Children 'bear brunt of parental debt'
Derren Hayes
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Many of the 2.4 million children of parents who are in problem debt are going without basics such as food, clothing and heating, research by the Children's Society and StepChange Debt Charity has found.
The charities’ Debt Trap report, published today, shows nine out of 10 parents from the 1.4 million families living in problem debt have cut back on essential items for their children over the past year.
In addition, the research finds 2.9 million families with dependent children are teetering on the edge of falling into debt – over the past year, 10 per cent said they had taken out credit to pay for food for their children, 18 per cent for clothing and six per cent for heating.
The effect of problem debt on families is also spilling over into children’s school and social life, and damaging their mental health and relationships with peers, the report finds.
Around six out of 10 children living in problem-debt families surveyed for the report said they often worried about money, half of those aged 10 to 17 were embarrassed by their family’s lack of money, while one in five said they had been bullied as a result.
Children from problem debt families were also twice as likely to be unhappy at school and miss out on social activities than other children, while around half say it causes arguments in the family.
Mike O’Connor, chief executive of StepChange Debt Charity, said: “The sad reality is that for many parents credit which is often unsustainable has become the only way to cover their essential household bills.
“As parents become trapped in a toxic cycle of debt, children can become the unwitting victims. This is not acceptable in a society that aspires to justice and fairness.
“We need concerted action to ensure financially vulnerable families are given breathing space to help them get back on their feet and protect both children and families from the most harmful effects of debt.”
The report recommends a series of measures to reduce the impact of debt on children including for local authorities to have a debt collection strategy that takes into account the impact of collection on children, and for government to review protections from debt enforcement for families with children.
The report contains findings from surveys of 2,000 families with children and in-depth interviews with 14 families in problem debt. It estimates families with children owe £4.8bn to service providers and creditors.
