DWP Data Shows Families Under the Poverty Line Are Moving Deeper into Poverty

POVERTY - Families already living under the poverty line have been pushed deeper into poverty since 2012, new analysis from Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) shows.  And, the analysis finds, the number of children in poverty in households where all the parent(s) work full time  - be they single or couple-parents - has doubled from 200,000 in 2012/13 to 400,000 in 2017/18.*

The analysis of DWP data shows the average ‘poverty gap’ - ie how far below the poverty line poor families are living –  jumped by 30% between 2012/13 and 2017/18 even after controlling for inflation.   That means that after housing costs (AHC) are taken into account, poor families are now on average £73 per week (28%) below the poverty line, up from £56 in 2012/13.

Child Poverty Action Group Chief Executive Alison Garnham said:

“We know that the number of children in poverty is rising - and at risk of reaching a record high - but poor families are also deeper in poverty than they were just seven years ago.  That should sound alarm bells for a Government committed to ‘levelling up’ because it means families in poverty are further away from escaping it.   Many of these families are living well below the poverty line.  Their children are going without the basics of a good childhood with all the lost opportunities that brings for them and for our wider economy.   Our new Government has committed to reducing child poverty.  It must now bring forward clear policies for achieving this.”

While there is a tendency for the poverty gap, at any one time, to shrink when the poverty rate grows (because when people have just moved into poverty they are likely to have incomes relatively close to the poverty line), since 2012/13, both the poverty rate and poverty gap (before housing costs and after housing costs) have risen – so over the past five years more children have been pushed into poverty, while those in poverty are further away from escaping it.

The poverty gap is consistently higher for couple-households compared to lone parents, although since 2013 the poverty gap for lone parents has risen by 36%, reducing the difference considerably.   This is unsurprising perhaps given that since 2013 benefits have been cut in real terms causing particularly heavy losses for lone parents who derive a higher share of their income from benefits.

The analysis also shows that the poverty gap (AHC) grew between 2012/13 to 2017/18  for all family types who are poor– for couples where both partners work , where one partner and neither partner works and for lone parents whether they work or not.

ABC Note: Poverty estimates: An estimated 14.3 million people are in poverty in the UK. 8.3 million are working-age adults, 4.6 million are children, and 1.3 million are of pension age.

Around 22% of people are in poverty, and 34% of children are considered to be in poverty.

ABC Comment, have your say below: