Latest news with #ChildrensCommissioner
The Guardian
11-07-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
The toxic effect of poverty on children's health
In the last 18 months I've found myself having to respond to claims that mental health culture has gone too far, that we're over-diagnosing mental health problems and that we're simply medicalising the ups and downs of life. I hope the children's commissioner's report (Children in England 'living in almost Dickensian levels of poverty', 8 July) is a moment for everyone to reflect on what the 'ups and downs' of life look like for too many young people: going without food, cold and mouldy homes, and not feeling safe in the area you live. There is a toxic relationship between poverty and mental health. A fact reinforced by the latest NHS data, showing that mental health problems among adults are at record levels, with people in the most deprived areas hardest hit. As the report itself cites, young people are understandably concerned about waits for mental health treatment. And with good reason – 35,000 young people have been waiting for more than two years for mental health support. Tackling mental health waiting lists and drivers of poor mental health must now be a priority for this Sarah HughesCEO, Mind Many readers must have been shocked by the report that children in the UK are living in 'almost Dickensian levels of poverty'. Abolishing the two-child limit on benefits would lift many out of poverty. The cost of doing this has been estimated by the Resolution Foundation as £3.5bn. This may seem a lot. However, every year £23bn of benefits go unclaimed, according to Policy in Practice. Why not use this money? It would benefit the children, their families and the places in which they PahlProfessor emeritus of social policy, University of Kent Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Never seen that lady in my life, pupils say of FM
"I've never seen that lady in my life," one child said of First Minister Eluned Morgan as pupils were shown photographs of prominent British politicians. The survey showed just 8% of secondary school pupils asked could identify the FM, and fewer than half recognised Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The Children's Commissioner for Wales is calling for a stronger focus on politics in school. And political commentator Richard Wyn Jones said there was a "massive amount of work to be done" by the next Senedd election to engage 16-year-olds who will be able to vote. The Welsh government said supporting learners to vote was a mandatory part of the curriculum. Students at Birchgrove Comprehensive in Swansea were shown pictures of Starmer and Morgan. "I've never seen that lady in my life", said Thomas, 15. Jackson, also 15, said the 20mph rule was the first time a lot of his friends realised that Wales could make its own policies. "I feel like English politics is a lot more mainstream. It's what people think matters more. People think that Welsh politics doesn't really have an effect even though it does," he said. "I get most of my news through social media, things like TikTok and Instagram," Jackson added. "It's quite weird because I feel like a lot of the political news is still in things like newspapers and no one under the age of 45 reads newspapers." Lottie, 15, says people know more about UK politics. She said: "I think it is quite concerning obviously because when you're 16 in Wales you can legally vote. So if people don't know who she [Morgan] is then they're not going to vote." Why should young people vote in the election? Politics 'doesn't work' for many people in Wales Young people vote less but still 'want to be heard' Carol Taylor, who teaches at the school, said she wanted to give the students some lessons in politics, as many parents may not vote themselves. "At the minimum, they'll be voting in the council elections within two years, and they have absolutely no idea about council elections. They probably won't turn up to vote," she said. "A lot of our pupils are very very confused about American and British politics," Ms Taylor said. "Donald Trump is on their newsfeed very regularly. They're very aware of him and they think he's really funny." Children's Commissioner Rocio Cifuentes said: "We're brought up on this notion that politics is a dirty word or something not to be discussed at the dinner table, but we are really doing children and young people a disservice by not educating them effectively on these topics." The report also calls on political parties to engage with young people in the run-up to next year's election. "I think the media also has an important role to play. "For example, there is currently no Wales-specific equivalent to Newsround which many of the children and young people we've spoken to use to get their information." In 2021, 16-year-olds were able to vote in Senedd and local government elections in Wales. But according to Richard Wyn Jones from The Wales Governance Centre, Covid meant children missed out on learning about politics in the lead up to it. "2021 was a false start. We need to start again, hopefully without Covid. And just basically pretend that 2021 didn't happen," he said. The Welsh election study by the Wales Governance Centre found 28% of 16 and 17-year-olds who participated said they had discussed voting with someone at school, or in a youth club or society in the run-up to the last election. Mr Jones said people needed to learn about politics from a young age and not just during the final years of education. "This is somehow something that people are slightly suspicious of and I think that's a problem because I think you need to start earlier," he said. "I think you need to try and inculcate people into an understanding of the structures of governance, how you can engage in those structures." A Welsh government spokesman said: "We fund organisations to deliver projects in the classroom to support young people to participate in the democratic process. "This includes sessions which bring together young people and elected representatives."
