South Tyneside Council has published its Child Poverty Strategy – the first in the North East.
South Tyneside is one of the most deprived communities in the country. A third of South Tyneside neighbourhoods are in the top 10 per cent of most deprived areas nationally.
South Tyneside will take a system wide approach targeted at mitigating, preventing, and alleviating child poverty in the Borough. Nationally, child poverty has risen over recent years and nearly a third (29.2 per cent) of UK children were living in households in poverty in 2022/23.
Development of the Child Poverty Strategy comes after the Council held a Child Poverty Summit in October 2024, bringing together partners from across the North East to build up a comprehensive picture of the situation in South Tyneside and to help identify actions as detailed in the proposed new strategy.
Councillor Tracey Dixon, Leader of South Tyneside Council and Deputy Chair of the North East Combined Authority’s Child Poverty Reduction Unit, said:
“There are devastating levels of child poverty within our Borough and the region.”
“We know that almost a third of young people in South Tyneside are living in poverty and the impact of that on children's lives and childhoods can be linked to low birth weight in babies, poor physical and mental health and much more. Our Child Poverty Strategy directly tackles those burning issues.
“Most of the levers to action real change are still in the control of central government and we hope that this strategy will directly influence the work of the national Child Poverty Taskforce in developing its National Child Poverty Strategy due to be published later this year.
“While it’s important that we do everything we can to improve the lives and life chances of children now, we need to address the root causes to stop people being in poverty in the first place.”
The four main priorities of the Strategy are:
• Maximising Family Income, which involves improving access to financial support, extending the ‘reducing the cost of the school day’ programme, increasing Free School Meals support and much more;
• Making work a route out of poverty, which includes engaging with employers to explore the Real Living Wage and rolling out in-work poverty adults through the South Tyneside Pledge;
• The best start in life, through boosting the work of Family Hubs, increasing the uptake of Healthy Start vouchers and rolling out more Baby Boxes;
• Making all decisions through a poverty lens’ demonstrates a commitment to ensure the voice of lived experience drives forward change.
The strategy is directly informed by evidence, insight and calls for urgent action from the North East Child Poverty Commission’s report ‘No time to wait; An ambitious blueprint for tackling child poverty in the North East’, published in February 2024.
Beth Farhat, Chair of the North East Child Poverty Commission, said: “Whilst this issue can sometimes feel overwhelming, there is nothing inevitable about child poverty, including here in the north east.
“From relatively recent history, we know that child poverty in the UK and in our region is highly policy-responsive – and that means there are actions we can take together at a local, regional and national level to mitigate, reduce and prevent it.
“Far too many children, including in South Tyneside, are being held back by poverty, having their opportunities limited and options restricted. No child gets a second childhood and what happens during this crucial period of development can impact outcomes for the rest of our lives.
“It’s really important that we do much more as a country, to invest more of our nation’s wealth in children and young people – and I am delighted to see South Tyneside Council adopting this strategic approach to tackling child poverty, working in close partnership with organisations across the Borough.’
Actions, focusing on the four key themes, are targeted to meet the needs and address the barriers and challenges that specific groups are facing. This targeted approach ensures that resources are focused on areas and interventions that can have the biggest impact in alleviating child poverty across South Tyneside.
North East Mayor Kim McGuinness is endorsing the proposed new strategy for South Tyneside. She said: "South Tyneside Council and Cllr Dixon have led the way on this agenda, showing that it is possible to tackle poverty and create opportunity with political will, leadership and a clear and comprehensive plan.
“That's the approach I want to take across the North East, so no more of our young people are held back and can fulfil their potential.
“Tackling poverty child poverty is the biggest challenge we face in the North East and my number one priority as Mayor. That's why the Child Poverty Reduction Unit was established. We're investing in more affordable childcare, more social housing, and more good jobs to create the foundations for a North East free of poverty, as well as making sure public transport is more affordable for hard-pressed families.”
As a result of last October’s Child Poverty Summit, the Council has committed to enhancing support to schools to reduce the cost of the school day and support parents just above the Free School Meal threshold; encourage take-up of Free School Meals; roll out more baby boxes to new parents; provide further welfare support within Family Hubs; and expand advice on money matters and help on sustainable cooking to parents within school settings.
The Strategy will be considered at a meeting of Borough Council on 20 March.
Image credit: iStock
