Latest news with #youthpoverty
The Guardian
07-07-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Young people in England's coastal towns three times more likely to have a mental health condition
Young people living in the most deprived stretches of England's coastline are three times more likely to be living with an undiagnosed mental health condition than their peers inland, according to new research. This 'coastal mental health gap' means that young people in these towns, which include areas of Tendring on the east coast and Blackpool and Liverpool to the west, are suffering disproportionately, often alone and with no help, said the researchers who conducted the study. Over the next year, the Against the Tide project from the Guardian's Seascape team will be reporting on the lives of young people in coastal communities across England and Wales. Young people in many of England's coastal towns are disproportionately likely to face poverty, poor housing, lower educational attainment and employment opportunities than their peers in equivalent inland areas. In the most deprived coastal towns they can be left to struggle with crumbling and stripped back public services and transport systems that limit their life choices. For the next 12 months, accompanied by documentary photographer Polly Braden, we will travel up and down the country to port towns, seaside resorts and former fishing villages to ask 16- to 25-year-olds to tell us about their lives and how they feel about the places they live. By putting their voices at the front and centre of our reporting, we want to examine what kind of changes they need to build the futures they want for themselves. 'We don't yet know why these young people are being left out but one reason might be that they are not demanding the help in the way the older generation is, or if they are, they are not having their voices heard,' said Emily Murray, director of Essex University's centre for coastal communities. The study found that the opposite is true for older people living in the same communities, who were a third less likely to have undiagnosed mental health problems than people the same age living inland in similar areas of deprivation. The Essex researchers, led by Claire Wicks, studied data from 28,000 adults across the UK to see how different generations experience life in Britain. They looked at the responses from adults living in coastal communities and inland in England between 2018 and 2023 who scored highly against a widely accepted measure of mental distress but where they had not had a diagnosis. Deprivation was determined using the official indices from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Four years ago, a report by England's chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, found that diagnosed mental health problems were disproportionately higher among young people in coastal areas. Separate work by the University of Essex and University College London (UCL), also seen by the Guardian, found a range of factors at play. These included higher levels of poverty but also lower rates of progression to higher education and higher crime levels in the places they live. The primary explanation for the disproportionate levels of mental health is the economic and social challenges that people face who live in these communities, said Murray. Household incomes and private renting are key factors. 'Young people on the coast are more likely to be living in areas where incomes are lower and more families are renting from private landlords,' she said. 'On top of that they often live in areas that are geographically isolated, making it harder to reach places where there are more economic and healthcare opportunities.' Ceilidh Bardsley, 21, who lives in Weston-super-Mare, described living in a town where it feels as if tourists are given priority. 'A lot of emphasis is put into the main seafront for things to look nice' she said. 'But then you look around the estates, and there are potholes everywhere, shop fronts are falling down and there's mould in many of the houses.' Twenty-year-old Levi, who has lived in Southend all his life, said that it was an 'amazing' place. 'But growing up, seeing how many places have closed down, it feels like Southend is getting worse, not better. I couldn't imagine wanting to bring up children here.' Separately, the UCL researchers went round the country talking to dozens of policymakers and local practitioners about what could drive change in coastal areas. Many said that what was needed was to champion young people's voices and focus on what local people need and want. 'I think letting people make decisions is massive, is so important in our town,' said one practitioner in Barrow, in the north-west. 'Don't bring consultants in to tell our communities what they need. Come and talk to us.' Others talked about the need for long-term, sustainable public-sector funding to run youth services and community projects, and to train and retain staff, as well as for money to be targeted specifically towards young people in coastal places. Prof Sheena Asthana, co-director of the Centre for Coastal Communities at the University of Plymouth, said: 'The Essex research confirms our own analysis that signals of poor mental health among young people, such as hospital admissions for self-harm, are disproportionately higher on the coast. 'The very high rates of undiagnosed mental health in deprived coastal areas suggest that the government might want to explore whether long waiting times for children and young people's mental health services are to blame.'