BBC News
10-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Pupils do not recognise Eluned Morgan or Keir Starmer, study shows
"I've never seen that lady in my life," one child said of First Minister Eluned Morgan as pupils were shown photographs of prominent British survey showed just 8% of secondary school pupils asked could identify the FM, and fewer than half recognised Prime Minister Keir Children's Commissioner for Wales is calling for a stronger focus on politics in political commentator Richard Wyn Jones said there was a "massive amount of work to be done" by the next Senedd election to engage 16-year-olds who will be able to Welsh government said supporting learners to vote was a mandatory part of the curriculum. Students at Birchgrove Comprehensive in Swansea were shown pictures of Starmer and Morgan."I've never seen that lady in my life", said Thomas, also 15, said the 20mph rule was the first time a lot of his friends realised that Wales could make its own policies."I feel like English politics is a lot more mainstream. It's what people think matters more. People think that Welsh politics doesn't really have an effect even though it does," he said. 'No one reads newspapers' "I get most of my news through social media, things like TikTok and Instagram," Jackson added."It's quite weird because I feel like a lot of the political news is still in things like newspapers and no one under the age of 45 reads newspapers."Lottie, 15, says people know more about UK said: "I think it is quite concerning obviously because when you're 16 in Wales you can legally vote. So if people don't know who she [Morgan] is then they're not going to vote." Carol Taylor, who teaches at the school, said she wanted to give the students some lessons in politics, as many parents may not vote themselves."At the minimum, they'll be voting in the council elections within two years, and they have absolutely no idea about council elections. They probably won't turn up to vote," she said. Pupils 'know more about Donald Trump' "A lot of our pupils are very very confused about American and British politics," Ms Taylor said."Donald Trump is on their newsfeed very regularly. They're very aware of him and they think he's really funny." Children's Commissioner Rocio Cifuentes said: "We're brought up on this notion that politics is a dirty word or something not to be discussed at the dinner table, but we are really doing children and young people a disservice by not educating them effectively on these topics."The report also calls on political parties to engage with young people in the run-up to next year's election."I think the media also has an important role to play."For example, there is currently no Wales-specific equivalent to Newsround which many of the children and young people we've spoken to use to get their information." In 2021, 16-year-olds were able to vote in Senedd and local government elections in according to Richard Wyn Jones from The Wales Governance Centre, Covid meant children missed out on learning about politics in the lead up to it."2021 was a false start. We need to start again, hopefully without Covid. And just basically pretend that 2021 didn't happen," he said. 'We need to start earlier' The Welsh election study by the Wales Governance Centre found 28% of 16 and 17-year-olds who participated said they had discussed voting with someone at school, or in a youth club or society in the run-up to the last Jones said people needed to learn about politics from a young age and not just during the final years of education."This is somehow something that people are slightly suspicious of and I think that's a problem because I think you need to start earlier," he said."I think you need to try and inculcate people into an understanding of the structures of governance, how you can engage in those structures."A Welsh government spokesman said: "We fund organisations to deliver projects in the classroom to support young people to participate in the democratic process. "This includes sessions which bring together young people and elected representatives."
Daily Mail
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Ministers urged to implement 'triple lock' for child benefits
Labour should introduce a pension-style 'triple-lock' on all child-related benefits to tackle child poverty in England, the Children's Commissioner has urged. Dame Rachel de Souza (pictured) said that some young people are facing 'Dickensian levels' of poverty with children going without basic needs such as heating or a place to wash. All four UK Children's Commissioners - from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland - have backed Dame Rachel's call for a 'triple-lock' on child benefits that would introduce annual uplifts. The children's watchdogs have also repeated their demand for the Government to end the two-child benefits limit, in a move likely to pile further pressure on Sir Keir Starmer following growing calls for a review of the policy from Labour backbenchers. A new report from the Children's Commissioner's, based on the experiences of 128 children between January and March this year, noted a range of concerns including lack of access to healthy food and living in cramped and poor conditions. A 7-year-old girl told Dame Rachel (pictured) that rats come into her family's kitchen at night while a 15-year-old boy told of food packages arriving 'out of date and mouldy', leaving his family hungry. While some children said they felt a sense of shame over their situation, Dame Rachel said it is 'society at large and decision-makers that should be ashamed of the fact that children don't have enough money'. Other proposals from the Children's Commissioner to tackle child poverty include free bus travel for all school-age children, auto-enrolment for free school meals for all eligible children and priority for housing to be given to children in low-income households. Dame Rachel - whose office was commissioned to carry out its report to feed into the Government's child poverty review - said while there is 'no quick fix to ending child poverty', she feels it is 'very clear that any child poverty strategy must be built on the foundation of scrapping the two-child limit'. The latest official estimates, for the year to March 2024, suggest there were a record 4.45 million children living in poverty in the UK. The Government is due to publish a child poverty strategy in the autumn and campaigners have said it must include a commitment to remove the two-child benefit limit. The limit, which came into effect under the Conservatives in April 2017, restricts child tax credit and universal credit to the first two children in most households. Estimates suggest that scrapping the policy would cost the Government up to £3.5billion by the end of this Parliament. Dame Rachel said the findings of her report reveal the 'real hardship' and 'an almost-Dickensian level of poverty' facing some children in England today. The commissioner said in recent years she has seen a change in children's comments, noting that issues traditionally seen as 'adult' concerns 'are now keenly felt by children'.
The Independent
08-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Children going without heating in ‘almost-Dickensian' poverty
The Children's Commissioner has warned that some young people in England are experiencing "almost-Dickensian" levels of poverty, citing examples such as black mould, no heating, and a lack of places to wash. Official estimates for the year to March 2024 indicate a record 4.45 million children were living in poverty across the UK. The Commissioner's report strongly advocates for the government to scrap the two-child benefit limit, arguing it is fundamental to any child poverty strategy. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson suggested that recent financial pressures could make it more difficult to abolish the two-child benefit cap, despite calls from various campaign groups. Beyond scrapping the limit, the Commissioner also urged for a "triple-lock" for child-related benefits, reforms to temporary accommodation, free bus travel for school children, and enhanced safety measures in low-income areas.
