Poverty Journal articles

The Cost of the School Day project was started by CPAG in Scotland in 2014. In 2019 it expanded to more areas in Scotland, and launched in Wales and England. As the project draws to a close, what changes has it achieved for children? What has been learned about this type of work? And what would CPAG do differently next time?

By Kate Anstey

The benefit cap was introduced in 2013, and limits the total amount of support some low-earning and non-working families can receive from the social security system. What has been the impact of this policy? What will a recently announced change to the cap mean for families? And does this change go far enough?

By Kate Andersen

Between now and the end of 2024, the DWP plans to move everyone who is currently claiming ‘legacy’ benefits onto universal credit (UC). Legacy benefits are tax credits, employment and support allowance (ESA), jobseeker’s allowance, housing benefit and income support. What will the process involve? What are the risks for people affected? And is there a better way forward?

By Owen Stevens

What were families on a low income facing going into the pandemic? What was it like to take part in the Covid Realities research programme? And what do participants hope to achieve through the new project, Changing Realities?

By Caroline, Ella, Emma, Jo, Kim, Shirley and Tayyaba from Changing Realities

In September 2022 the government announced that the average bill would be capped at £2,500 a year for the next two years. What impact will this have on fuel poverty? How many households are spending even greater proportions of their income on fuel? And who will be worst affected by rising prices?

By Jonathan Bradshaw and Antonia Keung

What role can emergency support play in reducing demand for food banks and food aid in Britain? CPAG has just concluded a two year research project, Ending the Need for Food Banks, to examine how emergency support could be redesigned so it does just that. What could this new system look like?

By Kim McIntosh and Zhane Edwards

For most of the last 200 years, key measures of social fragility have been viewed as separate conditions, with antipoverty policy focused on raising the income floor, largely ignoring what has been happening at the top. But what is the relationship between inequality and the anti-poverty agenda?

By Stewart Lansley

How well does universal credit support those who might need more help to claim? In particular, does the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) respond to the needs of people with mental health problems to ensure they can access UC fully?

By Emily Williams

When the coalition government published its flagship paper on universal credit (UC) in 2010, it promised a ‘digital first’ benefit. Since then we have seen the digitalisation of the UK’s working-age social security system, a process that continues today. But what impact has this transformation had on claimants and their rights?

By Sophie Howes and Rosie Mears

Investment in social security alone will not be enough to end child poverty in Scotland, but the last 25 years shows us the clear link between social security and poverty rates across the UK. What opportunities do Scotland’s powers to invest in social security offer? And how can the Scottish government use them to reduce child poverty?

By Dave Morris and Ed Pybus