Child poverty worsens in Dumfries and Galloway as Covid hits poorest hardest

The impact of widespread child poverty in Dumfries and Galloway has been significantly worsened by the pandemic, according to a new report.
And the prolonged lockdown restrictions “disproportionately affected low-income families with young children.”
With more than 6,200 youngsters in poverty across the region at the last count in 2019/20, this placed Dumfries and Galloway as the seventh worst out of 32 council areas in Scotland.
However, the region’s annual Local Child Poverty Action Report revealed that the Covid measures have piled on the pain for poor families.
The report, due to be tabled at this Thursday’s full council meeting, reads: “The pandemic and the control measures required to reduce direct Covid-19 harm have substantially impacted the lives of our children and young people and their families.
“With significant disruption to how we interact with each other and the functioning of economic, education and health systems and services, the impacts are being felt most by those already at a disadvantage and experiencing inequality before the pandemic, and some of these impacts are likely to endure.
“For children and families with pre-existing vulnerabilities such as domestic abuse, drug and alcohol use, physical health or mental health difficulties, accessing support and protection was more challenging than ever before, placing additional strains on the families affected.”
In 2014/15 there were 5,583 children deemed to be living in poverty – which equates to 23.3 per cent of the region’s youngsters. But the 2019/20 figure had increased to 26.7 per cent of the population.
The annual Local Child Poverty Action Report also underlines how prolonged Covid restrictions and being unable to attend school has traumatised children.
It reads: “Mitigating the disruption caused by the pandemic will require more than a resumption of services but active recovery of missed opportunities and support to manage experiences of adversity and trauma from direct and indirect effects of Covid-19.
“In particular, the pandemic impacted on our children and young people through the closure of all primary and secondary schools within our region.
“This immediately deprived those most in need of a safe space who live in vulnerable households and also the children and young people who rely on the many breakfast clubs running throughout our region and their free school meals which are their only form of meal and nutrition each day.
“The socioeconomic impact of the pandemic on families Coid-19 has exposed and amplified pre-existing levels of social and economic inequality and poverty. Many families experienced – and continue to experience – extensive challenges.
“The measures introduced to suppress the virus have disproportionately affected low-income families with young children.”
While sections of the report make for bleak reading, positive steps taken to reduce the impact on families were highlighted.
These included provision of foot and other essential supplies to families needing support during lockdown, providing direct payments to families entitled to school meals during school closures, and increasing the number of children registered to receive free school meals.
The report concludes: “Partners across Dumfries and Galloway have continued to deliver a very broad range of work to tackle child poverty and mitigate its impacts on local families.
“With a projected rise in poverty rates, child poverty targets will be even more challenging to achieve.
“However, our ambitious plans for the new Developing our Approach to Child Poverty Sub-Group of the Poverty and Inequalities
Partnership should ensure a more robust and action focused plan of activities for 2022 and beyond, focusing our comprehensive support packages on priority family groups.”