East Ayrshire: Drop in Child Poverty Rates
- Feb 4, 2018
- 3 min read
A child aged four in the early 1800s would be kidnapped and sent to work in chimneys as a chimney sweep. By the age of ten, the child would be no use and would be cast back on the streets alone, cold, and hungry. However, the saying "yesterday's history, tomorrows a mystery" would not be appropriate in this day in age as child poverty still exists today and will still be a problem tomorrow. However, recently End Child Poverty Scotland has released statistics showing child poverty levels in East Ayrshire has been on the decrease. The rate of child poverty was left at 26% after housing costs between July and September 2017, with most child poverty levels higher in areas that suffer from 'Deep-rooted poverty' such as Kilmarnock south with around 894 children in poverty (34%) and Kilmarnock East and Hurlford with over 830 children living in poverty (28.76%). This is a decrease in child poverty with it being 28% after housing costs in 2015. The most densely populated area in East Ayrshire is Kilmarnock with the population roughly at 56,033 and expected to be at a standstill until 2030. Kilmarnock is also geographically the smallest area in East Ayrshire. Areas such as Onthank, Long Park, Hillhead, and Shortlees have remained the most deprived since Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation 2004. East Ayrshire Council has put in place a Community Plan in which one of their aims is to tackle Child Poverty. It can be seen to be working as children in Primary 1 with signs of no previous tooth decay has increased from 63.9% to 71.4% showing that children are getting the correct care and eating properly decreasing the rate of dental cavities. The Scottish government has put numerous policies in place to tackle child poverty in Scotland with it being one of the main problems with around 260,000 children living in relative poverty. An example is Free school meals in primary schools for P1-3. When I asked a member of the general public and former teacher how they felt about government action they replied "we still need a lot of action, despite conditions being infinitely better now than they ever were. The Scottish government has done a certain amount to help poverty but could do a lot more when asked what they thought the government should do they responded, "The replacement of the council tax by a Scottish services tax would help poorer families a lot". Poverty can have a mass impact on a child’s life. It can impact on their mental health, education, and their life chances. Children can become stressed if their household is a stressful place to live with their family struggling with tasks such as paying the bills, and putting food on the table. Kirsten Hogg, Head of Policy at Barnardo's Scotland stated “Poverty has an immediate impact on the lives of many children across Scotland, who may be hungry or cold. The longer-term impacts of poverty are less visible but extremely important for us to understand and tackle and that children in poverty often live in high stress environments". High-stress for a child may cause mental health issues such as low mood and anxiety. In 2016 the two most accepted CAMHS referrals from East Ayrshire were from those suffering Low mood (22%) and Anxieties (21%). Barnardo’s is a children’s charity based in the UK, and in order to address these issues, Kirsten said that in Barnardo's they take a "proactive partnership approach with families and communities, working with them from before a child gets to school and throughout their journey through primary and secondary education. We focus on promoting secure attachment, recovery from toxic stress and trauma, and building resilient communities alongside families, schools, and other partners.” Child poverty has been an issue in Scotland for decades. The Scottish government and local councils have been doing all they can to combat this but it is an issue that just won’t go away overnight. Maybe this is the time, and this ‘poverty monster’ is going to stop stalking our streets so to speak. Maybe we are waking up and focusing what is happening on our doorstep, as well as other countries. As a school pupil, I have seen the impact poverty can have on a child’s life and it is almost disastrous. Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Poverty is the worst form of violence” and I feel this is very true.
Blair Kennedy East Ayrshire correspondent blair.kennedy64@gmail.com
Comments