Our Bright Futures Report aims to provide an overview of the work delivered to tackle child poverty over the reporting period (2021-22). The detailed action plan setting out planned activity for 2022/23 is a separate document.
As reported in the 2020/21 Child Poverty Report the Angus Community Planning Partnership has initiated a Service Design approach to service delivery with 2 main projects linked to eradicating Child Poverty. The two projects include a focus on school meals and effectively engaging with people with lived experience. This work was essential post pandemic to ensure that we are making an impact on the protected characteristic groups - Households with a disabled parent or child, Minority ethnic households, larger families, lone parents (90% of whom are women), mothers aged under 25 and families with a child under one year of age.
As a result of these Service Design projects implementation plans have been developed looking at a number of areas for improvement including service user pathways in partnership with the third sector collaborative for the lived experience project and Grab and Go menu options for school meals along with targeted communications to maximise the uptake from those entitled to free school meals. These will be delivered over the next reporting period and impact assessed.
Drivers of Poverty
The drivers of poverty are set out in three themes, Income from Employment, Costs of Living and Income from Social Security and benefits in kind. In line with the Child Poverty Act partners have continued to develop and deliver actions supporting our aim to eradicate child poverty.
Using the drivers of poverty and protected characteristics the partnership has been able to maximise the impact of services and interventions for local people.
The next section of the report provides an update of progress against the three key drivers of poverty.