Policy Hub
On 14 November 2007, the Frank Buttle trust published a report (Living with hardship 24/7: the diverse experiences of families in poverty in England) which used a predominantly qualitative approach to explore the relationship between living on a low income and parenting. The views of parents, children and professionals helped to identify what would benefit families and how services can be better developed to meet their needs. The report explores the experiences of families on low incomes, revealing that a quarter of the poorest households cannot afford to put a hot meal on the table for every family member. Children as young as five were aware of financial difficulties.
The report says that relative poverty matters and that `the right needs to wake up to the fact that poverty is not simply a consequence of personal moral failure, but a social disease that robs people of ambition and hope.' Economic liberals need to recognise that, with the rising economic tide, poverty is becoming an increasingly entrenched and geographically clustered phenomenon. 'Meanwhile, the left should accept that a healthy life on benefits is as great a waste of potential as deprivation itself.
Living with hardship 24/7: the diverse experiences of families in poverty in England: press summary