Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Children in Poverty

Wednesday 11 March 2026 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 3 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Tackling child poverty is a priority for the Labour Government, which is investing in Best Start family hubs, childcare, breakfast clubs, and free school meals.
  • Families with disabled children face significant financial strain due to high costs for equipment and specialist childcare.
  • The government is consulting on SEND support in England, aiming to provide quicker assistance to children with conditions like ADHD, autism, and behavioural issues, with an additional 4 billion investment.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Afzal Khan Lab Manchester Rusholme
Children & Families
Context

Child poverty remains a significant issue with barriers to opportunity. Inequality impacts the future prospects of children.

Question

What steps are being taken to help reduce inequalities experienced by children in poverty? Tackling child poverty is a moral mission. What specific steps are being taken to address this issue?

Answer from Bridget Phillipson

Tackling child poverty is the moral mission of this Labour Government. We are investing in our children's futures through a massive expansion of Best Start family hubs, childcare, breakfast clubs and free school meals, alongside the end to the two-child limit, and our child poverty strategy will deliver the biggest ever reduction in child poverty in a single Parliament.

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Q2 Afzal Khan Lab Manchester Rusholme
Benefits & Welfare Children & Families
Context

Families with disabled children face financial strain due to equipment costs and other expenses such as specialist childcare. The recent uprating of universal credit helps, but additional pressures remain.

Question

In families with disabled children, 25% of those children are living in deep material poverty. The recent uprating of universal credit will be a great help for children growing up in such households, but equipment costs and other expenses, such as specialist childcare, remain significant pressures. What more is being done to address the inequalities felt by children growing up in households with at least one disabled child?

Answer from Bridget Phillipson

We recognise the disproportionate financial strain on families with disabled children, who often face significantly higher costs for essentials. We heard that during the development of the child poverty strategy, through many of the children's rights groups and other organisations that contributed to that work. Our child poverty strategy sets out a plan to lift over half a million children out of poverty by the end of this Parliament. Alongside that, we are taking specific steps to support children with additional needs, providing £200 million of investment to ensure that every Best Start family hub has a dedicated practitioner for children with special educational needs and disabilities.

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Q3 Jim Shannon DUP Strangford
Children & Families
Context

Cases of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, and behavioural issues are higher than in the past due to the pressures of modern life.

Question

When it comes to inequalities in the home, cases of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, and behavioural issues, are so much higher in number than they ever were in my day when I was a youngster. Given the pressures of the lives we live today, what will be done to help those categories of children in particular?

Answer from Bridget Phillipson

Through our SEND consultation that will cover England, we want to make sure that support is available to children much more quickly. We should not be waiting for diagnosis to put in place the support that children need. Through the big investment we are delivering in SEND—an extra £4 billion—we will make sure that children get the support when they need it and where they need it.

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