Latest data shows the extent of poverty in the UK
What is UK poverty?
What do we even mean when we talk about poverty in the UK? Poverty is often defined as when someone’s resources aren’t enough to meet their minimum needs. Or, to put it another way, here’s how Gareth McNab, our Director of External Affairs puts it in everyday wording:
When you haven’t got enough income to be able to afford what you need for life.
Gareth McNab, Director of External Affairs, CAP
Gareth goes on to say, ‘That’s not just the food you eat and the energy to keep your home warm, it’s also the ability to connect with your neighbours and community, for your kids to be able to go on school trips and wear clean school uniform to school.’
Is poverty getting worse?
Recent polling data shows that poverty is on the rise in the UK. That’s a sobering fact. Our YouGov survey shows that nearly two thirds of the UK have seen poverty increase in their local areas.
But when we talk about experiencing poverty, it can all feel a bit vague. What does that mean in practice? Our survey found that 10 million people are skipping meals at least once a week. That’s one in five of the UK population who’ll go to bed hungry at some point in the next seven days.
During the cost of living crisis we’ve seen the number of people struggling has rocketed. People are working hard, finishing their work shift and then having to go to foodbanks before they can go home and feed their kids.
Dub Everritt, Pastor of Welcome Church, Woking, one of CAP’s local church partners
Here at CAP, we’re relentless in our fight against poverty. We want to see people free to live full lives.
What can I do to help?
It’s time to take action. If you’re looking for a way to make a difference, you’ve come to the right place. Here are some of the ways you can get involved in the fight against poverty.
Campaign for change
Add your voice to the growing call for a fairer society. You can keep up to date with every petition and campaign CAP runs, by signing up to the newsletter here. We are calling on politicians and policy makers, energy providers, utilities companies & financial services to come together with local communities and unite to end UK poverty.
Give
Want to help someone find freedom? A gift to our Easter appeal will mean you can fight back against the rising tide of poverty, funding the free face-to-face debt help service we run in communities right across the UK.
Raise awareness
Become an expert
Get to know the issues and be ready to have those conversations about UK poverty. We’ve got more stats, stories and solutions for you, to equip you to advocate for an end to poverty. You can find the full briefing from our latest polling data about the increase of UK poverty.
