GLASGOW HAS HIGHEST CHILD POVERTY RATE

GLASGOW has the highest child poverty rate in Scotland, figures reveal. With child poverty hitting “devastatingly high” levels across the UK, charities are urging the Government to take action to prevent more families from falling into hardship when the crisis ends.

In Glasgow, 28,404 children aged under 16 were living in families with low incomes in 2019-20, Department for Work and Pensions data shows – an estimated 28.2% of all youngsters in the area.

That was up slightly from 27.7% the year before, and the largest proportion in the whole of Scotland.

A family is defined as in low income if it earns less than 60% of the national median household income before housing costs are considered.

Families are included in the figures if they have claimed child benefit alongside another means of support, such as Universal Credit, tax credits or housing benefit, at some point in the year.

Of the children in poverty in Glasgow last year, 7,975 (28%) were below school age.

The majority of children (62%) were in working households, while 43% were in lone-parent families.

They were among 171,800 under-16s in poverty across Scotland as a whole last year.

Different figures show that across the UK, a record 3.2 million children were living in relative poverty in 2019-20 – with the figure rising to 4.3 million after housing costs were taken into account.

Imran Hussain, director of policy and campaigns at charity Action for Children, said: “The Government is in denial over child poverty which continues to rise and threatens to torpedo its flagship plans for levelling up.

“Experts have warned that child poverty will rise even further after the pandemic, with working families facing a double threat this coming winter to their living standards as unemployment peaks and Universal Credit is cut. Three-quarters of children in poverty live in working families.”

Mr Hussain said families with children have been among the hardest hit by the pandemic.

“It’s vital the Government brings forward a credible plan to reduce poverty,” he added.

The Child Poverty Action Group, which is also calling for a boost to benefit payments, said the “dismal” figures show leaders need to take urgent action.

Chief executive Alison Garnham said: “Increasing child benefit by £10 per week would lift 450,000 children from poverty.”