Many children 'still in poverty' in the UK

from the Press Association

Many schoolchildren are experiencing the same levels of poverty and deprivation as their parents were 30 years ago, the head of a teaching union has said.

Andy Ballard, the new president of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), said he had spent his working life teaching children in rural Somerset, some of whom were from under-privileged homes.

He said: "I am ashamed to say that some 30 years later, their children and even their grandchildren, pass through the school still experiencing similar levels of deprivation."

He added: "The school and its staff work tirelessly, in accordance with government direction, to try to raise the aspirations of those pupils.

"And yet there still remain children living in systemically poor families - and I mean really poor, not just a bit short of the readies - under nourished, poorly housed, poorly clothed, culturally isolated and deprived.

"In rural communities, the lack of aspiration and opportunity is more acute. The lack of affordable housing and lack of well-paid work, forces young people and families to find homes and jobs away from rural areas, ultimately leading to the closure of playgroups, schools and youth services."

He said poverty is "the scourge of our society", adding: "It is unacceptable to me that children from poor families are treated as if they were feckless and idle, as if their poverty was their fault.

"These children must become our collective responsibility.

"Schools and their teachers can only achieve so much, and that's why when ATL has been looking at rural poverty, we have called on the government to assess each and every one of its new initiatives against the impact it will have on rural communities."

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