Government launches child poverty strategy to support families

The Government has announced a new Child Poverty Strategy, which aims to lift 550,000 children out of poverty by 2030.

The Government says that following the reversal of the two-child limit, the strategy tackles the root causes of poverty by cutting the cost of essentials, boosting family incomes, and improving local services so every child has the best start in life. The strategy found that children growing up in poverty do less well in school, are more likely to be unemployed when older and earn less throughout their lifetimes. Failure to tackle this problem has been holding back the economy, as well as stifling children’s potential.

New interventions in the strategy include more accessible childcare for working parents on Universal Credit. Childcare costs are one of the biggest barriers for parents who want to work and those starting or returning to jobs can particularly struggle to cover upfront childcare fees before they receive their first payslip.

From next year, the rules will change to make it easier for new parents who receive Universal Credit to get back to work by extending eligibility for upfront childcare costs to those returning from parental leave. This will prevent new parents from facing a debt trap meaning more parents can get back to work and get on in work faster. To support more parents with more than two children into work, families who receive Universal Credit will also be able to get support with childcare costs for all their children.

Children living in temporary accommodation are living in one of the deepest forms of poverty, this has a devastating impact, particularly on children. A stay in temporary accommodation increases a child’s experience of family disruption, missed schooling and damage to physical and mental health.

The strategy will also end the unlawful placement of families in Bed and Breakfasts beyond the six-week limit. To support this, the Government is investing £8 million in Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots in 20 local authorities that have the highest use of Bed and Breakfasts for homeless families – continuing the programme for the next three years.

Alongside this, the Government will provide £950 million through the fourth and largest round of the Local Authority Housing Fund from April 2026 to deliver up to 5,000 high-quality homes for better temporary accommodation by 2030. Further details will be set out in the upcoming Homelessness Strategy.

A new legal duty will also be introduced for councils to notify schools, health visitors, and GPs when a child is placed in temporary accommodation, so no child is left without support. This enables health and education providers to deliver a more joined up approach to support children experiencing homelessness. The Government will also work with the NHS to end the practice of mothers with newborns being discharged to B&Bs or other forms of unsuitable housing.

The Government will also support families with the cost of essentials by helping families to buy more affordable infant formula. The cost of some infant formula brands has risen by 25% in two years, putting pressure on families who cannot or choose not to breastfeed. The Government will set clear guidance for retailers that – together with allowing families to use loyalty points, vouchers, and gift cards to purchase formula – could save parents up to £540 in a baby’s first year and remove unnecessary barriers for low-income families.

Taken together, the measures in the strategy will lift 550,000 children out of relative low income at the end of this Parliament, with 7.1 million children seeing household incomes rise, including 1.4 million in deep material poverty – the largest reduction in child poverty by any Government in a single Parliament.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said “Every child deserves the best possible start in life, with their future no longer determined by the circumstances of their birth. Yet too many children are growing up in poverty, held back from getting on in life, and too many families are struggling without the basics: a secure home, warm meals, and the support they need to make ends meet. I will not stand by and watch that happen, because the cost of doing nothing is too high for children, for families, and for Britain.

“This is a moral mission for me. It’s about fairness, opportunity, and unlocking potential. Our strategy isn’t just about reversing the failures of the past, it sets a new course for national renewal, with children’s life chances at its heart.”

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Pat McFadden said “Tackling child poverty is an investment in working families and our country’s future. There is a direct link between children in poverty growing up to be adults not in work, education or training – we cannot afford to waste a generation’s potential and talents.Our strategy will deliver support where families need it most, giving every child a good start in life and giving them the opportunity to succeed.”

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said “Child poverty is a stain on our country. I’ve seen the damage poverty does first hand, and bearing down on it sits at the very core of this Government’s mission. This strategy, lifting over half a million children out of poverty, represents an historic moment for generations of families now and into the future.And whether it’s expanding free school meals, rolling out free breakfast clubs, or revitalising family services, we are determined to give every child the very best start in life.”

Priya Edwards, senior research and policy manager at Save the Children UK, said “Families will be better off under this plan with 7.1 million children seeing their household incomes boosted by the end of this Parliament. Scrapping the two-child limit to benefits, expanding free school meals, and increasing childcare support for families including for those returning to work after maternity leave are bold measures to improve childhoods’ – not the sticking plaster measures of the past.

“Ministers involved in creating the strategy listened extensively to children impacted by deep poverty over many months and we hope this way of working is used as a blueprint for creating policy in future that impacts young people.

“We welcome this expansive and historic plan, and we look forward to seeing the difference it can make to children’s lives in the years to come.”

Dame Clare Moriarty, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said “There is no excuse for child poverty, which damages countless children’s lives every single day. This is the moment when we must draw a line in the sand – and as a country do everything in our power to turn the tide for children growing up in poverty and hardship. We applaud the publication of this Child Poverty Strategy.  If fully delivered, the commitments made today have real potential to transform children’s lives. Our focus now is on ensuring these promises translate into action on the ground, helping to put food on tables, stability in households and hope back into children’s lives. We stand ready to work with Government to help make that happen.”

Peter Tutton, Director of Policy, Research and Public Affairs, at StepChange, said “Families facing poverty often become trapped in problem debt – compounding hardship, causing serious health problems and holding back children’s development. We’ve welcomed the opportunity to feed into the Child Poverty Strategy and evidence how parents, and especially single parents, face heightened vulnerability to debt. At StepChange, more than one in four of our debt advice clients are single parents (27%), compared to just one in ten UK households.

“The removal of the two-child limit is a decisive move that will ease pressure on hundreds of thousands of families, whilst the recent announcement to expand and make the Help to Save scheme permanent will support parents in building rainy-day savings.

“Families with low incomes face exceptional pressure from rising living costs. For this Strategy to deliver real impact, the Government must tackle the cost of essentials – through targeted energy support and by boosting incomes for working-age families, including uprating benefits such as Local Housing Allowance and council tax support.”