www.cpag.org.uk

London MIS and cost of a child

Megan Jarvie

London Campaign Co-ordinator

mjarvie@cpag.org.uk

Child Poverty in London

Measuring child poverty• 60% of median income – the drift away from the mainstream

• MIS - picture of what the poverty line looks and feels like. Decisions would need to be made if you lived below MIS

• Public consensus

• Evidence for both increasing earnings and decreasing costs

• But….

MIS is considerably more expensive than the poverty line…

London cost of a child

• CPAG and TfL will work with CRSP on the costs of a child in London

• How much does it cost to raise a child in London, and what drives these costs?

• Cement the link between child poverty and the cost of raising a child

Drivers of additional London costs

• Drivers of costs: housing, childcare, transport

• Why are these more in London?

• How can we bring costs?

• What does it mean for families falling below the line?

• How do we design services?

Housing

• Rent levels already well discussed

• Different standards: flat rather than house and maximum of 3 beds

• Drives social participation outside, rather than inside, the home

• Space to do homework, have friend round for tea, space for play

Transport

• No car for families in London because good public transport system

• Good, but expensive

• Buses and buggies

Childcare• Freezing mums out of the jobs market, or limited to part time work

Working in London• Minimum wage does not meet MIS and impact of working is less in London

Lone parents are most likely to be living below MIS

Household type Below MIS Below 50% of MIS

Single/couple working-age 26% 11%

Lone/couple parents 43% 12%

Lone parent 65% 15%

Couple parent 39% 12%

Single/couple pensioners 18% 3%

LONDON TOTAL 34% 11%

Role of social security

“We are restoring not only the incentive to get a job, but what’s more, to progress onwards and upwards towards self-sufficiency”

Ian Duncan-Smith, Child Poverty Strategy

•Lone parent with child under 2 would need to earn over £45k to meet MIS

•For couples, c.£23k each

•Driven by the costs of a child – earnings alone cannot meet these; social security is integral