Best Practice

Talking about child poverty

Poverty
The impact of poverty on children and their education is devastating. Karen Sullivan looks at the challenges that deprived families face

It is a subject that rears its shameful head far too often, which is why, perhaps, we should continue to mention it.

We should continue to talk about poverty, and it’s daily implications for students. About the fact that it’s not getting any better; that austerity and other cuts have made earning a living extremely hard for hundreds of thousands of parents. About the fact that children caught in the “poverty trap” face daily challenges and often embarrassment and heartbreak. These challenges leave lasting scars.

My 14-year-old son has a friend who has just been given his very first pair of football boots. He’s played rugby and football for his school since he was in primary, and he’s never owned a pair.

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