on this and invest in children so that every child has a safe, healthy and hopeful childhood.”