Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Patrick Butler, Phillip Inman and Jessica Murray

Record 4.5m children in poverty in UK as cuts condemned as ‘morally repugnant’

Girl eating school lunch
There was also a rise in the number of children experiencing food insecurity. Photograph: OwenPrice/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Campaigners have said it is “morally repugnant” that vulnerable people are bearing the brunt of spending cuts after official figures showed a record 4.5 million children are living in poverty in the UK.

The figures, released on Thursday, show an extra 100,000 children were living below the breadline in the year to April 2024 – the final full year of child poverty statistics for the last Conservative government. It is the third year running that child poverty has increased.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.