Poverty is measured in two ways, namely absolute and relative poverty. 'Absolute poverty' measures the number of people living below a certain income level or the number of households who are unable to afford the basics such as goods and services. 'Relative poverty' measures the degree of financial resources families have, and whether they fall below a certain level of income. Parents face the difficult decision When a child is born, as the family’s income is spread further, the parents must decide whether to return to work or to stay at home; however some parents will be supported by the welfare system but the current system of increasing benefits by inflation is causing a
Child poverty is still one of the biggest barriers to children and young people attaining a decent standard of living. It’s predicted and acknowledged by various organisations that the number of children living in poverty will increase further over the foreseeable future due to the current economic climate and the continuing cuts to welfare and services. The causes of child poverty are all intricately woven into each other. Firstly and unsurprisingly one of the major factors that causes this is those families without work. In 2009/2010, 42% of families below the perceived poverty line were out of work.
(Barnardos, 2013). There are a number of indications as to why child poverty exists, unemployment plays a big part. Unemployment is an indicator of educational disadvantage, which in turn, affects the rest of a child’s life. Lone parent families are also an indication as to why child poverty is on the rise. Single parents have a lack of funds to support their children’s needs.
This pessimistic view on the abilities of low socioeconomic income youth continues to influence their lack of academic performance. Children who are raised under harsh financial circumstances are deprived of the psychological and educational resources leaving them ill prepared and more likely to be unsuccessful adults in the future. Economics and race plays a factoring role in the quality of living conditions of many individuals. In the American society many people are struggling to make ends meet within their everyday lives. Many are living from paycheck to paycheck, essentially not always guaranteed the proper wages in order to meet all of their needs.
Running head: ILLITERACY “The Economic Downfall of Families When Plagued with Illiteracy” Charles Isaac EH 1020, English Composition II Professor Busby July 17, 2012 Abstract Illiteracy is the lack of basic reading and writing skills. It is seen throughout the nation growing at an exponential rate in adults and children. Since education is one of the vital components to success in today’s society, literacy is very important in all ages. Most illiteracy is seen in lower class families that do not earn enough wages to be privileged with a respectable education. Without this education, a family member cannot obtain a job that will provide a comfortable living for the family so inner city ghettos are the home of the impoverished.
Modern Britain a Divided Society Britain a divided society? Definitely! Despite so-called progress in the last 50 years we remain a socially, economically, religiously, educationally and politically divided society. In our attempts to improve the lot of the poorest socially disadvantaged people in our society we have evolved a benefits and support system that has not helped them to become self-sufficient or promoted the values and qualities of determination, hard work and entrepreneurial spirit that exists throughout our population. The rich are penalized for their contribution to the economy through high tax.
Why should we care about child poverty in the UK? Britain is considered to be a rich country with a high level of wealth, yet millions of people live in households where they suffer from economic and social deprivation, with millions of children living in poverty. According to information on [www.cpag.org.uk], there are 3.6 million children living in poverty, which is 27% of children, or one in four. Localised poverty statistics are even worse as between 50 and 70% of children are growing up in poverty in some areas of the UK. Evidence suggests that there are 5 main groups of people who are more at risk from poverty than others.
Essay Planning Subject: why should we care about child poverty in the UK? TAQ1: To me the term 'poverty' means not by what you can afford but rather in terms of what is missing. Because I think poverty is a state of being extremely poor or lacking in financial terms, living below what I would deem a comfortable lifestyle, such as having to eat very low quality food/water or not having enough food, not having warm running water, or being homeless. So basically poverty has many meanings for every individual. TAQ2: I think that the author uses emotive language on the first paragraph on the article because he wanted to capture the readers mind sensory impressions.
I argue that children raised from single-parent homes are not only at a disadvantage, but also this lifestyle can be detrimental to child development. As a single parent, the financial stress of being the sole provider has a negative affect on the family. Single-parent homes with children are more likely to live in poverty than coupled families. According to Risman, “In 2000, 6 percent of married couple families with children lived in poverty, compared with 33 percent of female householders with children.” This statistic shows the shockingly high percentage of female householders with children living in poverty. The sole provider in a single parent home often does not have the ability to work a full time job or rather obtain a job with a high paying salary.
Each day, 963 million people go hungry. Although there are people in poverty in the United States and in other developed countries, those living in developing countries are at greater risk for what has been called absolute poverty, (a condition where a person does not have the minimum amount of income needed to meet the minimum requirements for one or more basic living needs over an extended period of time). Women and Children constitute the majority of impoverished people across the globe. As Americans and Europeans it is in our best interest to help poor people escape poverty and to help hungry people escape hunger, Poverty is a silent killer, (Dr. Pinstrup-Andersen). The United Nation Children's Fund (UNICEF) figures show that 25,000 children die each day from poverty alone.