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xCost of a Child report shows effect of benefit cuts on families
Date: 28th August 2018
Category:
Child poverty
Research from the Child Poverty Action Group's (CPAG) 2018 Cost of a Child report shows that parents working on the 'national living wage' are still unable to afford a basic 'no-frills' lifestyle.
More specifically, it details that a family with two parents working full time on the national living wage are 11% short of the income each week to have what is defined by the public as an acceptable living standard. The report highlights a combination of rising prices, benefit freezes, the introduction of the benefit cap and two-child limit, bedroom tax, and the rollout of universal credit as the causes behind the tightening of family budgets.
The report subsequently highlights the financial situation of lone parents. A lone parent on median earnings will continue to be 15% short of an adequate income because of the high cost of child care.
The report was authored by Donald Hirsch, Director of the Centre for Research in Social Policy, where he leads the Minimum Income Standard for the UK Programme.