Only 100,000 children were lifted out of poverty after housing costs in 2003/04, and 3.5m are still in poverty, according to a Department for Work and Pensions report, conducted with the Office for National Statistics.
The Government needs to reduce the figure by another 500,000 by 2004/05 to hit its target of a 25 per cent reduction on its baseline figure of 4.1m children, set in 1999.
Jonathan Stearn, director of End Child Poverty, said: "We thought we'd see a rise in the take-up of tax credits but there were administrative problems."
He said a key way of overcoming the problem would be to increase the universal child benefit from 17 a week to 20 and to pay this for every child, not just the eldest.
Register Now to Continue Reading
Thank you for visiting Children & Young People Now and making use of our archive of more than 60,000 expert features, topics hubs, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's Included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Email newsletter providing advice and guidance across the sector
Already have an account? Sign in here
