The National Children’s Bureau (NCB) charity raised concerns that the government’s ambition for improving the lives of disadvantaged children could be derailed by Reeves’ cuts, announced in her spring statement to the Commons today.
The impact is underlined by a Department for Work and Pensions analysis, published today, which predicts that the “combined effect of the package of welfare reforms will push tens of thousands of children deeper into poverty and make life harder for millions more”, said the NCB.
The reforms include freezing health-related universal credit for new claimants in cash terms until 2030 (further to last week’s announcement that the benefit would be halved from April 2026), and young people aged under 22 no longer being entitled to the incapacity benefit top-up of universal credit.
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Spending Review 2025: key asks for children and family services
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Special Report: Early Child Development
NCB added: “There is much to commend in the government’s vision for childhood.
“The ambition to create the healthiest generation of children, the focus on early childhood development in the Prime Minister's Plan for Change, and the commitment to a child poverty strategy all have the potential to transform the lives of children and families.
“However, children and families need more than just words. We must never return to the misguided drive towards austerity, which disproportionately impacted children in the most deprived areas, sweeping increasing numbers of children into poverty.
“Many families struggling to make ends meet rely on the welfare system to stay afloat.
“Cuts to health benefits will only cast them further adrift.”
The charity urged the Chancellor to mitigate this risk in June’s Spending Review, to build on one-year funding promises already made, “so that families get the help they are crying out for, as soon as it is needed, through properly funded services and a fit-for-purpose benefits system”.
Julia Pitman, head of policy and research at charity Action for Children, added: “The government has previously described increases in child poverty since 2010 as ‘shameful’, yet we now know from its own analysis that its cuts to the social security system will condemn 50,000 more children to a life of poverty by the end of the decade.
“We urge ministers to rethink this political choice, which targets the most vulnerable children in society and appears to undermine the government’s promise to ‘turn the tide on child poverty’ with its forthcoming Child Poverty Strategy.”
The Children’s Society chief executive Mark Russell argued that the Chancellor had “missed the chance” to announce targeted measures for children from low income families, such as more free school meals, adding that the lack of focus on supporting young people was “disappointing”.
“We can't dig ourselves out of this situation by making cuts, young people need investment in children’s social care and mental health support now,” warned Russell, adding: “This spring statement gave the government the golden opportunity to invest in our children yet we can see it simply does not go far enough to address the scale of the challenges they currently face.”
Laura Cunliffe-Hall, charity UK Youth's head of policy and public affairs, described the statement as a "worrying indication of things to come for young people", adding: “The government’s own mission to break down barriers to opportunity for young people will not succeed if young people that need support from the welfare system are shortchanged at every turn.
"At a time when young people face increasingly difficult challenges, the cuts to support structures for youth work and youth voice are extremely damaging.
“UK Youth urges the government to back up its warm words with real support to young people and the youth sector. They have the opportunity to take decisive action with the upcoming National Youth Strategy to reverse a decade of shameful cuts and unlock the potential of youth work for all young people.”
Additional £25 million for fostering support
The spring statement did include some positive news for the sector, according to Dr Jo Casebourne, chief executive of Foundations, the government-funded what works centre for children and families: a £25 million boost for fostering support.
This is part of a £3.25bn transformation fund aimed at driving public service reform and efficiencies.
“We must do all we can to ensure children and young people experiencing vulnerabilities have the stable foundational relationships they need to thrive," said Casebourne.
However, charity Kinship believes the overall impact of the spring statement will exacerbate stress on kinship care families who are already “desperately worried whether they can continue to care for their children”, adding: “Government plans to change disability benefits risk pushing more kinship families further into poverty.
Kinship underlined its analysis suggesting that kinship carers save the economy £4.3 billion by raising children who would otherwise be in the care system.
It also highlighted its research suggesting that four in 10 kinship carers are disabled – more than double national rates – and called on the government to provide urgent reassurance around other measures in the pipeline affecting the sector, including a planned trial of a kinship care allowance.
Economy 'dampened by inadequacies' of funded entitlement expansion
Early years sector body the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) highlighted concerns over what it claims is the declining financial viability of the funded entitlement, set to be fully rolled out in September 2025.
Underfunding the expansion “will put government plans to boost the economy, get more people into work and expand funded childcare places at risk”, said NDNA chief executive Purnima Tanuku.
Today's blow came as the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) – which monitors the government's spending plans – downgraded predicted growth for this year from 2% to 1%.