The Guardian
07-07-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Young people in England's coastal towns three times more likely to have a mental health condition
Young people living in the most deprived stretches of England's coastline are three times more likely to be living with an undiagnosed mental health condition than their peers inland, according to new research. This 'coastal mental health gap' means that young people in these towns, which include areas of Tendring on the east coast and Blackpool and Liverpool to the west, are suffering disproportionately, often alone and with no help, said the researchers who conducted the study. Over the next year, the Against the Tide project from the Guardian's Seascape team will be reporting on the lives of young people in coastal communities across England and Wales. Young people in many of England's coastal towns are disproportionately likely to face poverty, poor housing, lower educational attainment and employment opportunities than their peers in equivalent inland areas. In the most deprived coastal towns they can be left to struggle with crumbling and stripped back public services and transport systems that limit their life choices. For the next 12 months, accompanied by documentary photographer Polly Braden, we will travel up and down the country to port towns, seaside resorts and former fishing villages to ask 16- to 25-year-olds to tell us about their lives and how they feel about the places they live. By putting their voices at the front and centre of our reporting, we want to examine what kind of changes they need to build the futures they want for themselves. 'We don't yet know why these young people are being left out but one reason might be that they are not demanding the help in the way the older generation is, or if they are, they are not having their voices heard,' said Emily Murray, director of Essex University's centre for coastal communities. The study found that the opposite is true for older people living in the same communities, who were a third less likely to have undiagnosed mental health problems than people the same age living inland in similar areas of deprivation. The Essex researchers, led by Claire Wicks, studied data from 28,000 adults across the UK to see how different generations experience life in Britain. They looked at the responses from adults living in coastal communities and inland in England between 2018 and 2023 who scored highly against a widely accepted measure of mental distress but where they had not had a diagnosis. Deprivation was determined using the official indices from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Four years ago, a report by England's chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, found that diagnosed mental health problems were disproportionately higher among young people in coastal areas. Separate work by the University of Essex and University College London (UCL), also seen by the Guardian, found a range of factors at play. These included higher levels of poverty but also lower rates of progression to higher education and higher crime levels in the places they live. The primary explanation for the disproportionate levels of mental health is the economic and social challenges that people face who live in these communities, said Murray. Household incomes and private renting are key factors. 'Young people on the coast are more likely to be living in areas where incomes are lower and more families are renting from private landlords,' she said. 'On top of that they often live in areas that are geographically isolated, making it harder to reach places where there are more economic and healthcare opportunities.' Ceilidh Bardsley, 21, who lives in Weston-super-Mare, described living in a town where it feels as if tourists are given priority. 'A lot of emphasis is put into the main seafront for things to look nice' she said. 'But then you look around the estates, and there are potholes everywhere, shop fronts are falling down and there's mould in many of the houses.' Twenty-year-old Levi, who has lived in Southend all his life, said that it was an 'amazing' place. 'But growing up, seeing how many places have closed down, it feels like Southend is getting worse, not better. I couldn't imagine wanting to bring up children here.' Separately, the UCL researchers went round the country talking to dozens of policymakers and local practitioners about what could drive change in coastal areas. Many said that what was needed was to champion young people's voices and focus on what local people need and want. 'I think letting people make decisions is massive, is so important in our town,' said one practitioner in Barrow, in the north-west. 'Don't bring consultants in to tell our communities what they need. Come and talk to us.' Others talked about the need for long-term, sustainable public-sector funding to run youth services and community projects, and to train and retain staff, as well as for money to be targeted specifically towards young people in coastal places. Prof Sheena Asthana, co-director of the Centre for Coastal Communities at the University of Plymouth, said: 'The Essex research confirms our own analysis that signals of poor mental health among young people, such as hospital admissions for self-harm, are disproportionately higher on the coast. 'The very high rates of undiagnosed mental health in deprived coastal areas suggest that the government might want to explore whether long waiting times for children and young people's mental health services are to blame.'
