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Poverty - background
To live in poverty is effectively to be excluded from ordinary life, normal customs and everyday activities. Poverty in childhood is harmful to current well-being and a threat to well-becoming. A girl born in Manchester can expect to live six years less than a girl born in Kensington and Chelsea. 2% of couples and 8% of lone parents cannot afford two pairs of shoes for each child.
12% of lone parents cannot afford celebrations with presents at special occasions. Children living in households where the income is 60% or less of the median can be classed as living in poverty - though it is a difficult thing to define. Poverty can mean not having enough money to have enough food, or pay the meter for electricity, and means that trips to the cinema or a swimming pool are unaffordable luxuries. The effects of poverty can also cause many problems, such as poor physical and mental health, low educational attainment, poor housing conditions and homelessness, crime and addiction.
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