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Publication - Research and analysis

Child poverty in the UK and Scotland

Published
6 August 2026
Directorate
Tackling Child Poverty and Social Justice Directorate
Topic
Children and families, Equality and rights, Programme for Government
ISBN
9781807753559

This report provides an evidence-based baseline to better understand child poverty rates across the UK nations and the respective contributions of Scottish and UK Government policies to tackling child poverty since 2010 in Scotland.

View supporting documents Supporting documents

Appendix C: Poverty Trends Across the UK

Figure 24: Proportion of children in relative poverty, after housing costs. Source: Scottish Government Analysis of Family Resources Survey data
Proportion of parents with children 0-14 years finding it difficult to meet their childcare costs in England. 23% in 2024
Figure 25: Proportion of children who are in absolute poverty (below 60% of UK median income after housing costs). Source: Scottish Government analysis of Family Resources Survey data
Proportion of parents with children 0-14 years finding it difficult to meet their childcare costs in England. 23% in 2024
Figure 26: Proportion of children who are in combined low income (below 70% of UK median income after housing costs) and material deprivation. Source: Scottish Government analysis of Family Resources Survey data
Proportion of parents with children 0-14 years finding it difficult to meet their childcare costs in England. 23% in 2024
Figure 27: Children in persistent poverty after housing costs. Source: Scottish Government Analysis of Family Resources Survey data
Chart showing the proportion of children in persistent poverty after housing costs. In the most recent data for 2020 to 2024 15% of children in the UK were in persistent poverty compared with 17% of children in Scotland, 14% in England, 23% in Wales and 13% in Northern Ireland.

Contact

Email: TCPU@gov.scot

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