Call for child payments to be increased to drive down poverty rates

More than 150 charities, faith groups, trade unions and community organisations from across Scotland have urged First Minister Humza Yousaf to use the upcoming Scottish budget to drive down child poverty.

The organisations have signed an open letter asking the SNP leader to make good on his leadership campaign commitment to raise the Scottish Child Payment from £25 to £30 a week “as a first step” to meet child poverty targets.

The letter highlights the payment has not been increased for 16 months despite hard-pressed families facing inflation rates that have not been experienced for decades, with low-income households being the worst affected.

Signatories to the letter include the Archbishop of Glasgow, the Children’s Commissioner, the general secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC), and the heads of dozens of children’s charities and anti-poverty groups.

The coalition believes the First Minister must also prioritise child poverty investment across early learning and childcare, employability, fair work, family support and housing.

They say tens of thousands of children across Scotland are currently locked in poverty and the looming budget is a “critical test” of the Scottish Government’s willingness to match its stated ambition of shifting the dial on the problem.

John Dickie, director of the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) in Scotland, said: “Today’s letter to the First Minister demonstrates the largest yet coalition of support for a further increase to the Scottish Child Payment and a prioritising of child poverty across government spending.

“The First Minister himself has said his defining mission is to shift the dial on child poverty and that he wants to see the child payment increased to £30 in his first budget. It’s now critical for Scotland’s children that his tax and spending plans deliver on those commitments.”

Roz Foyer, general secretary of the STUC, said: “Child poverty is an absolute scandal that should shame those in positions of power.

“The STUC is proud to support the call for significant additional investment to tackle child poverty in the upcoming budget.

“During this cost-of-living crisis, raising the Scottish Child Payment from £25 to £30 per week is imperative to ensure that families have enough to live on.

“We need to see significant investment to improve the lives of millions and loosen the grip of poverty.”

Unison Scottish secretary Lilian Macer said: “We need significant investment in tackling child poverty – both through improving funding for the services that help offset the damage poverty does to children’s lives and directly, by increasing the value of the Scottish Child Payment, which has been such a welcome initiative.”

Carolyn Currie, chief executive of Women’s Enterprise Scotland, said: “Women’s Enterprise Scotland is committed to the vision of a more equitable Scotland, including the eradication of child poverty.

“We support the call to increase the Scottish Child Payment as a vital step in better equipping families to face the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. This action is key to making progress on child poverty in Scotland.”

Dr Mairi Stark, Scotland Officer of The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH), said: “In an affluent society such as ours it is wholly unacceptable for children and their families to lack food, shelter, clothing and fuel.

“As paediatricians we are well aware of the significant health impacts of growing up in poverty. The consequences of which will follow children across their life course, taking away opportunities and stop them reaching their full potential.

“The current cost-of-living crisis has exacerbated these already deeply embedded issues and allowed health inequalities to rise dramatically.

“To truly improve health outcomes for children and young people, we must first address the effects poverty has on education, housing and social environment.

“We are once again urging the Scottish Government to make the vital increase in the Scottish Child Payment from £25 to £30 to help families in need.”

The draft Scottish budget for 2024-2025 will be published on December 19.