The Guardian
19-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Charities step up pressure on Keir Starmer to scrap two-child benefit cap
Charities and a Labour-aligned pressure group are ramping up calls on Keir Starmer to scrap the two-child limit on benefits, as polling shows support for action on youth poverty remains high, and is equally solid among Labour voters tempted by Reform. As discussions continue in government ahead of the forthcoming child poverty strategy, a survey commissioned by a coalition of charities suggests voters want to see families prioritised. Almost three-quarters of those polled (73%) agreed that all 'children deserve a good childhood, even if it costs the government more to support families that need it' and 71% agreed that 'children should be a priority for government investment.' Charities involved in commissioning the research included Save the Children, the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG), the Children's Society and Barnardo's. Alison Garnham, the chief executive of CPAG, speaking on behalf of the group, said: 'Almost a year after the election, the government's manifesto commitment to tackle child poverty remains hugely popular. 'A child poverty strategy that increases living standards and improves life chances will make the crucial difference to children, their families and the country alike. The public stands in support of the 4.5 million children in the UK living in poverty and now it's time for government to act – starting by scrapping the two-child limit.' It comes as Keir Starmer was told to bring in legally binding targets to reduce child poverty and integrate them into the missions of his government. Baroness Ruth Lister, a former director of CPAG, argued in a new report that the two-child limit must be lifted and the benefit cap abolished. She urged Labour to to make child poverty more central to the government's actions. The report for Compass, a progressive pressure group, is backed by Labour MP Simon Opher, who said in his foreword that the two-child limit for benefits must be immediately lifted. 'In the UK around one in three children live in poverty,' he wrote. 'As a society, and as a government, we can do better. Nothing is more important.' No 10 currently has a child poverty taskforce working on an action plan due to be published this summer, but the government has so far resisted calls to scrap the two-child limit. Scotland is applying measures to mitigate the limit from next year, but it has been in force for universal credit or child tax credit claimants since 2017. Whitehall insiders say one argument used by Labour strategists against removing the two-child limit is that it would be unpopular with voters, particularly those the party risks losing to Nigel Farage's Reform party. But the polling backed by charities suggests voters who backed Labour in 2024 but are considering switching to Reform are just as keen to see child poverty tackled. Among these Reform-curious Labour voters, 76% agreed that 'low benefit levels for families with children means children have unequal opportunities'.That figure was exactly the same as among committed Labour voters, and similar to levels among those considering a move to the Greens or the Lib Dems. Similarly, 82% of Labour voters considering a switch to Reform agreed that 'the gap between the poorest and richest families in the UK is too large' – barely less than the 86% of Labour voters who intend to stick with the party. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Ed Dorrell, a partner at Public First, which carried out the UK-wide polling of 2,008 adults last month, said: 'Potential switchers from Labour to Reform, the Greens and the Lib Dems are united in wanting to end child poverty, in thinking the government has a role to play in this and in thinking that reversing benefit cuts would help.' He added: 'If Labour wants to win their lost voters back, making progress on child poverty is something to prioritise, not play down.' Scrapping the two-child limit, which means families do not receive key benefits, including the child element of universal credit for their third and subsequent children, is widely agreed by charities and thinktanks to be the most targeted and cost-effective way of tackling child poverty. However, with little room to manoeuvre against the government's fiscal rules, ministers have recently been considering cheaper options. These include a three-child limit or paying benefits at a lower rate for third and subsequent children. Labour's general election manifesto promised an 'ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty' alongside a commitment to end 'mass dependence' on food banks and charity food handouts, which it called 'a moral scar on our society'. In her report, Lister said the government must be willing to invest sufficient money if it is to achieve the manifesto commitment to an ambitious strategy, and that the money can be raised from the wealthy with the broadest shoulders. She also called for people with lived experience of poverty to be involved in the strategy's execution and monitoring, for universal credit and child benefit to be raised and for free school meals to be made universal. Ministers have been privately ruling out scrapping the two-child benefit cap, despite warnings from charities that a failure to do so could result in the highest levels of child poverty since records began. Official figures this spring showed that a record 4.5 million children were living in poverty in the UK in the year to April 2024 – the final data for the last year of the Conservative government. The figures showed an extra 100,000 children were living below the breadline. It was the third year running that child poverty had increased.
