poverty

Monitoring poverty and social exclusion in Scotland 2008

The New Policy Institute has produced its 2008 edition of indicators of poverty and social exclusion in Scotland, providing a comprehensive analysis of trends and differences between groups. Based on the latest available data, its starting point is that, while child and pensioner poverty in Scotland has fallen over the last decade, poverty among working-age adults has remained the same.

Addressing in-work poverty

This report describes how the rise of poverty among children in working-families is undermining the drive to end child poverty as a whole, and what can be done about it. The existence of 'in-work' poverty has only been officially recognised in the last couple of years. Yet the steady upward trend and number of children involved mean that it should be given high priority. The report includes an in-depth analysis of the progress that has been made on in-work poverty among children since the start of the government's poverty programme in the late 1990s.

Poverty, inequality and human rights

This research examines how human rights have been used internationally to shape new conceptions of poverty and new approaches to combating it, and assesses the lessons for the UK. People working to tackle poverty in the UK are increasingly interested in using human rights in their work. This study looks at how this has been done in other countries, its impact on affected communities, debate, policy and government programmes, and its relevance for the UK.

The living standards of families with children reporting low incomes

The government has high-profile child poverty targets which are assessed using a measure of income, as recorded in the Household Below Average Income series (HBAI).

However, income is an imperfect measure of living standards. Previous analysis suggests that some children in households with low income do not have commensurately low living standards.

This report aims to document the extent to which this is true, focusing on whether children in low-income households have different living standards depending on whether their parents are employed, self-employed, or workless.

Families in Britain : the impact of changing family structures and what the public think

Report tracing the changing nature of the family and what that means for parents, children and society with a view to stimulating debate on family policy. It explores the changing face of families in Britain and the impact of these changes on society, public opinion and the role of government. It also highlights the opportunities for policymakers created by the changing demographic, social and attitudinal terrain.