The two-child benefit cap in the UK is unfair and doesnβt work | Martyn Snow, bishop of Leicester
Ending this shortsighted and unfair policy would lift half a million children out of poverty immediately
In Leicester, where I live and work as bishop, two in five children now live in poverty. Thatβs 12 pupils in every classroom struggling to focus. Some havenβt eaten breakfast. Others are no doubt worried about arguments they have overheard at home about money, and how to afford next yearβs school uniform. When I visit our local schools, I hear of teachers bringing in food for pupils who would otherwise go hungry and schools covering the costs of trips to protect children from the shame of being left out. Iβm hugely proud of all that our churches do to support those in need, whether itβs with holiday clubs or food hubs. But we cannot by ourselves reverse the trend of growing child poverty seen across the country. One policy change, however, could: ending the two-child benefit cap.
The limit restricts the child element of universal credit to two children per household, so that families lose about Β£3,200 a year for any third or subsequent child born after April 2017. This is a huge amount for any family trying to make ends meet: of the 1.5 million children affected in 2023, 1.1 million were living in poverty.
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