Child poverty is now at a record high of 4.5 million and analysis shows levels are set to rise to almost 5 million children in poverty by 2030*. This could be the first Labour government in history to oversee a significant rise in child poverty unless it takes action.
We heard directly from children and their families what changes they need to see a positive difference in their lives, and we are now urging the UK government to invest more in children over the course of the current Parliament. Their essential first steps should be to:
- scrap the two-child limit on benefits and the benefits cap – ending these policies would lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty overnight
- introduce a Child Lock to guarantee children’s benefits increase in line with wages or inflation, whichever is higher – implementing this change would benefit 93% of children and their families
- introduce an ambitious Child Poverty Strategy rooted in the lived experience of children and families
We want the UK government to fund an ambitious Child Poverty Strategy in the Comprehensive Spending Review in June 2025, starting with these changes to social security.
Save the Children was asked by the UK government's Child Poverty Taskforce to facilitate input into the Child Poverty Strategy from children, young people, families and local practitioners working with families on low incomes. As part of our No Limits to Childhood campaign, we will publish a series of briefings throughout May to highlight what children and families have told the UK government directly about what change is needed across key areas that make up sound investment in children: housing, childcare & education, social security, and family-friendly local economies and communities.
Child poverty is not an inevitability; it is a consequence of political choices. The UK government can lift children out of poverty, unlock their potential, and create a fairer, stronger society with no limits to childhood.
Our Policy Briefings
Three of our series of No Limits to Childhood briefings, on housing, childcare & education, and social security, are available below.
The fourth in the series, on family-friendly local economies & communities, will follow by the end of May.
What We're Calling For
To reduce child poverty in the UK and give families the support they need, there should be no limits to childhood. The UK government must:
- Scrap the two-child limit and benefit cap, which denies essential support to children based solely on family size.
Commit to a ‘Child Lock’ that ensures that child-related benefits rise in line with wages or average earnings (whichever is higher), so families don't fall further behind.
Deliver a strong child poverty strategy, with targeted support and real solutions that tackle the root causes of poverty - like low wages, high housing costs, and inadequate benefits.
It’s time for our government to make the right choices and build a future where every child can grow up safe, healthy, and hopeful.
WE HEAR WHAT CHILDREN ARE TELLING US
In conversations across the country, children are speaking out about life in poverty - about empty cupboards, freezing homes, and the shame of going without.
We have a responsibility to listen, to act, and to make sure their futures aren’t defined by a postcode or a policy decision.
I think that no matter how many children you choose to have in this country, your children should be safe, they shouldn’t be living in poverty or affected by the cost of living crisis like we are, because they are the future.
-SCUK youth panel member
The two-child limit means that bigger families don’t have the money for things they need, like food, and things for school.
-SCUK youth panel member
It’s just morally wrong to have a cap on the number of children you have.
-SCUK youth panel member
HOW TO GET INVOLVED
WRITE TO YOUR MP. HELP END CHILD POVERTY.
Neither children nor the UK government have time to waste when it comes to ending child poverty.
Right now, you have the power to influence the policies shaping children’s lives. By writing to your MP, you can help put pressure on the government to scrap the cruel two-child limit and commit to real action on child poverty.
Children shouldn’t have to pay the price for political decisions. Use your voice to tell your MP to take action now to reduce child poverty.
It only takes a few minutes - but it could help change a child’s life.
Sign the petition.
If you agree it's not ok that 1 in 3 children in the UK live in poverty...
If you want the government to remove the 2-child limit and the benefit cap...
If you think child-related benefits should be protected, and should rise in line with inflation or average earnings...
Sign the petition below.
